The pioneer revenge movie “The Revenant” emerged as the Oscar front-runner on Thursday with 12 nominations but the big news once again was over how the Academy shut out actors of color from the industry’s biggest honors.

For yet another year the Academy’s picks seem to be getting more and more homogenized. As the nominations were announced, people noticed that all 20 contenders for acting awards were white and that films with black themes had been left out of the best picture category, critics and movie goers began asking how the movie industry’s top awards could exclude so many great showings from people of color a second year in a row.

While Jennifer Lawrence walked off with the fourth nomination of her career for her role in “Joy,” a film with mixed reviews, Will Smith’s celebrated performance in “Concussion” received nothing. The only actor nominated for “Creed” was somehow not lead Michael B. Jordan but Sylvester Stallone, and “Dope,” brilliantly written by Rick Famuyiwa and starring Shameik Moore, was snubbed completely. “Tangerine,” a film shot entirely on an iPhone (which this writer feels that alone should have been enough to snag a best cinematography nomination for Sean Baker and Radium Cheung) was also notably absent from the nominations list, along with the breakthrough performances by Mya Taylor and Kitana Kiki Rodriguez going unrecognized by the Academy.

Yes, we saw a few movies driven by actors and directors of color that were nominated by the Academy, but it was for the work of their white colleagues.

“For the two black movies that made over $100 million at the box office, touched a nerve and are artistically fresh, only white people were nominated. How does that work?” producer and academy member Stephanie Allain said to the Los Angeles Times; referring to “Creed” and “Compton.”

Sylvester Stallone was nominated for supporting actor for his performance in Warner Bros.’ “Creed,” but the film’s black writer-director, Ryan Coogler, and black star, Michael B. Jordan, were not. Similarly, “Straight Outta Compton’s” white writers Jonathan Herman and Andrea Berloff were nominated for best original screenplay, but no one else in the film was recognized.

Last year, the Academy also received a lot of backlash after it selected an all-white group of acting nominees for the first time in years. The group’s acting branch, which chooses the nominees in those categories, did not recognize David Oyelowo, who gave what many thought was the best performance of the year as the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in “Selma.” The film also failed to make the cut on the director list, spurring the social-media movement #OscarsSoWhite. With the same thing happening again this year, the hashtag was revived on social media and the new hashtag #OscarsStillSoWhite also emerged after the announcements

Last year the academy responded with a pledge to do better, but while last year’s controversy was mainly over one film being omitted (and the exclusion could have been explained away by campaign-specific factors), things feel different this time around. Academy members this year had a strong pool of movies to draw from and still ended up with an all-white ballot.

In June, the academy invited 322 new members, a large and demographically broad group that reflected a move toward “a normalization of our membership to represent both the industry and the country as a whole,” academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs said at the time. In November, Boone Isaacs also announced a new initiative, A2020, designed to promote inclusion within its staff.

Even though the academy’s leadership is taking steps at inclusion, the voting members as a whole have proved slow to change. But, when it comes to diversity, the film world in general is dragging behind television. Last year, a record 18 black performers were nominated for Emmy Awards and this year’s Oscar snubs become even more upsetting coming as they do on the heels of the Golden Globes, which managed to nominate a diverse mix of actors, writers, and directors in both television and film.

The Academy needs to decide what the Oscars are all about—if the awards are meant to celebrate the best, most innovative work in the industry then it needs to widen its scope as TV has done.

“On every measure, film is a couple steps behind TV,” said Darnell Hunt, director of UCLA’s Ralph J. Bunche Center for African American Studies, in an interview with the Los Angeles Times. “This is, unfortunately, a reflection of the academy itself. The academy is white and male, so we have a taste culture that’s only going to recognize certain types of projects.”

The demographics of the academy aren’t likely to change anytime soon as the 6,261 Oscar voters serve for life, so even large new classes of voters would only move the needle slightly and it’s hard to give the academy a pass because “film drags behind TV,” when you consider other industry nominations.  Both the Screen Actors and Producers guilds nominated “Straight Outta Compton” for their top prizes, and SAG also nominated the Idris Elba film, “Beasts of No Nation,” for its cast and Elba for supporting actor. When you compare the picks by the major industry unions to the academy the whiteness of their choices this year become even more notable.

However, for all the outrage over the acting nominations, the omission of minority actors two years in a row is an aberration in recent Academy history. The last time there were only white acting nominees for two consecutive years was in 1997 and 1998.

