Motion picture academy lays off staff at archive and library amid broader restructuring

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has laid off 16 staff members from its archive and library as part of a broader restructuring that will bring all of the organization’s collecting, restoration and preservation efforts together under a newly formed Academy Collection and Preservation Department.

In an internal email to staff obtained by The Times, academy CEO Bill Kramer, who took the reins of the organization in 2022, framed the changes as part of a broader strategic initiative over the past two years aimed at streamlining operations to align with the academy’s evolving mission.

“We are working hard to bring teams together that share roles and responsibilities — and with this we have some colleagues who have left the organization while others have moved into new roles,” Kramer wrote. “While these moments can be challenging, they are designed to align our operations by combining functions with shared purposes and priorities.”

Dedicated to the preservation, restoration and study of motion pictures, the Academy Film Archive holds one of the largest and most diverse collections of movies in the world, including every best picture nominee as well as the personal collections of filmmakers ranging from Cecil B. DeMille and Alfred Hitchcock to Jim Jarmusch and Penelope Spheeris. The Academy Library, also known as the Margaret Herrick Library, is one of the world’s foremost research facilities for motion picture preservation and study, with more than 52 million items, including books, photographs, scripts and costume design drawings.

In May, as part of a larger executive reorganization, Matt Severson was named executive vice president of academy collection and preservation, overseeing all archival, preservation, registration, conservation and cataloging work of the library, archive and Academy Museum.

The latest restructuring follows a handful of smaller staffing cuts earlier this year in other parts of the academy, including the shuttering of the Oscars’ digital magazine, A.frame, as the organization continues to navigate an increasingly challenging landscape for the film industry and the Oscar telecast alike. The 96th Academy Awards ceremony in March drew an average audience of 19.5 million viewers on ABC, a 4% increase over 2023 but still far below the show’s peak in 1998, when more than 55 million tuned in to watch “Titanic” win best picture. Meanwhile, the academy’s ranks have swelled in recent years to more than 10,000 members as the organization has looked to broaden its diversity and expand its reach around the world.

“The Academy is part of two worlds that are rapidly evolving — the film industry and the non-profit arts community,” Kramer wrote in his email, concluding on a note of optimism. “We are working hard to stay focused on our mission while addressing this pivotal moment. And while we know how difficult these moments can be, we are confident in our steps to shape a sustainable organization that is well-suited to meet our goals now and in the future.”