Best Film Editing

Photo depicts Oscar® winners from 2019-2023. Photo depicts Oscar® winners from 2019-2023. Patrick T. Fallon/AFP/Getty Images; Gilbert Flores/Variety; AMPAS/Reuters; Getty Images

Photo depicts Oscar® winners from 2019-2023. Photo depicts Oscar® winners from 2019-2023. Patrick T. Fallon/AFP/Getty Images; Gilbert Flores/Variety; AMPAS/Reuters; Getty Images

Gender

Women comprised  14% of all 580 nominees for Best Film Editing.* These 84 nominations began in 1935 with Anne Bauchens’ nod for Cleopatra. In 1976, 1999, and 2016 three women were nominated in the category– in 2016 this meant that the category reached gender parity.

86%

of nominees were men

14%

of nominees were women

Only two women of color have been nominated in this category

A total of 15 women have won this award. Only 2 women of color have been nominated in this category: Joi McMillon (2017) and Chloé Zhao (2021). Neither have won. 

Notably, the most-nominated person in this category is a woman: Thelma Schoonmaker, who has 9 nominations, including one in 2024. The most-nominated man (Michael Kahn) has 8 nominations from 1978 to 2013.

Race & Ethnicity

There were 580 nominees for Best Film Editing. Of those, 3% were from underrepresented racial/ethnic groups.* Of the 16 underrepresented nominees, there have been 3 winners (Richard Chew, Alfonso Cuarón, and Tom Cross). The first underrepresented nominee in this category was in 1970 (Hugh A. Robertson), and there have been only 2 years when more than one person of color was nominated (2007, 2017). Two nominees for Best Film Editing were Black, 4 were Hispanic/Latino, 6 were Asian, and 4 were Multiracial/Multiethnic. Only 4 underrepresented nominees have been nominated more than once; all have 2 nominations.

97%

of nominees were white

3%

of nominees were underrepresented

Only 3 underrepresented editors have won in this category

© 2024 Dr. Stacy L. Smith & the Annenberg Inclusion Initiative. All Rights Reserved.