Oscars 2019 Round Table: A Group Chat

It is the night before the 91st Academy Awards. After months of speculation, triumphs, and disappointments alike, the world of Hollywood film is at odds again, and nothing is certain nor guaranteed.

So to mark this occasion, the team at Rough Cut are going to try something a little different. Don’t be alarmed; we aim only to surprise and shake things up from the traditional listicles, predictions, and wish-lists.

Part of our ethos here at Rough Cut is that criticism comes in all forms. In a fast-moving technological and creative climate, the way we express ideas and feelings has never felt more varied or exciting. Listening out for the greedy pinging of one’s smartphone has replaced the ritual of laying across the bed and twirling the phone cord around your finger as you dissect your thoughts. Our team are physically spread across Sydney and Melbourne, but what we lack in proximity, we make up for in constant correspondence. Thanks to Facebook group chats, we can talk about movies with each other any day at any time.

In a wider sense, this also rings true to the film community spread across the world, who share our passion of cinema – bonding us across time zones and countries. That love of movies and dedication to the internet bind us together. Whether it be on Twitter or Instagram DMs, Whats App, Facebook, or good old-fashioned texting, the discussions we have with each other about film are as critically engaging and invigorating as any formal review we write. Our messages are their own form of discourse. Much like a podcast, this is just a different way of recording a conversation – typos, instinctual reactions, and emojis, all inclusive and mostly unabridged.

We present to you the 2019 Oscars Roundtable, featuring the founders and staff writers of Rough Cut — in group chat form.

Collated, hosted and organised by Claire White.