The ostentatious gift bag for the Oscar nominees: a getaway to Italy and Canada, a piece of land in Australia and a liposculpture of 12,000 euros | Oscars | Cinema | The USA Print

Although not all the nominees for the Oscars 2023 can win the statuette, there are 25 candidates in the main categories (those of leading actor and actress and supporting role, in addition to the candidates in the best direction section) who will not leave with their hands empty. Ana de Armas, Austin Butler or Steven Spielberg may leave the 95th edition of the gala, which will be held on March 12 at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles, with a golden man in their hands, but they will also do so with others. awards. the company of marketing and advertising Distinctive Asset gifts nominees with a gift package called everyone wins which is valued at more than 126,000 dollars (about 120,000 euros at current exchange rates). It includes everything from cosmetic and food products and beauty treatments to luxury getaways. A tradition that the company, established in Los Angeles (USA), has maintained since 2002. Despite the enormous amount of money in which the gift bag is valued, this year it is much more austere than in other editions, since in 2022 it was worth $140,000 and reached $225,000 in 2020.

The most ostentatious items contained in this bag for the Oscar nominees, as well as for the presenter of the gala, which this year will be Jimmy Kimmel, include a getaway to Italy and Canada, the ownership of land in Australia and a liposculpture worth of 12,000 euros. “While our gifts may be famous for being fun, fabulous, useful and unique, they also serve a greater purpose. Most of the brands we list come from a diverse and inclusive range of small businesses that benefit significantly from the global exposure that being associated with Hollywood’s biggest night brings. This is marketing of celebrities with a mission,” explains Lash Fary, founder of Distinctive Asset.

One of the prizes that attracts the most attention is the acquisition of one square meter of land in the Western Downs region of Queensland. What the company Pieces of Australia, the company in charge of ceding the land for the gift bag, is looking for to replant 20 trees for each nominated actor and director, in order to promote the conservation of Australian flora and fauna. . However, and according to the british daily Guardianthere are already numerous critical voices from the country’s environmental movement questioning the organization’s environmental mission, as the land being offered is at the heart of a coal seam gas field.

In addition to this piece of land in Australia, the bag contains a suitcase and a travel pillow for two luxury getaways in the best conditions: one to Italy and one to Canada. In the Mediterranean country, a three-night stay has been chosen for the nominees and seven other people at Faro Punta Imperatore, a remodeled and exclusive lighthouse located on the island of Ischia, off the coast of Naples. The trip is valued at $9,000 (8,500 euros). “Obviously (the nominees) can afford to go wherever they want,” explains Fary. to the magazine Forbes. “It’s not about the fact that this is free. It’s about we’ve found a unique place that has privacy built in for a celebrity. It is a lighthouse on the side of a hill on an island off the coast of Italy, it is very private”, adds the businessman.

In addition to this getaway, another one is added to Canada, valued at 40,000 dollars (37,800 euros). For this trip, a farm in a rural area of ​​Ottawa has been chosen, an accommodation that has a movie theater, an outdoor pool and even a sports court where you can practice archery. As in Italy, it is a three-night stay to which the nominees and their companions can travel in a 1965 Shelby AC Cobra 427 Roadster and a 2023 McLaren Artura.

The other gift that has raised more comments is one of the beauty treatments offered in the gift package: Dr. Thomas Su offers a liposculpture that tones the arms, and which is valued at $12,000 (11,300 euros). The question remains as to which nominees, among whom are also actress Jamie Lee Curtis or actor Brendan Fraser, will wear it. Amy Adams was seen wearing the shirt with the phrase “Strong Is The New Skinny” when she was nominated for an Oscar in 2013 —it was one of the gifts that year—, and Viola Davis and Mark Ruffalo shared photos on their social networks of the escapades with which they had been awarded in their different editions. For their part, other interpreters such as Denzel Washington rejected the bag or donated it to a charitable cause, as is the case with JK Simmons.