Bloody Sunday film excluded from Oscar nominations

THE Irish film, Bloody Sunday, has been banned from competing for the Oscars because it was shown on Irish and British television on the same night it was premiered in London.

The Academy Award organisers phoned the film’s distributors, Paramount Classics, Wednesday to say the film has been disqualified because it was in breach of rule 3, which says a film cannot be shown on foreign television stations for six months after it is released in cinemas.

Paramount had hoped for Oscar nominations for Northern Ireland actor James Nesbitt, who played civil right campaigner, Ivan Cooper, and for director, Paul Greengrass.

US critics had said that Greengrass was a particularly strong contender for an Oscar, particularly as the film shared the top award for best picture at this year’s Berlin Film Festival and was co-winner of the audience award at the Sundance Film Festival.

Last month, Paramount Classics and Irish producer, Jim Sheridan, sent a letter to Frank Pierson, president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, requesting that the film be allowed to compete.

The letter admits fault but recalls Sir Laurence Olivier won a Best Actor Oscar for Richard III in 1957, though the film had already been shown on US television.

Paramount Classics presidents Ruth Vitale and David Dinerstein said yesterday: “We are extremely disappointed by the Academy’s decision. We have received overwhelming praise from other academy members, filmmakers, distributors and human rights organisations not only for the film itself, but also for our defence of the film’s potential to be considered for the highest honour of all.”

Producer Mark Redhead added: “We don’t make films for awards but we are disappointed that Bloody Sunday is being penalised for not fitting neatly into a narrow category.”

A Paramount Classics spokeswoman said the film’s contribution to the peace process has been widely and publicly praised in unprecedented terms by political leaders from all sides.

The company had decided to campaign for the film’s inclusion because the release strategy was critical to ensuring the picture had the strongest and most beneficial emotional, political, and social impact at a critical time in the peace process.