Just two years ago the same Academy awarded best picture to “12 Years a Slave” and voted one of its stars, Lupita Nyong’o, best supporting actress.  But “12 Years a Slave” had a narrative that resonated deeply with voters, and even though they were big wins, handing out an award to people of color every now and then is not enough to many.

“Every time I say the same thing: Until we get a position of power, with a green-light vote, it’s not going to change,” Spike Lee said in an interview a few hours after the nominations came out. “We may win an Oscar now and then, but an Oscar is not going to fundamentally change how Hollywood does business. I’m not talking about Hollywood stars. I’m talking about executives. We’re not in the room.”

Which snubs were you most shocked by? Let us know in the comments and see the full list of nominees below.

BEST PICTURE

The Big Short

Bridge of Spies

Brooklyn

Mad Max: Fury Road

The Martian

The Revenant

Room

Spotlight

=============================

ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE

Bryan Cranston, Trumbo

Matt Damon, The Martian

Leonardo DiCaprio, The Revenant

Michael Fassbender, Steve Jobs

Eddie Redmayne, The Danish Girl

=============================

ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE

Cate Blanchett, Carol

Brie Larson, Room

Jennifer Lawrence, Joy

Charlotte Rampling, 45 Years

Saoirse Ronan, Brooklyn

=============================

ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Christian Bale, The Big Short

Tom Hardy, The Revenant

Mark Ruffalo, Spotlight

Mark Rylance, Bridge of Spies

Sylvester Stallone, Creed

=============================

ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Jennifer Jason Leigh, The Hateful Eight

Rooney Mara, Carol

Rachel McAdams, Spotlight

Alicia Vikander, The Danish Girl

Kate Winslet, Steve Jobs

=============================

ANIMATED FEATURE FILM

Anomalisa

Boy and the World

Inside Out

Shaun the Sheep Movie

When Marnie Was There

=============================

CINEMATOGRAPHY

Carol

The Hateful Eight

Mad Max: Fury Road

The Revenant

Sicario

COSTUME DESIGN

Carol

Cinderella

The Danish Girl

Mad Max: Fury Road

The Revenant

=============================

DIRECTING

The Big Short

Mad Max: Fury Road

The Revenant

Room

Spotlight

=============================

DOCUMENTARY (FEATURE)

Amy

Cartel Land

The Look of Silence

What Happened, Miss Simone?

Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for Freedom

=============================

DOCUMENTARY (SHORT SUBJECT)

Body Team 12

Chau, beyond the Lines

Claude Lanzmann: Spectres of the Shoah

A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness

Last Day of Freedom

=============================

FILM EDITING

The Big Short

Mad Max: Fury Road

The Revenant

Spotlight

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

=============================

FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

Embrace of the Serpent

Mustang

Son of Saul

Theeb

A War

=============================

MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING

Mad Max: Fury Road

The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed out

the Window and Disappeared

The Revenant

=============================

MUSIC (ORIGINAL SCORE)

Bridge of Spies

Carol

The Hateful Eight

Sicario

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

=============================

MUSIC (ORIGINAL SONG)

“Earned It,” Fifty Shades of Grey

“Manta Ray,” Racing Extinction

“Simple Song #3,” Youth

“Til It Happens To You,” The Hunting Ground

“Writing’s On The Wall,” Spectre

=============================

PRODUCTION DESIGN

Bridge of Spies

The Danish Girl

Mad Max: Fury Road

The Martian

The Revenant

=============================

SHORT FILM (ANIMATED)

Bear Story

Prologue

Sanjay’s Super Team

We Can’t Live without Cosmos

World of Tomorrow

=============================

SHORT FILM (LIVE ACTION)

Ave Maria

Day One

Everything Will Be Okay (Alles Wird Gut)

Shok

Stutterer

=============================

SOUND EDITING

Mad Max: Fury Road

The Martian

The Revenant

Sicario

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

SOUND MIXING

Bridge of Spies

Mad Max: Fury Road

The Martian

The Revenant

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

=============================

VISUAL EFFECTS

Ex Machina

Mad Max: Fury Road

The Martian

The Revenant

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

=============================

WRITING (ADAPTED SCREENPLAY)

The Big Short

Brooklyn

Carol

The Martian

Room

=============================

WRITING (ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY)

Bridge of Spies

Ex Machina

Inside Out

Spotlight

Straight Outta Compton

Los Angeles (March 1, 2014) – GBK, the luxury lifestyle gift lounge and special events company, partnered with airweave to honor the 2014 Academy Award Nominees and Presenters at the annual Gift Lounge on February 28th and March 1st. Airweave, established in Japan in 2004, is a leading manufacturer of premium bedding toppers and pillows.

