Rhianna Dhillon asks: Has anything really changed since #OscarsSoWhite 2016?

Remember Oscars 2016? Of all 20 acting nominees, not a single one was a person of colour, sparking the #OscarsSoWhite Twitter backlash. It was shocking, but as a film critic, not that surprising: it was just the same in 2015. In response to public outrage, the Academy added 683 voters to their ranks, hoping to increase their diversity. It’s long overdue; we’ll find out on 26 February if it makes a difference as to who takes home the awards.

Thanks in part to the #OscarsSoWhite campaign, we’ve seen a welcome increase in the visibility of films featuring actors and directors of colour. We have not one, but two mainstream awards contenders that tell true stories of black lives. Loving is based on an interracial couple in 1950s America, whose marriage was deemed illegal, and Ruth Negga shines with an understated but powerful performance opposite Joel Edgerton. Meanwhile, Hidden Figures celebrates three black women (played by Taraji P Henson, Octavia Spencer, and Janelle Monáe) who worked for NASA in the 1960s. It’s not just on screen – the people behind the camera matter, too. August Wilson, author of the play-turned-film Fences, stipulated that only an African-American could direct his work. Denzel Washington took up the mantle as both director and lead actor (opposite the magnificent Viola Davis), playing a man frustrated with his lack of opportunities.