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Journalism of Courage
No matter who walks home with the coveted golden statuette on March 13 after the 95th annual Academy Awards, one thing is guaranteed — nobody will be going back empty-handed.
Every year, gifts worth thousands of dollars are bestowed upon those who make it to the Oscars nominee list in the prime categories. Unaffiliated to the Academy, and distributed by Los Angeles-based marketing company Distinctive Assets since 2002, the “Everyone Wins” gift bag is estimated to cost a whopping $126,000 this year.
Here is what is inside it, and a brief history of the tradition itself.
Featuring over 60 items, the bag this year is filled with several beauty and lifestyle gifts, luxury vacations — including a $40,000 getaway to a Canadian estate called The Lifestyle, and a stay for eight people in a restored Italian lighthouse — and ‘a symbolic souvenir’ of a piece of land in Queensland, Australia.
Those who want to revamp their homes, meanwhile, can use the $25,000 worth project management fees for home restoration from Maison Construction. There are also several rejuvenation procedures that are reportedly part of the package, including lipo arm sculpting, hair restoration services, and a facelift.
While over 50 per cent of the products reportedly come from companies that are women and minority-owned, the gifts will be delivered in Havaianas suitcases this year. Inside are skincare products from Miage, a silk pillowcase from Blush Silks, a travel pillow from PETA, and products from Ariadne Athens Skin Wellness, All Better Co., Bored Rebel, Daily Energy Cards, Effecti-cal, Kind Reason Co., KnowingLabs, Maison Construction, NaturGeeks, Rareté Studios, ReFa, Proflexa, Oxygenetix, and The Millions-Billions-Trillions Brand, among others. The least expensive gifts include a pack of Clif Thins priced at $13.56, and an $18 loaf of Japanese milk bread from Ginza Nishikawa.
The Oscar gift bags are given to the hosts and the nominees for Best Director, Best Actress, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, and Best Supporting Actress. The recipients also have the right to refuse to accept gifts. Last year, actor Denzel Washington reportedly declined his, and actor JK Simmons donated it to a charity auction, as did George Clooney in 2006.
Incidentally, while the products and services in the bag come free, the recipient does need to pay taxes on it, as it is considered an income.
According to news reports, by the 1990s, the tradition of giving gifts to presenters and performers had become a norm at the Oscars ceremony. While initially, the brands were charged no fee to donate, now participation requires them to shell out a minimum of $4,000. Several other changes have also taken place over the years, with one of the biggest being the complete dissociation of selection and bestowing of gifts by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences in 2006.
The “swag bags” associated with the awards are now curated by niche marketing company Distinctive Assets, founded by Lash Fary. While the company has been known to dole out expensive hampers, in 2016, it had a direct confrontation with the Academy when the “bag” included marijuana vape pens, sex toys, and a vampire breast lift, which the Academy reportedly did not want to be linked with, and thought was damaging to its reputation, as was the elevating estimated costs of these gifts. Thereafter, Distinctive Assets can no longer use Academy trademarks.
While the swag bags are known to include holidays abroad, in 2016, it was rather controversial when it included a $55,000 vacation to Israel that came from the Israel Tourism Ministry and the travel company ExploreIsrael.com. It led to immediate backlash from several groups, including the US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation and Jewish Voice for Peace, that issued an advertisement reading “#SkipTheTrip. Don’t endorse Israeli apartheid”.
The 2020 gift bag, meanwhile, is believed to be one of the most expensive, estimated at $225,000, as it included 24K gold Royal Charka bath bomb, a 24K gold vape pen from Hollowtips, and a $20,000 one-year membership to a matchmaking service. The following year, the goodies included a plastic surgery procedure, a PETA emergency hammer to break car windows to save trapped dogs and molecular hydrogen water. While in 2019 the nominees were offered membership of the cannabis-friendly social club MOTA Los Angeles, in 2018, they went back home with activated coconut shell charcoal and underarm sweat patches, among other goodies.
