This Oscar Dress Infographic Makes Hollywood's Diversity Problem Painfully Obvious

This Oscar Dress Infographic Makes Hollywood's Diversity Problem Painfully Obvious

For people who love fashion, there are few events more exciting than the Oscars. Hollywood's most glamorous night of the year guarantees the most epic red carpet moments.

So when an infographic came out last year showing the dresses worn by every Best Actress winner since 1929, it was exciting to say the least. Big Group, the company that created the infographic, took it one step further. The company added more dresses, plus an interactive element, letting viewers filter by actress, decade, age, designer and color.

Looking closer, it's obvious that the infographic is missing something. While the dresses appear in myriad colors, the actresses are just one: white.

Big Group described its selection criteria on its website: "We selected actresses that had won Best Actress Oscar, appeared at least 7 times at the awards and over a period spanning decades. There are some actresses who couldn't quite make the cut due to time and budget (sorry, Sandra Bullock) but I hope to add more at a later date."

Those strict guidelines, of course, make it nearly impossible for any women of color to be included. Halle Berry, who won Best Actress for her role in "Monster's Ball" in 2002 has attended the 68th, 70th, 74th, 75th, 77th, 81st, 83rd and 85th Academy Awards, making a total of eight shows spanning from the '90s to today.

Whoopi Goldberg, who has been a Best Actress nominee and a Best Supporting Actress winner for her role in "Ghost," hosted the ceremony four times. Lupita Nyong'o nabbed the Best Supporting Actress award for "12 Years A Slave" in 2014 and Penelope Cruz took home the same award for "Vicky Cristina Barcelona" in 2009. If they did something so small as to include Best Actress nominees or Best Supporting Actress winners, the infographic would be (a bit) more diverse.

The fact that white women make up the entire list speaks to the broader issue of diversity in Hollywood. The 2015 Oscars will be the least diverse ceremony since 1998, meaning it's the first time in two decades that not at least one black, Hispanic, Latino, Asian or Iranian actor has been nominated in any of the four acting categories. Additionally, not a single female director, cinematographer or screenwriter is nominated.

This infographic not only reminds audiences about Hollywood's diversity problem, but makes it impossible to ignore. While only a select few have the power to decide who does and does not get nominated, it is necessary for everyone to acknowledge talent regardless of color.

HuffPost Style reached out to Big Group for comment and will update accordingly.

Before You Go

1
"Birdman"
Nominated for Best Picture, Best Director (Alejandro González Iñárritu), Best Actor (Michael Keaton), Best Supporting Actress (Emma Stone), Best Supporting Actor (Edward Norton), