Actor Marlee Matlin, director Jason Reitman and producer Jason Blum are joining the Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
The organization that puts on the Oscars said Wednesday that they are among the 12 Hollywood professionals who have been elected to the board for the first time. Others joining are cinematographer Dion Beebe, casting director Richard Hicks, marketing and public relations executive Megan Colligan, documentarian Chris Hegedus, film editor Nancy Richardson, production designer Missy Parker, sound artisan Peter Devlin, VFX maestro Paul Debevec, and Marlon West from the Short Films and Feature Animation Branch of the Academy.
Each of the academy’s 17 branches are represented by three governors who help set and guide the strategy for the academy and manage its financial health. Other governors currently serving include Whoopi Goldberg, Ava DuVernay and Rita Wilson. With this election, a majority of the board is female and 28 percent of members belong to an underrepresented racial or ethnic group.
The academy, and the board, have been under more scrutiny than usual following the incident in which Will Smith slapped Chris Rock during the Oscars ceremony earlier this year. Several days later, the board banned Smith from attending the Oscars or any other academy event for 10 years.
Lindsey Bahr is an AP film writer
