The Oscars are coming Sunday, March 4, 2018. And you have more reason than ever to watch: a tobacco explosion in Oscar-nominated films.
• 86 percent of this year's films listed in major categories feature smoking, up from 60 percent four years ago.
• Kid-rated films on the Oscar list feature twice as much smoking as in 2017 and they've already delivered 2.5 times more tobacco impressions to theater audiences.
The Academy Awards are Hollywood's biggest publicity stunt of the year. Studios spend millions to spotlight their films and boost ticket sales. The more smoking in Oscar-listed films, the more harm they do worldwide.
That's why this year's Smokefree Movies International Week of Action takes aim at the Oscars. From Sunday, February 25 to Sunday, March 4, please ...
• Reach out to your friends and your community, in person and on social media, using the #HelpOscarQuit hashtag.
• Visit nearby movie retailers — theater managers, big-box stores, even your local cable service — and make clear how much your community cares about smoking on screen.
• Write a serious protest letter to a major media CEO (here's a list) and put it in the mail. These actually get read!
To make it easy to take strategic action, download your #HelpOscarQuit campaign kit with one click at ucsf.box.com/v/2018-Awards-Smoking.
This kit has everything you need ... from a Powerpoint, fact sheets and social media graphics ... to an Oscar Quiz and Actor Scorecard perfect for Oscar viewing parties. Feel free to brand and adapt this material for your organization.
As you know, we've put the US media companies on a deadline. They need to implement the R-rating for tobacco by June, 2018. Now's your chance to show them America is watching.
After all, the only way to #HelpOscarQuit ... is to keep smoking out of the movies kids see most.