Some 2015 Oscar nominees join Take Two to talk about their bids. Leimert Park, the cultural and artistic hub of black Los Angeles, is about to undergo some changes. And, Ray Bradbury's Cheviot Hills home was torn down.
Academy Award nominations: The whitest Oscars in a generation?
The 2015 Oscar nominees were announced early Thuesday morning. There were a few surprises, but as SCPR's The Frame host John Horn says, not a single person of color was nominated in any acting category. This is, according to Horn's calculation, the whitest Oscars in 16 years.
While the civil rights story "Selma" was nominated for Best Picture, it failed to garner any other significant nominations.
Horn noted, at least the Academy was welcoming to two very experimental films, "Birdman" and "Boyhood." Still, he says, the years of complaining about lack of diversity in Hollywood seem to be having little impact on the voting members of the Academy.
Oscar Roundup: Hard-earned nods, some snubs, and a lack of diversity overall
Nominations for the Academy Awards were announced early Thursday. The list is brought to you by the letter B -- for Boyhood, Budapest and, of course, Birdman.
“Birdman (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)” and “The Grand Budapest Hotel” dominated the nominee lists with nine nominations each.
For a roundup of the nominees, Take Two began Thursday's Oscar-centric show with a conversation with our nominee for Best Arts and Entertainment Radio Journalist (wink) -- The Frame’s John Horn.
Horn joined the show Thursday morning to talk about some well-deserved nods and some snubs, including one big surprise this year -- a lack of diversity among the nominees in the acting categories. In fact, not a single actor of color received a nomination for best actor/actress or supporting actor/actress.
Here are the Best Actor nominees:
- Steve Carell in “Foxcatcher”
- Bradley Cooper in “American Sniper”
- Benedict Cumberbatch in “The Imitation Game”
- Michael Keaton in “Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)”
- Eddie Redmayne in “The Theory of Everything"
And the nominees for Best Actress:
- Marion Cotillard in “Two Days, One Night”
- Felicity Jones in “The Theory of Everything”
- Julianne Moore in “Still Alice”
- Rosamund Pike in “Gone Girl”
- Reese Witherspoon in “Wild”
The Best Supporting Actress nominees:
- Patricia Arquette, "Boyhood"
- Laura Dern, "Wild"
- Keira Knightley, "The Imitation Game"
- Emma Stone, "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)"
- Meryl Streep, "Into The Woods"
And the nominees for Best Supporting Actor:
- Robert Duvall, "The Judge"
- Ethan Hawke, "Boyhood"
- Edward Norton, "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)"
- Mark Ruffalo, "Foxcatcher"
- J.K. Simmons, "Whiplash"
It was also a surprise to some that the film Selma did not receive any nominations for performances. But it did pick up one for best picture of the year.
Watch the trailer for "Selma:"
Here are the Best Picture nominees:
- "American Sniper"
- "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)"
- "Boyhood"
- "The Grand Budapest Hotel"
- "The Imitation Game"
- "Selma"
- "The Theory of Everything"
- "Whiplash"
Many films honored with nominations this year were very difficult to shoot. One in particular is "Boyhood," widely considered one of the front-runners for Best Picture after taking home the Golden Globe statue for Best Picture, Drama days ago. The film was shot over the course of twelve years with the same cast.
Another Best Picture nominee, “The Imitation Game,” was also tough to get produced. The film's screenplay topped the annual Black List for best unproduced Hollywood scripts in 2011 before a bidding war erupted amid several studios and the film was eventually made. The film received eight Academy Award nominations.
That’s quite a feat, considering that two of the producers behind it are complete newcomers to filmmaking. Nora Grossman and Ido Ostrowsky joined Take Two Thursday to talk about the challenges they faced in getting the film made.
Watch the trailer for "The Imitation Game:"
It's no secret that films in the animated category are typically very labor intensive and hard to produce. But the stop-motion film “The Boxtrolls” was particularly grueling to make. The hard work of Laika animation studios paid off, though, and the film is nominated for the Best Animated Feature Oscar.
Travis Knight is the head of Laika pictures and he joined Take Two to about receiving recognition for his team’s dedication to the art of stop-motion animation.
And a film nominated in the Best Documentary Category was not only difficult to make, but also dangerous to shoot. “Virunga” documents a group of rangers in war-torn Congo, who risk their lives to help protect the planet's last remaining mountain gorillas. The film’s director, Orlando von Einsiedel, is a former professional snowboarder turned first-time filmmaker. He joined Take Two to talk about the constant threat the film’s main characters are under, and their dedication to their cause.
Watch the trailer for "Virunga:"
Be sure to listen to Take Two's chats with many of the guests mentioned above, as well as with nominees for "The Grand Budapest Hotel" and "Whiplash."
For more on all the other 2015 Academy Award nominations, check in with Southern California Public Radio's The Frame here.
Will a minimum wage hike make LA housing more affordable?
If Los Angeles raises its minimum wage, more people would be able to afford housing here -- at least that's what Mayor Eric Garcetti hopes.
L.A. has been rated the most unaffordable city in America by Harvard and UCLA, and the problem is only getting worse. But will raising the minimum wage really help? SCPR’s Ben Bergman joins Take Two to help answer that question.