Despite the rain in southern California, celebrity guests attended the airweave and GBK Lounge in Beverly Hills to be pampered by the event’s luxury lifestyle sponsors. Guests included Weinstein Co.’s David Glasser, Amy Smart, So You Think You Can Dance’s tWitch and Allison Holker, Alexander Ludwig (The Hunger Games), Boo Boo Stewart, Blanca Lawson, Gracie Gold, Sherri Saum, and many others.

Guests received luxury gifts with a range of trend-setting and unique finds including: Presenting Sponsor Tervis, who gifted personalized Tervis tumblers that are made in America and keep hot drinks hot and cold drinks cold; BLOW e-Hookah, a revolutionary electronic hookah; pet supplies from Support Ur Pet, whose mission is to support pets through supporting their parents; Jigabot AIMe, an automated camera controller that can compose a shot to keep you in frame; Wine Me?, wine glasses that are one-of-a-kind luxury creations personally hand painted by artist Rebecca Suriano; Palace Resorts, who gifted a four day/three night stay for two at the brand’s signature property, Moon Palace Golf and Spa Resort; Duck Commander Meals by Food Supply Dept, providing meal kits pre-packaged for outdoor adventures, natural disaster food insurance and emergency food storage; Activz, a whole-food nutrition kale, wheat grass and coconut powders that quickly increase the nutrition value of any meal; SOUL Electronics, gifting a variety of ultra-premium headphones; Relax 2 Yoga, gifting complimentary Yoga/Pilates training sessions; and ABC Limo, gifting vouchers for complimentary airport transfers to LAX.

And of course some beauty and fashion products were in the mix as well. Minerva Research Labs, The Crave Collection, Brow Art 23, Obagi Skin Health Institute, Sleep-In Rollers, Éminence Organic Skin Care, City Cosmetics, HD Brows, and Very Pretty Skin were all among the companies gifting items. Alto Collective gave guests distinct luxury wood accessories, such as Phone Cases. Minimal Wallet, Fiamma Jewelry, Soul Rx were all on hand to show off their incredible products. PISIDIA, a high end, eco-friendly silicone fashion handbag line; CamiWraps, a stylish attachable bra pocket with adjustable bands that that holds items like cell phones and money; high-end lingerie from Sugarbums; and scarves from Silk by Bryony were also given to guests.

And of course, sweets and treats were provided by various companies including Angie’s Boomchickapop Popcorn, Newman’s Own Wines, Peet’s Coffee & Tea, Sammy’s Beach Bar Rum, and many more.

Check out some photos from the even below:

[See image gallery at hollywoodtimessquare.com]

This weekend marks the first weekend of rain in L.A. in months (we literally couldn’t remember the last time we saw rain), but we think the real reason for all that extra traffic is the Academy Awards. It’s that time of year when all of Hollywood shuts down and even the local pet store has planned some sort of Oscar related shindig. And while, your whole life may not be consumed with figuring out who’s going to win Hollywood’s most coveted award, you also probably don’t want to sound like the last movie you watched was in black and white when the topic comes up. So, with Oscar Sunday just a couple of days away and because making bets is pretty much an American past time, we are going to tell you who you should put your money on in the office pool.

(If you haven’t seen all of the nominated movies at least take the weekend to binge watch some of the ones we mention. It’ll be really easy for those of you living in L.A. since the rain has basically rendered all of us useless for the next 48 hours.)

