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An animal rights charity has honored films including Star Wars and Jumanji for promoting a message of ‘kindness to animals’.
PETA‘s Animals in Film and Television Division has launched the ‘Oscat’ awards, which recognize films featuring animal-positive storylines and the use of computer-generated imagery [CGI].
Winners
Awardees include Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, which won the award for Best Computer-Generated Imagery for creating a 100 percent digital jungle of realistic animals.
Ferdinand – which tells the story of a young bull who escapes from a training camp because he doesn’t want to fight – won the Best Animated Film award.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi nabbed both Best Live-Action Film and Best Original Screenplay for animal-friendly moments including Finn and Rose’s liberation of fathiers used for racing and Chewbacca’s choice not to eat a porg.
Acting
According to PETA: “Best Actor was a tie between Andy Serkis for his brilliant portrayal of Caesar in War for the Planet of the Apes and Doug Jones, whose performance in The Shape of Water captured the despair felt by those who are abused and kept chained.
“Frances McDormand won Best Actress for the tender moment in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri when she comes to the rescue of a bug who’s stuck on his back.”
‘Kinder than ever’
PETA Senior Vice President, Lisa Lange, said: “From animal rights messages in sci-fi blockbusters to motion-capture performances that kept live animals off film sets, Hollywood was kinder than ever in 2017.
“PETA’s Oscats honor the people and projects that helped audiences see all animals as sensitive beings who deserve our respect.”