Read Ben Bergman's full story: LA and the $15 minimum wage: It all started accidentally at a Washington airport
Leimert Park: Big changes for LA's historic heart of African American culture
Leimert Park has long been a cultural and artistic hub for African-Americans in Los Angeles, home to jazz clubs, cafés and art galleries. Now big changes are coming to the neighborhood. There's a new metro stop, the multimillion-dollar renovation of a historic theater and the conversion of a main thoroughfare into a pedestrian walkway.
"It's so exciting," said Sherri Franklin, an urban designer and one of the leaders of a group overseeing the revitalization, called the 20/20 Vision Initiative. She said the plans are tied to the legacy of the area.
"Culture, and the economy of culture and art, is a driving force here in Leimert," said Franklin. "The plans, such as the renovation of the historic Vision Theater, first built in 1931, aim to draw on that."
On a recent visit to the theater, she pointed out the original terrazzo tiles beneath the neon marquee, an indication that the first phase of the renovations is complete.
"Beautiful," said Franklin, looking out from the lobby, where the curb had already been painted red, ready for a broad walk street in the main business district. "It is changing."
Crenshaw Line expansion
Another big change is a planned Metro stop just a block from the Vision Theater, where these days a chain link fence borders the street, marking where the entrance to the underground station will be. It's part of a $2 billion expansion on the 8.5-mile line that will run south from Exposition Boulevard. It's expected to open in 2019, according to the MTA.
The station came to Leimert after a long fight led by business owners and community leaders.
"It’s on the move again and it’s going to be very good," said Sika, a jewelry maker and sculptor, who owns an African art shop on Degnan Boulevard.
Dwight Trible, director of The World Stage, a performance space a few doors down from Sika's, agrees. He said he welcomes the metro station and the potential for more business and foot traffic, but he said he's also concerned about what all that could bring.
"You don’t miss things until it’s gone," said Trible. "The reason that you're coming here in the first place is because Leimert Park was started as a grassroots movement with grassroots artists."
Many of those artists have a home in places like The World Stage, which was founded in 1989 by jazz drummer Billy Higgins, pianist Horace Tapscott and poet Kamau Daáood.
As more people come to the area, Trible said he hopes that legacy will be preserved.
"I pray that they will remember how this thing started and why they are here," said Trible.
Some of that uncertainty is shared by business owners.
On a recent afternoon, James Fugate, the co-owner of the Esowon Bookstore, pointed down the block, where about half the storefronts were closed in the early afternoon. He said the area needed more people and businesses with regular hours.
One store that was open was the Ackee Bamboo Jamaican restaurant, where owner Marlene Sinclair-Beckford sat and looked out over a near-empty room of tables.
"I look forward to the change," said Beckford. "I perceive that the rent will go up, but I strongly believe our business will pick up and we'll be able to cover it."
All of this potential for change raises a deeper question of ownership among African-Americans in Leimert Park and what’s considered progress, said Ben Caldwell, founder of the KAOS Network, a media group and performance space.
"Our community is owned by blacks, but they’re owned by a new sense of what black is. It’s not a BBQ shop, it’s not a beauty shop, it’s high finance and brokering," said Caldwell. "We have to re-look at what black is and black ownership within this 21st century."
Clarification: The Crenshaw/LAX line is an expansion of the overall metro system. The Crenshaw/LAX line itself is scheduled to open in 2019.
Correction: World Stage Executive Director Dwight Trible’s last name was mispelled in the original post of this story. It’s been corrected. KPCC regrets the error.
Ray Bradbury's LA home in demolition process
Ray Bradbury lived in the Cheviot Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles for more than 50 years.
His 2,500-square-foot home had three bedrooms, was painted in a bright yellow hue and was built in 1937. It was also loaded with original details to suit the famous author's fancy.
But when Bradbury died in 2012, the home was sold, and now, the abode is being torn down.
Carolyn Kellogg has written about the home for the Los Angeles Times, and she joins Take Two.
State of Affairs: Kamala Harris, Gov. Brown's budget and RNC in San Diego
On this week's "State of Affairs," the race to replace Senator Barbara Boxer, Governor Brown unveils a new budget, and GOP big wigs head to San Diego.
Capital Public Radio's state government reporter Katie Orr and Jack Pitney, politics professor at Claremont McKenna College, joined Take Two for a look at the week in California politics.
New West Holllywood law requires gender-neutral public restrooms
A new law in the city of West Hollywood goes into effect today. The city ordinance requires all single-stall restrooms in businesses and public places to be gender-neutral. City officials say the regulation is designed to better serve members of transgender population and families with parents who have children of the opposite sex.
West Hollywood City Councilmember Abbe Land joined Take Two to explain more about how the law works and why it's needed.
World Dog Awards highlights canines in pop culture
While the Oscars dominated conversation Thursday, the awards show does have one category of performers that is missing: animals.
However, there is a ceremony to bestow prizes on our furry friends. It's called the World Dog Awards.
For more, we turn to Bob Horowitz, President of Juma and Executive Producer of the World Dog Awards.