For the second year, the Academy plans to showcase the next generation of filmmakers during the movie industry’s biggest night. And this time, they’ve enlisted the help of Channing Tatum to find those fortunate few.
Tatum — who is currently on location shooting sequel “22 Jump Street” — appeared on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” via satellite Friday to announce the “Team Oscar” college search. The winners of the contest receive a weeklong “Oscar experience “and serve as onstage ushers during the 86th Oscar telecast in 2014.
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“It’s inspiring to see talented young people passionate about movies, and I’m excited to help shine a spotlight on them through Team Oscar,” Tatum said in a statement.
The actor, along with 86th Oscar producers Craig Zadan and Neil Maron and others in the Academy will choose winners based on 60-second videos they submit explaining why they represent the future of film.
“Team Oscar” is the latest incarnation of last year’s competition – “The Oscar Experience College Search” – led by 2013 Oscar host Seth MacFarlane. The “Family Guy” creator announced last year’s contest during a surprise visit to a UCLA film class.
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“We were very happy to have created this college program for last year’s show. It was a huge success, and we’re excited to take it to the next level,” Zadan and Meron said. “With Channing Tatum set to help us discover a new group of talented young filmmakers and ‘The Ellen DeGeneres Show’ on board to chronicle their stories, we feel Team Oscar will be more rewarding and exciting than ever.”
DeGeneres hosts the 86th Academy Awards March 2, 2014.
Watch the “Team Oscar” teaser: