Ava DuVernay's '14th' Features New Song for Oscar Consideration

Ava DuVernay's documentary "14th" is set to premiere at the New York Film Festival on October 9, 2020, and will feature a new original song titled "Makings of Tomorrow." This song is written and performed by Brittany Howard and Robert Glasper, with the intention of submitting it for Oscar consideration in the Best Original Song category. The film, a nonfiction sequel, is scheduled to be the closing-night presentation of the festival. Netflix, the distributor of "14th," is expected to lead the Oscar campaign for the song. Brittany Howard, a Grammy-winning artist known for her work with the band Alabama Shakes, and Robert Glasper, a Grammy-winning jazz pianist and producer, have collaborated on this new piece. The inclusion of an original song specifically for Oscar consideration highlights the film's artistic ambitions and its potential impact within the awards season. The New York Film Festival, a prestigious event in the cinematic calendar, provides a significant platform for "14th" to debut and generate critical attention. The film's subject matter, implied by its title and its predecessor's focus, likely addresses significant social and historical themes, making the emotional resonance of an original song a key component of its narrative presentation. The collaboration between Howard and Glasper brings together distinct yet complementary musical sensibilities, suggesting a song that could be both artistically compelling and thematically relevant to the documentary's content. The decision to submit "Makings of Tomorrow" for an Academy Award underscores the growing trend of documentaries incorporating original music to enhance their storytelling and broaden their appeal to award voters. The specific criteria for Oscar eligibility regarding original songs in documentaries typically involve the song being a "newly written" piece that is "an integral part of the film's narrative or emotional fabric." The involvement of Netflix in promoting the song for an Oscar nomination indicates a strategic effort to leverage the film's premiere and the artists' profiles to gain traction within the competitive awards landscape. The premiere date of October 9, 2020, places the film within the eligibility window for the 93rd Academy Awards, which typically considers films released between January 1 and December 31 of the preceding year. The collaboration between Howard and Glasper, both highly respected musicians in their respective genres, suggests that "Makings of Tomorrow" is likely to be a sophisticated and impactful musical contribution to "14th." The film's status as a sequel implies a continuation or expansion of themes explored in a previous work, further emphasizing the importance of a strong thematic connection for the original song. The exclusive reveal of this detail by Variety underscores the significance of the song's inclusion and its potential role in the film's awards campaign. The Oscar submission process for original songs is highly competitive, and the backing of a major distributor like Netflix, combined with the artistic caliber of the songwriters, positions "Makings of Tomorrow" as a notable contender.