History of Oscars

Subject : International Relations

Section : Awards and Prizes

Awards

Concept:

The first Oscar statuette was created in 1927 and was sculpted the following year.
The figure was partially based on Mexican filmmaker and actor Emilio Fernández, who was ‘coaxed’ into posing for sketches for the initial design by MGM creative director Cedric Gibbons – the draft sketches were then sent to a young Los Angeles sculptor, George Stanley, who created the legendary figurine.
The Oscar statuette features a knight holding a sword in both hands, standing on a circular base shaped like a spool of film.
The Oscar statuettes were traditionally manufactured in solid bronze and then gilded in 24-karat gold. The procedure has evolved in response to technological advancements.

Process of making

A 3D printer is used to construct a digital Oscar, which is subsequently cast in wax.
After cooling, each wax figure is coated in a ceramic shell and allowed to cure for a few weeks before being fired at 1,600°F.
The wax melts away throughout this procedure, leaving a hollow, Oscar-shaped structure. They are then cooled, sanded, and polished after being cast in liquid bronze.
The statuettes are then taken across town to Brooklyn, where Epner Technologies Inc. electroplates each one in 24-karat gold.

Face Value of One Dollar

The award itself – the trophy – has a face value of only $1, or Rs 82.
Despite its low value, it is not for sale because the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences requires each winner to follow strict rules when it comes to the industry’s most coveted award, including no selling or disposing of the statuette without first offering it back to the Academy for a single dollar bill.
In July 2015, a California judge forbade Oscar winners or their heirs from putting their statuettes up for sale, declaring that they “were never intended to be handled as an article of trade”.