Academy Funds Research Into Female Screenwriters, Onscreen Depictions of Slavery

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has given $25,000 grants to scholars researching female screenwriters and the depiction of slavery in Hollywood movies, AMPAS announced on Tuesday.

Dr. Donna Kornhaber and Dr. Ellen Christine Scott are the recipients of the 2016 Academy Film Scholars grants, an annual program designed to aid research into areas of film scholarship.

The grants were made by the Academy’s Educational Grants Committee, chaired by Buffy Shutt.

Also Read: Academy Sets Dates for Oscar Nominations, Voting

Kornhaber is working on “Women’s Work: The Female Screenwriter and the Development of Early American Film,” which the Academy called “the first book-length study of the diverse group of women writers who played an outsized role in shaping the American film industry during the silent era.” She is an assistant professor of English at the University of Texas at Austin.

Scott, an assistant professor of cinema and media studies at the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television, is working on “Cinema’s Peculiar Institution,” which will study “the evolution of censorship systems and patterns of representability that shaped the image of slavery onscreen” during the Classical Hollywood period.

An additional 13 Academy film scholars are currently working on projects funded by AMPAS grants, with 15 others having already published their work.

Also Read: Cheryl Boone Isaacs Wins Re-Election as Academy President

The Academy Film Scholars program is part of the Academy Foundation, which runs Academy screening and educational programs and gives $550,000 a year to scholars, cultural organizations and film festivals.

Oscars So WTF? 21 Most Surprising New Academy Members, From Daphne Zuniga to Tina Fey (Photos)

• The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences invited 683 new members on Wednesday -- including many who raised eyebrows.

  Also Read: Welcome to the Academy! Idris Elba, Brie Larson and Other Stars Who Snagged Invites (Photos)

  Getty Images

• Daphne Zuniga, actress

  Zuniga is best known for her work on the '90s TV soap "Melrose Place" and "One Tree Hill," but she has acted in movies like "The Sure Thing" and “Spaceballs.”

  Getty Images

• Patti LuPone, actress

  The veteran Tony and Emmy winner is best known for her work on stage and TV, but LuPone's film credits include "Driving Miss Daisy," "Witness" and the 2013 movie "Parker."

  Getty Images

• Keenan Ivory Wayans, writer/director

  Wayans was invited to both the writers and directors branches even though his big-screen work has consisted of low-brow comedies like "White Chicks” and “A Low Down Dirty Shame” that aren't exactly Academy material.

  Getty Images

• O’Shea “Ice Cube” Jackson, actor and writer

  Though Ice Cube most recently starred in "Ride Along," the rapper was also invited for his work as a screenwriter on movies like “The Players Club” and “Friday.”

  Getty Images

• Phyllida Lloyd, director

  Lloyd directed “Mamma Mia!” and "The Iron Lady," which earned an Oscar for star Meryl Streep.

  Francois Durand/Getty Images

• Adam McKay, director

  Writer-director McKay earned an Oscar this year for his script for “The Big Short,” but he's not exactly a Hollywood newbie. His credits include Will Ferrell hits like “Anchorman" and "Step Brothers."

  Kevin Winter/Getty Images

• Marlon Wayans, actor

  Although he starred in "Requiem for a Dream," Wayans is best known for his work in comedies like Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarthy's hit "The Heat," as well as the "Fifty Shades of Grey" parody "Fifty Shades of Black."

  Getty Images

• Patty Jenkins, director

  Jenkins directed "Monster," which earned star Charlize Theron an Oscar as serial killer Aileen Wuornos. She currently is directing DC's "Wonder Woman," slated for release in 2017.

  Getty Images

• Lynne Ramsay, director

  Some of Ramsay's most notable films include “We Need to Talk About Kevin” and “Morvern Callar.”

  Tristan Fewings/Getty Images

• Marjane Satrapi, director

  Satrapi, who wrote the graphic novel "Persepolis," directed the film version of the novel -- which earned an Oscar nomination back in 2008. She also directed the comedy-horror film "The Voices."

  Elisabetta Villa/Getty Images

• Rita Wilson, actress

  Wilson acted in the movies "It's Complicated," "Runaway Bride," and "Sleepless in Seattle." She also produced "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" and the 2008 version of "Mamma Mia!"

  Getty Images

• Martin Starr, actor

  The comic actor is best known for his work on the HBO hit "Silicon Valley" but his big-screen credits include "Knocked Up" and "Adventureland."

  Getty Images

• Lilly and Lana Wachowski, directors

  Siblings Lilly and Lana Wachowskis are best known for directing "The Matrix" trilogy and “Cloud Atlas."

  Getty Images

• Tina Fey, writer

  Tina Fey is best known for her work on TV, but she was invited to the Academy in the writing branch -- not the acting branch -- even though her only produced screenplay is 2004's "Mean Girls."

  Corina Marie Howell for TheWrap

• Betty Buckley, actress

  Buckley was featured in “Wyatt Earp” and “Carrie,” the 1976 film adaption of Stephen King's novel. But she's best known as a Tony-winning stage actress.

  Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images

• Ken Loach, director

  British filmmaker Ken Loach is responsible for directing award-winning festival darlings like “The Wind That Shakes the Barley” and “Kes.”

  Ian Gavan/Getty Images

• Lesli Linka Glatter, director

  Linka Glatter earned an Oscar nom for her 1985 short "Tales of Meeting and Parting" and directed the 1995 Christina Ricci movie "Now and Then." But she's best known for her work on TV shows like "The West Wing" and "Homeland."

  Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images

• Richard Kelly, writer

  Though Kelly directed and wrote cult classic "Donnie Darko," he was invited to the Academy as a writer.

  Getty Images

• Vivica A. Fox, actress

  Fox was featured in “Kill Bill” and “Independence Day.”

  Getty Images

• Valerie Faris and Jonathan Dayton, directors

  Faris and Dayton co-directed the 2006 Oscar winner "Little Miss Sunshine" (as well as the 2012 indie "Ruby Sparks"), which makes it odd that they weren't already Academy members.

  Getty Images

Previous Slide Next Slide

1 of 21

Overlooked stars and curious additions fill the record-breaking Academy class of 2016

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences invited 683 new members on Wednesday -- including many who raised eyebrows.

Also Read: Welcome to the Academy! Idris Elba, Brie Larson and Other Stars Who Snagged Invites (Photos)

View In Gallery

Related stories from TheWrap:

Cheryl Boone Isaacs Wins Re-Election as Academy President

Academy Takes the Secrecy Out of Its Secret Committees

Academy Doesn't Show Much Appetite for Change in Board of Governors Voting