Could Roma Signal a New Era in Hollywood?

Imagine this, for a moment. It’s 1927. You’re about to attend a movie called ‘The Jazz Singer.’ There is phenomenal hype around this new film. You arrive in your seat and the movie begins. The stars you’ve long admired in silence can now be heard in full voice and song. Silent movies were the epicenter of entertainment in the early 1900s until ‘Talkies’ brought about the Golden Age of Hollywood. The press at the time believed Talkies wouldn’t catch on, yet over 90 years since ‘The Jazz Singer’ made its debut, film is still the most popular form of visual entertainment around the world. While the sound, color and action has improved since those early days, not much has changed in how films are made and watched.

In 2007, a new service seemingly came out of nowhere. Netflix, previously known for online DVD rentals, introduced streaming, advertising itself as a new way to watch movies and TV at home. In the decade since, not only does Netflix stream our favorite shows and films, but it has become a part of pop culture (Netflix and Chill anyone?) in creating their own content. Competitors such as Hulu and Amazon Prime Video were also launched and with them, streaming services became a big player in the Hollywood game.

At this year’s Primetime Emmys, for the first time, Netflix came out on top as the most nominated network, beating HBO as the previous ‘go to’ for award winning TV content. With the platform going from strength to strength, the question next is, when will we see our first Netflix Oscar nomination for Best Picture?

There has been much debate about whether Netflix films should be in contention for the Best Picture Oscar. In an article by Variety earlier this year, Spielberg came out in defense of traditional, theatrically released films calling Netflix films “TV movies” due to the fact Netflix have shied away from theatrical release.

It is very clear Netflix have listened to criticism and want to see themselves as Oscar contenders. In 2018, they have changed their approach by releasing some of their originals in movie theaters (‘July 22,’ for example). While it can be argued the current films in the Netflix library aren’t Oscar Best Picture worthy, this is about to change.

‘Roma’ is the film this year that is most likely to see Netflix get that Best Picture nomination and with that nomination in mind, Netflix opened the film in 100 movie theaters for a 3-week running. The pedigree behind this film certainly says ‘Best Picture.’ You’ll know Director Alfonso Cuaron from his Best Director win for film ‘Gravity.’ With ‘Roma,’ we’re taken on a semi-biographical story of Cuaron’s upbringing in 1970s Mexico City (the name taken from Colonia Roma in Mexico City). The story follows the lives of a middle class family and their housekeeper. With the buzz surrounding ‘Roma,’ we could finally see a Best Picture nomination for Netflix.

In this writer’s opinion, it’s about time we saw a change in the way films are being made and awarded. With the increasing number of sequels and remakes, Hollywood is becoming stale (exactly how many ‘Fast and the Furious’ sequels does there need to be before someone says, “Enough already!”). Netflix and its streaming competitors are taking chances on stories that the wider Hollywood studios have vetoed. They’re producing stars (Claire Foy, Rachel Brosnahan….) like the Golden Age of Hollywood. With a declining number of moviegoers, isn’t it about time Hollywood fully embraced this new genre? Its success doesn’t mean tradition needs to go out the window. Audiences are always going to desire the thrill of seeing a new film on the big screen. But there is room in Hollywood for exploration and for stories to be told in a different way. In the way ‘The Jazz Singer’ signaled the start of a new age in Hollywood, maybe ‘Roma’ could be the start of a new age for Netflix and Hollywood as a whole?