Martin Scorcese’s latest film, “The Irishman.” is starting to generate a lot of buzz. The film has been in theaters since the start of the month, however the vast majority of people that have eagerly awaited its release have not seen it yet. Why? The film will only be given a wide release on Netflix. It is no secret to anyone that streaming will eventually become the main way to view new-release movies, as consumers see rising prices and the comfort of their own homes as good reasons to skip the theater. Previously, most of the original movies that have been produced by these streaming services have not received too much critical acclaim overall and they have been absent from awards shows. With Scorcese’s clout as a filmmaker and the critical praise the film has received, the question of whether or not streaming-only films should be considered for awards is more relevant than ever.

Of course, films are made to be watched on the big screen. Long before televisions were even a thought, this was the way to show a movie and that standard has remained to this day. However, it has become increasingly apparent that people are becoming more and more comfortable with the idea of simply watching a movie on their television set only. The majority of films made, before the advent of home video, have received home video releases on at least one format. Most theatrically released movies today also receive a home video release. Do these films become cinema simply because they are viewed in a theater? Do they lose this factor when viewed on a television? Of course not. A movie is no less of a movie because it does not receive a wide theatrical release.

Many filmmakers such as Quentin Tarantino and Christopher Nolan did regret the loss of projected film in the industry as it was replaced with digital projectors. Before this change, one could have made the argument that direct to streaming films should not be considered because there is no physical film involved. The idea is that film is primarily an illusion, where a series of images taken at 24 frames per second played back creates the illusion of movement much like a flip book. To release a film shot digitally and shown digitally would be what Tarantino referred to in a video interview as “public television.” However, the industry has decided that digital is the way of the future and no films released after 2014 have been released on 35mm film on a wide basis. To show a movie with a digital projector or on a TV is not too much different in theory, the pixels are still there either way.

To question whether or not a straight to streaming film should be considered for awards is to put the technical aspects of filmmaking over what is truly the most important, storytelling. At the end of the day, this is truly what makes a film stand out come awards season and regardless of how a movie is viewed, this one factor remains constant. Viewers experience the exact same images and sounds that they would in the theater. The way we watch movies is changing and the industry needs to change with it. People who take issue with a Netflix movie getting award nominations, especially popular filmmakers like Steven Spielberg, should embrace the future.

Image from Netflix via YouTube