SAG is moving exclusively to online submissions...

…starting next year, though their official website claims to be encouraging the transition now:

In its continuing effort to adhere to environmentally sound practices, the 18th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards® reached out today to more than 1,500 publicists, managers and actors representatives to encourage online submissions of performances for nominations consideration. Submissions opened on July 11 at www.sagawards.org and will close on Thursday, Oct. 27, at 5 p.m. (PST).

Using an appropriately “green” hued emailed flyer, the SAG Awards® explained that while this year submissions forms are still available for download from the SAG Awards website or by calling the SAG Awards office at (323) 549-6707, the 18th Annual SAG Awards are the last for which paper submission forms will be accepted. Those actors or representatives reluctant to submit online are urged to give the process a try, as the SAG Awards will be moving to online submissions exclusively for next year’s 19th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards.

The required accompanying high-resolution .jpg photos of potential nominees may be emailed to awardsphotos@sagawards.org or mailed to the SAG Awards office on CD or DVD. Early submission is recommended.

The Screen Actors Guild Awards was honored in 2009 and again in 2010 with the Environmental Media Association (EMA)’s Green Seal, recognizing a production’s outstanding efforts to implement sustainable initiatives and promote environmental awareness. The SAG Awards has a long history of using the Internet for credentials, submissions and voting. Twelve years ago it pioneered online-only credentialing for media and publicists. It is offering online submissions for nominations consideration for the ninth year, online voting for the nominating committees for the eight year and online voting for final balloting for the seventh year.

The Screen Actors Guild Award—The Actor®—is presented for outstanding performances in motion pictures and primetime television. Actors may submit their own performances from 2011 for consideration in categories of the actor’s choosing. With the actor’s permission, producers, studios/networks, agents, managers, or publicists may also submit performances for consideration in the category designated by the actor. Nominations for the 18th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards will be announced on Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2011 at the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood.

Of the top industry honors presented to performers, only the Screen Actors Guild Awards are selected entirely by actors’ peers. The nominees for performances in 2011, including the distinctive ensemble awards and SAG stunt ensemble honors, will be chosen by two separate film and television nominating panels, each comprised of 2,100 SAG members from across the United States, who were randomly selected in April. Nomination ballots will be mailed on Wednesday, Nov. 23 and voting closes on Monday, Dec. 12.

After nominations are announced, final SAG Awards voting instructions will be mailed Friday, Dec. 30, 2011 to all active members of Screen Actors Guild. Online voting is encouraged. Final voting paper ballots are available only upon request between Monday, Oct. 3, 2011 and Monday, Jan. 16, 2012. Online votes must be cast or previously-requested paper ballots returned by Friday, Jan. 27 to the Guild’s election firm, where results will be sealed until they are opened onstage at the 18th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards on Sunday, Jan. 29, 2012. The ceremony will be simulcast live from the Los Angeles Shrine Exposition Center on TNT and TBS at 8 p.m. ET, 7 p.m. CT, 6 p.m. MT and 5 p.m. PT.

Complete rules and regulations for the 18th Annual SAG Awards are posted at www.sagawards.org/rules.

The Academy changes the rules for Best Picture again!

We'll have more on this later, but for now I'll let the press release speak for itself:

Academy Builds Surprise Into Best Picture Rules

Beverly Hills, CA – The governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences voted on Tuesday (6/14) to add a new twist to the 2011 Best Picture competition, and a new element of surprise to its annual nominations announcement. The Board voted to institute a system that will now produce anywhere between five and 10 nominees in the category. That number won’t be announced until the Best Picture nominees themselves are revealed at the January nominations announcement.

“With the help of PricewaterhouseCoopers, we’ve been looking not just at what happened over the past two years, but at what would have happened if we had been selecting 10 nominees for the past 10 years,” explained Academy President Tom Sherak, who noted that it was retiring Academy executive director Bruce Davis who recommended the change first to Sherak and incoming CEO Dawn Hudson and then to the governors.

During the period studied, the average percentage of first place votes received by the top vote-getting movie was 20.5. After much analysis by Academy officials, it was determined that 5% of first place votes should be the minimum in order to receive a nomination, resulting in a slate of anywhere from five to 10 movies.

