A look at new members invited by The Academy this year, from Vidya Balan in India to Emerald Fennell overseas

Bollywood star Vidya Balan, and film producers Ekta Kapoor and mother Shobha Kapoor, are among 395 new members invited this year by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

In an announcement shared on its website, The Academy said the list includes artistes and executives from 50 countries who have distinguished themselves by their contributions to theatrical motion pictures.

Who have been invited to join The Academy from India?

• Balan, who was recently seen in Amazon Prime Video India movie Sherni, joins the class of 2021
• Mother-daughter producer duo Ekta Kapoor and Shobha Kapoor, known for backing Hindi films like The Dirty Picture, Udta Punjab, and Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai, are part of the list of producers joining in as new members.
• From Indian film industry, Oscar winner AR Rahman, megastar Amitabh Bachchan, superstars Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan, and Salman Khan, as well as producers Aditya Chopra and Guneet Monga are already the Academy members.

Who have been invited to join The Academy overseas?

• New invitees from this year’s Oscar nominees include Maria Bakalova (Borat Subsequent Moviefilm), Andra Day (The United States vs. Billie Holiday), and Paul Raci (Sound of Metal), as well winners like Minari’s Youn Yuh-jung, Mank cinematographer Erik Messerschmidt, singer-songwriter HER and Promising Young Woman writer Emerald Fennell.
• Fennell was also invited to the director’s branch alongside fellow 2021 nominee Lee Isaac Chung (Minari). Those invited in multiple branches must decide which they want to join.
• A recent Oscar nomination does not guarantee an invite, but it is a starting point for selecting artists and executives, like The Walt Disney Co CEO Bob Chapek, who have made significant contributions to film.
• The list of invitees also includes UTA chief Jeremy Zimmer, Apple TV+ chiefs Jamie Erlicht and Zack Van Amburg, Entertainment Studios head Byron Allen, Skydance Media chief David Ellison, and Netflix director of original animation and family features Janet Wu.
• Other acting invitees include Carrie Coon (The Nest), Kingsley Ben-Adir (One Night in Miami), Henry Golding (Crazy Rich Asians), Clea DuVall (Zodiac), Hugh Bonneville (Paddington 2), Stephen Root (Office Space), Eiza González (Baby Driver), and Jonathan Majors (Da 5 Bloods).
• Among the directors invited are Lizzie Borden (Born in Flames), George C Wolfe (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom), Janizca Bravo (Zola), Shaka King (Judas and the Black Messiah), Nia DaCosta (Candyman), Cathy Yan (Birds of Prey), Craig Brewer (Hustle & Flow), and Jonathan Glazer (Under the Skin)

Push in diversity

• The Academy, that has been focusing on diversity since 2015's the #OscarsSoWhite uproar, said the class of 2021 features 46 percent women, 39 percent underrepresented ethnic/racial communities, and 53 percent international artistes from 49 countries outside of the US.
• The Academy said the number invited to membership was limited to roughly half that of recent years, to "enable steady future growth and to ensure the necessary infrastructure, staff resources, and environment to support all Academy members."
• The Academy’s Board of Governors voted on branch-specific guidelines to be applied in determining the new membership invitees this year.
• The Academy has said it remains committed to broadening its own lens over the next few years.

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