Best Picture
 Rosemary’s Choice: “Gravity”

Frances’ Choice: “12 Years a Slave

Director

 Rosemary’s Choice: Alfonso Cuaron, “Gravity”

Frances’s Choice: Alfonso Cuaron, “Gravity”

Lead Actor

 Rosemary’s Choice: Matthew McConaughey, “Dallas Buyers Club”

Frances’s Choice: Matthew McConaughey, “Dallas Buyers Club”

Lead Actress

 Rosemary’s Choice: Cate Blanchett, “Blue Jasmine”

Frances’s Choice: Cate Blanchett, “Blue Jasmine”

Supporting actor

 Rosemary’s Choice: Jared Leto, “Dallas Buyers Club”

Frances’s Choice: Jared Leto, “Dallas Buyers Club”
Supporting Actress

 Rosemary’s Choice: Jennifer Lawrence, “American Hustle”

Frances’s Choice: Lupita Nyong’o, “12 Years a Slave”
Animated Feature Film

 Rosemary’s Choice: “Frozen”

Frances’s Choice: “Frozen”

After much anticipation and lots of predictions, the Oscar nominations were finally released today. Leading the pack were “American Hustle” and “Gravity with ten nominations each. Although it was a great year for film, it made the race for Oscar’s nominations a tough one. “Fruitvale Station” was completely left out of the nominations. Tom Hanks and Robert Redford were left out of the Best Actor nominations, as was Emma Thompson for Best Actress.

Who do you feel deserved to be nominated?

Full list of nominations below:

Best Picture:

“American Hustle”

“Captain Phillips”

“Dallas Buyers Club”

“Gravity”

“Her”

“Nebraska”

“Philomena”

“12 Years a Slave”

“The Wolf of Wall Street”

Best Supporting Actor:

Barkhad Abdi, “Captain Phillips”

Bradley Cooper, “American Hustle”

Jonah Hill, “The Wolf of Wall Street”

Michael Fassbender, “12 Years a Slave”

Jared Leto, “Dallas Buyers Club”

Best Supporting Actress:

Sally Hawkins, “Blue Jasmine”

Jennifer Lawrence, “American Hustle”

Lupita Nyong’o, “12 Years a Slave”

Julia Roberts, “August: Osage County”

June Squibb, “Nebraska”

Best Director:

David O. Russell, “American Hustle”

Alfonso Cuaron, “Gravity”

Alexander Payne, “Nebraska”

Steve McQueen, “12 Years a Slave”

Martin Scorsese, “The Wolf of Wall Street”

Best Actor:

Christian Bale, “American Hustle”

Bruce Dern, “Nebraska”

Leonardo DiCaprio, “The Wolf of Wall Street”

Chiwetel Ejiofor, “12 Years a Slave”

Matthew McConaughey, “Dallas Buyer’s Club”

Best Actress:

Amy Adams, “American Hustle”

Cate Blanchett, “Blue Jasmine”

Sandra Bullock, “Gravity”

Judi Dench, “Philomena”

Meryl Streep, “August: Osage County”

Best Original Screenplay:

“American Hustle”

“Blue Jasmine”

“Dallas Buyers Club”

“Her”

“Nebraska”

Best Adapted Screenplay:

“Before Midnight”

“Captain Phillips”

“Philomena”

“12 Years a Slave”

“The Wolf Of Wall Street”

Best Animated Feature:

“The Croods”

“Despicable Me 2″

“Ernest & Celestine”

“Frozen”

“The Wind Rises”

Best Foreign Feature:

“The Broken Circle Breakdown,” Belgium

“The Great Beauty,” Italy

“The Hunt,” Denmark

“The Missing Picture,” Cambodia

“Omar,” Palestine

Best Visual Effects:

“Gravity”

“The Hobbit: The Desolation”

“Iron Man 3″

“The Lone Ranger”

“Star Trek Into Darkness”

Best Cinematography:

“The Grandmaster”

“Gravity”

“Inside Llewyn Davis”

“Nebraska”

“Prisoners”

Best Costume Design:

“American Hustle”

“The Grandmaster”

“The Great Gatsby”

“The Invisible Woman”

“12 Years a Slave”

Best Documentary Feature:

“The Act of Killing”

“Cutie and the Boxer”

“Dirty Wars”

“The Square”

“20 Feet from Stardom”

Best Documentary Short:

“CaveDigger”

“Facing Fear”

“Karama Has No Walls”

“The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life”

“Prisoner Terminal: The Last Days of Private Jack Hall”

Best Film Editing:

“American Hustle”

“Captain Phillips”

“Dallas Buyers Club”

“Gravity”

“12 Years a Slave”

Best Makeup and Hairstyling:

“Dallas Buyers Club”

“Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa”

“The Lone Ranger”

Best Music (Original Score):

“The Book Thief”

“Gravity”

“Her”

“Philomena”

“Saving Mr. Banks”

Best Music (Original Song):

“Alone Yet Not Alone” from “Alone Yet Not Alone”

“Happy” from “Despicable Me”

“Let It Go” from “Frozen”

“The Moon Song” from “Her”

“Ordinary Love” from “Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom”

Best Production Design:

“American Hustle”

“Gravity”

“The Great Gatsby”

“Her”

“12 Years a Slave”

Best Short Film, Animated:

“Feral”

“Get a Horse!”