“In studying the data, what stood out was that Academy members had regularly shown a strong admiration for more than five movies,” said Davis. “A Best Picture nomination should be an indication of extraordinary merit. If there are only eight pictures that truly earn that honor in a given year, we shouldn’t feel an obligation to round out the number.”

If this system had been in effect from 2001 to 2008 (before the expansion to a slate of 10), there would have been years that yielded 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9 nominees.

The final round of voting for Best Picture will continue to employ the preferential system, regardless of the number of nominees, to ensure that the winning picture has the endorsement of more than half of the voters.

Other rules changes approved by the Board include:

In the animated feature film category, the need for the Board to vote to “activate” the category each year was eliminated, though a minimum number of eligible releases – eight – is still required for a competitive category. Additionally, the short films and feature animation branch recommended, and the Board approved, refinements to the number of possible nominees in the Animated Feature category. In any year in which eight to 12 animated features are released, either two or three of them may be nominated. When 13 to 15 films are released, a maximum of four may be nominated, and when 16 or more animated features are released, a maximum of five may be nominated.

In the visual effects category, the “bakeoff” at which the nominees are determined will expand from seven to 10 contenders. The increase in the number of participants is related to a change made last year in which the number of films nominated in the visual effects category was increased from three to five.

Previously, the Board approved changes to the documentary feature and documentary short category rules that now put those categories’ eligibility periods in line with the calendar year and thus with most other awards categories. The change means that for the 84th Awards cycle only, the eligibility period is more than 12 months; it is from September 1, 2010 to December 31, 2011.

Other modifications of the 84th Academy Awards rules include normal date changes and minor “housekeeping” changes.

Rules are reviewed annually by individual branch and category committees. The Awards Rules Committee then reviews all proposed changes before presenting its recommendations to the Academy’s Board of Governors for approval.

The 84th Academy Awards nominations will be announced live on Tuesday, January 24, 2012, at 5:30 a.m. PT in the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater.

Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2011 will be presented on Sunday, February 26, 2012, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center®, and televised live by the ABC Television Network. The Oscar presentation also will be televised live in more than 200 countries worldwide.

-Joey's Two Cents: For now, I'll just say this...I'm not a fan. Thoughts?

‘Two and a Half Men’ has 50/50 Chance of Returning Says CBS - Decision Soon.

CBS Network brass is still contemplating what to do with “Two and a Half Men”.

With television sweeps starting next month (May), and up-fronts looming, CBS has to make a decision on what to do with season 9 of the once golden sitcom – and fast.

Ever since Charlie Sheen was fired from the show there has been speculation it might return for another season – with or without Uncle Charlie Harper.

Since his firing, Sheen has been on the road with his “Violent Torpedo of Truth” tour and has been telling his audiences that he desperately wants back on the show.

Not so fast says the show’s production staff.

One insider says that there is a 50/50 chance the show will return for another season. And if it does return – there will be changes.

Here is what we know for sure:

- Charlie Sheen is not welcome back on the show.
- Executive producer Chuck Lorre has a plot workaround to either replace Sheen or write him out of the series.
- No official offers have been made to any new actors.
- A decision has to be made before May 18, 2011.
- CBS really does want to try and salvage the show

Chuck Lorre has been telling the media that he has several ideas on how to continue the show – one that increases Jon Cryer’s role, and another puts Ryan Stile’s “Herb Melnick” character in a lead role.

We have also heard a couple unofficial “plot” ideas, sans Charlie Sheen, that all include using the existing actors, sets, writers, and facilities. Seems like a smart idea to us.

Our favorite has Rose downsizing and buying Charlie’s house after he gets thrown in jail in Bangkok. She then allows recently thrown to the curb Herb Melnick to move in with her, Allen, and Jake. Even Berta likes the idea and agrees to stay on.

One insider told reporters,

“The idea would be Rose buys the house and lets Alan, Herb, and Jake live there. We call it ‘Two and a Half Men – and Rose’. There have been lots of variations but it always comes back to the same fundamental movement of actors and their roles. It would be easy – and funny.”

It does sound like a nice clean, and believable, transition that could actually propel the sitcom into a whole new direction – both retaining the old fans and creating new ones.

We say bring us “Two and a Half Men & Rose”