For decades the Oscars had been a pretty homogenized affair. For the larger part of its lifespan Oscar nominations and awards were always pretty much vanilla in nature. Occasionally, guys like Sydney Portier peppered things up a bit, but these were usually the exception that proved the rule. The same has been true when it comes to which film genre's get the golden cow of acting. Avatar and District 9, by getting nominee nods, did more to bring attention to just how ritually overlooked the science-fiction genre really is. As Oscar hopefuls, many thought that this would be the year of sci-fi coming out of the closet. Alas, as Black actors would advise the genre: "baby steps, man. Just take it one step at a time. It will happen eventually."

Personally, I long for the day when Animé is given the same mainstream respect as Pixar movies. Actually, let me take that back. I long for the day when its given even more respect than a Pixar movie. I enjoy Pixar's stuff and they certainly know their audience, so I'm not criticizing when  I focus on the family nature of their films. Animé on the other hand is for the adult that can be found in all children, and for the child that can be found in all adults. For American eyes, the animated format gives it a default association with "child's play", but the themes and topics touched on in Animé can be more sophisticated than those found in live-action Oscar ready dramas. Exhibit A would be Mamoru Oshii and his somewhat recent full feature animation The Sky Crawlers. Plots too can be complex, juggling ensemble characters and story lines versus the linear formats of most Hollywood films. Exhibit B, in this case would be Jin-Roh directed by Hiroyuki Okiura. Finally, you have animators like Satoshi Kon who delivers a fine balance of cerebral entertainment. Even the works of Hayao Miyazaki, which are deceptively complex beyond the children accessible exterior. His narrative storytelling which seemingly throws one random event after another until unexpectedly reaching the end is a wonderful deviation from the three-act structure we so often find from Disney, Pixar and DreamWorks animation. And God bless the man for staying away from those damn recitatives so often found in American animation.

Like science-fiction, animé takes the internal life of its characters and the external pressures that surround them very seriously; even when the films present themselves as action, comedy and kid flicks – three Hollywood genres that, with only a few exceptions, typically bypass opportunities to make serious statements about life and living. Cliché political statements from Hollywood action films? Sure, we see those. Cliché emotional statements form Hollywood comedies? Sometimes, especially when it is a Rom-Com. Cliché self-empowering and social acceptance statements statements from Hollywood kids flicks? Always. Think AstroBoy. And I don't mean to pick on AstroBoy, since there are better examples to found. But here is a perfect example of material that, in its original Japanese form, was rich in political subtext about race riots of the 60s, but once Americanized was neutralized and refitted into innocuous platitudes for kids. Ironic that animé, which often takes the importance of good storytelling seriously, is usually not taken seriously by the Academy of good storytelling. To be fair, Animé has had its share of Oscars, but not enough of them to give it its fair share of respect. For example, close friend of mine who teaches philosophy on the University level admitted that he found it difficult to appreciate the overt philosophy of Ghost in the Shell because of the movie being animated "and not real." Pity. Science-ficiton has the same stigma. It's many virtues and statements that are worth hearing go unheard because it is usually based in a world or time that isn't "real."

Pity.

Naysayers and nitpickers might point out all of the shit animé as counter-evidence to the point, but that's about as hair brained as pointing out the shit Hollywood films as evidence against the credibility of Hollywood movies. The idea here is to focus on the masters of the genre, not the hacks. There are giants and genius who produce important mainstream Hollywood films. Likewise, there are giants and geniuses who produce important animé films. Both deserve to be taken seriously.

But hey, baby steps, man. One step at a time. It will happen... eventually.

Yes, eventually.