“Mr. Hublot”

“Possessions”

“Room on the Broom”

Best Short Film, Live Action:

“Aquel No Era Yo (That Wasn’t Me)”

“Avant Que De Tout Perdre” (Just Before Losing Everything)

“Helium”

” Pitääkö Mun Kaikki Hoitaa?” (Do I Have to Take Care of Everything?)

“The Voorman Problem”

Best Sound Editing:

“All Is Lost”

“Captain Phillips”

“Gravity”

“The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug”

“The Lone Survivor”

Best Sound Mixing:

“Captain Phillips”

“Gravity”

“The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug”

“Inside Llewyn Davis”

“Lone Survivor”

The popular events company, GBK hosted its annual Oscars Gifting Lounge at the W Hotel in Hollywood

Melissa McCarthy at GBK's Oscar Gifting Lounge (credit: Tiffany Rose from WireImage)

this weekend.

As if the Academy Awards weren’t already glamorous enough, celebrities got to spend the weekend perusing several different suites getting free swag. Even with all the choices available to celebs, GBK managed to put on the most spectacular suite of them all.

This invitation only lounge started on Friday morning and ended Saturday evening. Honored guests included the nominees, presenters, and many other well known celebrities.

Upon arriving, attendees were immediately greeted with luxury–edible luxury. Vendors in the main hallway were serving up delicious high end treats. Guests with a sweet tooth indulged in designer caramel apples by Apple Revolution. While those with a salt craving tried California Caviar’s customized xavier collection. The appetizers were then washed down with organic wines from Domodimonti Natural Wine.

Once everyone’s appetites were satisfied, people moved on to explore the extravagant and unique gifts. The Artisan Group, a collective of over 700 artists and entrepreneurs, presented guests with handmade jewelry, soaps, knitted hats, and pet toys. Fans of sparkle were treated Canadian jewelry designer, Karen McClintock‘s creative pieces. Adorned with colorful crystals, silver leaves, and antique coins, McClintock’s jewelry was the perfect mix of whimsy and classic. Celebrities with an eye for more traditional bling snagged some of Lafonn’s simulated diamond jewelry. At less than half the price of regular diamonds, Lafonn is also affordable for those of us who don’t make millions a year.

Of course no gifting suite is complete without beauty and health products. The toxin free nail company, Julep, was on hand giving guests manicures and showing off its new Oscar collection. The seven colors in the collection were all named after this year’s best actress nominees. They also featured a gold glitter polish called Oscar. Celebrities trying to find the fountain of youth gravitated towards Kiwifox’s age defying moisturizer and under eye cream. Other popular health and beauty products included thinkThin nutrition bars, TEI Spa Essentials, Green Polka Dot Box organic foods, and the Glymed Plus skin care system.

The A-list celebrities at the lounge also received a Lumeria Maui luxury retreat. The package includes yoga classes, water activities, metaphysical studies, horticulture and Hawaiian history and culture.

The weekend’s festivities also spotlighted a variety of good causes. Every year, GBK president Gavin B. Kelly invites charities and foundations to educate the public on important issues.Points With Purpose displayed a beautiful black and white pointillism drawing as a show of support to rape and sexual abuse survivors.  Chick Boss designs gifted their handmade jewelry and scarves, all of which were crafted by impoverished people from Guatemala. The company’s goal is to educate and increase the economic circumstances of its workers.

Celebrities to make an appearance throughout the weekend included: Melissa McCarthy, Penelope Ann Miller, J.K. Simmons, Cheech Marin, Jon Bernthal, Cress Williams, Lauri Holden, Sugar Ray Leonard, Frankie Muniz, AnnaLynn McCord, and Holly Robinson Peete, to name a few.

Slideshow photos by Aja Dang.

Reach Frances Vega here and follow her on Twitter.

Reach contributer Aja Dang here and follow her on Twitter.

Neon Tommy talks to the president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and gets the
scoop on what he thinks of Tuesday morning’s nominations announcement and the films that landed an Oscar nod for this year’s awards ceremony.

Reach senior entertainment editors Sarah and Frances here and here.