THE nominations for this year’s Oscars have become more newsworthy for what was omitted rather than included, with no women shortlisted for best director…and it is far from the first time and not the only awards ceremony to raise gender fairness questions.

Directors in the frame?

A raft of Hollywood heavyweights. Martin Scorsese for The Irishman, Todd Phillips for Joker, Sam Mendes for 1917, Quentin Tarantino for Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood and Bong Joon-ho for Parasite. They were shortlisted in the Golden Globes director category as well, with Mendes winning.

But no women?

None, with the most surprising omission regarded as Greta Gerwig, director of Little Women. Her movie stars Saoirse Ronan, who gets a best actress nod, and Florence Pugh, who gets a best supporting actress nomination.

Twitter reacted?

In style, with one viral tweet by US actress, Natalie Zea, declaring pointedly: “My favourite part of the movie Little Women was when it directed itself.”

It’s up for best movie?

It is, and it’s inclusion in this role has left commentators further scratching their heads.

Ms Gertwig has been nominated previously?

Back in 2017, she was nominated as best director for coming-of-age movie, Lady Bird, her solo directorial debut, which also starred Ms Ronan. But she lost out to Guillermo del Toro for The Shape of Water.

It was nonetheless a historic moment?

Her 2017 nod meant that over the past 10 years, 49 out of the 50 best director nominees have been men, rather than 50.

How many women have been nominated overall?

Ms Gerwig became the fifth woman in the history of the Academy Awards - which began in 1929 - to feature in the category.

Who came before her?

Italian director Lina Wertmüller became the first female director nominee in 1977 for Seven Beauties, with the next female nominee not appearing till 1994, when Jane Campion was shortlisted for The Piano. Sofia Coppola was nominated for Lost In Translation at the 2004 Oscars, before Kathryn Bigelow actually won in 2010 for The Hurt Locker.

What now?

Dr Martha Lauzen, the executive director of the Centre for the Study of Women in Television and Film in the US, said simply the moment has come for change: “It’s time for the Academy to recognise its continuing role in helping to suppress the visibility of women film directors, and its responsibility to change the procedures that have resulted in its dismal track record.”

But the Brits shortlists are also making waves?

This year, the shortlist for best album is all male, while in the categories where both men and women are eligible, only one woman features – Mabel– in the best new artist category. It's argued on social media argues that had the female offerings been worth it, they would have been included – in 2019, the number of women shortlisted in the three mixed-gender categories for best single, best album and best new act, rose from four to 12.