In this era of social media, where opinions can be voiced with the least effort from keyboard muscle, award shows have been accused of all kinds of atrocities. They have been accused of giving awards to people that they like, or sometimes you have seen groups on the internet that have accused them of being flat-out racist because they feel like there are just certain people who win these awards. At the same time, there are other works out there that could have been better. These opinions are not limited to movie awards but also music awards, as seen in the just concluded Grammys, where the internet gets lit up again as to who should have gotten which award.

But there is something about an award where the voting system is strictly amongst your peers; this is where your cohorts get to validate your craft. This should be the award that any creative person should crave; this is why most actors covet the SAG awards. Another award that I would deem close to this is the Critics’ Choice Award, but we should not forget that critics are humans susceptible to their subjective point of view and can only see movies through their own lenses; this is why critics will always have mixed opinions. Meanwhile, the actors can appreciate the effort that goes into the art before they can cast an honest vote.

For people like me who are non-actors but appreciate the craft and the efforts of movie directors who put in the extra effort to bring out the best in performers, this is one of the awards I tend to mark my calendar with, and that is the reason I was thankful to Netflix for live-streaming it. I believe that there is no review like a peer review because these are the people who do the same things that you do; this is the reason that I want to believe that even if all awards are tainted with controversy, this should be the one that should remain unstained. No one can vouch for something they did not witness by themselves, so if anything appears to be happening in the background of the SAG awards, it remains to be known.

With diverse opinions and social media being a strong driver, the audience is a powerful determinant of a film’s success. The leading indices to measure the success of a movie are the box office numbers. For a film released on a streaming platform, you would want to measure how many times it was streamed or how many new subscribers signed up because the movie or show dropped on the platform. The audiences are the ones who will spend their hard-earned money and use their limited time to go see a movie. So, as much as the craft may be appreciated, the business must turn a profit unless a filmmaker decides to make a film just for the sake of; I am still waiting to learn about one.

Therefore, more than artist appreciation will be needed to pay the bills of artists in the industry; that is why many actors out there thrive on their popularity but can’t really act. The filmmakers only take a gamble on the fact that people will see the movie because of who is on it. Before transitioning to movies, these kinds of movie stars may have gained popularity from some other form of art. I’m not naming any names, but I’m sure you have your picks.

Getting validation amongst your peers is great, but getting handsomely rewarded for your work as an actor is better, and there is nothing wrong with having both. There is this thing about creative people not needing money to validate their art; some may think that art does not need money to validate creativity. However, the concept of a starving artist could be more exciting and can only be permitted for a while. It should be forgotten once the artist gets rewarded for their work. So, an appeal that transcends beyond one’s peers in the industry should be coveted because society at large only interprets visible success that is evident to all as validation for artistry.