Los Angeles Online Film Critics Society Announces Their Inaugural Members with a Focus on Diversity.

Los Angeles Online Film Critics Society, a new Los Angeles based film critic society founded by Krisily Kennedy, Scott Mantz, and Scott Menzel is pleased to announce their official list of inaugural members.

The primary goal of the society was to create a critics group that is different from the existing associations. “Los Angeles is the capital of film industry, but it is also a cultural mecca where diversity is a big part of the city’s history,” said Menzel. Hence, the goal was to create a group that will reflect that varied history and perspective. The organization had received more than eighty applications as part of their initial application process. Of the eighty people who applied, twenty candidates were chosen after extensive consideration and careful review. 

“I was shocked by the overwhelming demand and positive response from the launch of LA Online Film Critics Society. There was only a single press release that was sent out, so we were shocked that it generated such a tremendous response,” said Kennedy. 

Among the chosen twenty members, eight are women. “There is such a gender bias found in film criticism, and one of our goals was to break that wall down,” said Mantz. Of the remaining twelve members, six are men of color.   

“When I came up with the idea to start LAOFCS, I knew that I wanted our group to accurately represent the city of Los Angeles and the people who make up the city’s culture,” said Menzel. “I was so delighted that so many who applied were women and people of color,” noted Kennedy. 

The twenty inaugural members of Los Angeles Online Film Critics Society are Joel Amos, David Bax, William Bibbiani, Kit Bowen, Terence Johnson, Katie Kilkenny, Wendy Lee, Michael Lee, Alicia Malone, Liz Shannon Miller, Aaron Neuwirth, Kevin O’ Keeffe, Mark Pacis, Dino-Ray Ramos, Carla Renata, Steven Saito, Peter Sciretta, Witney Seibold, and Staci Layne Wilson. 

The Los Angeles Online Film Critics Society is hoping that through this organization, they will prove how important it is to have a critic group that is made up of members that not only represent the city of Los Angeles but the United States as a whole. 

Kennedy, Mantz, and Menzel have big plans for the group including a weekly show or podcast. “We want to have a year-round presence instead of just being about Award Season,” mentioned Mantz. The group along with its new members plan to release seasonal best and worst as well as an official best and worst of the year list that is similar to other critic organizations. 

For those who want to learn more about Los Angeles Online Film Critics Society, you can visit their site at www.laofcs.org or email them directly at [email protected] for more details.