PGA crashes Bob Yari's Oscar party

Court denies 'Crash' producer Academy Award

By DIANE GARRETT

For the past eight years, PGA exec director Vance Van Petten has waged a pitched battle against the proliferation of producer credits on behalf of the guild.

Galvanized by the appearance of five producers onstage to accept the Oscar for "Shakespeare in Love" in 1999, the guild worked with the TV and motion picture academies to set up an elaborate vetting process for their kudocasts. But then Bob Yari sued two years ago when he was denied producer eligibility for "Crash."

Van Petten, a lawyer by training, was understandably pleased when a California appeals court denied Yari's claim last week, ruling that private orgs should determine who gets their awards.

The decision should put the issue to rest, says Van Petten. "Yari is a perfect test case."

The PGA exec director points out that producing a film requires a lot more than providing financing or convincing talent to board a project.

"You can't just give $7 million for 'Crash.' That's not what a producer is. It's like an actor doing a cameo and saying that should be considered a leading role."

Under its Oscar vetting process, first put into use the year "Crash" was up for awards, the guild investigates the role that producers played in all Oscar contenders, interviewing participants before determining which ones should be eligible. "We do it prior to nominations in October and November, before there's any heat and pressure," Van Petten says.

The Academy originally restricted the eligibility to three producers or fewer but revisited the rule after it was determined that five producers played pivotal roles in the making of "Little Miss Sunshine."

The good news, Van Petten says, is that the number of producers up for contention has been going down every year as the eligibility requirement becomes clearer.

And that, Van Petten, has been the goal all along. "In essence, it's our mission," he says.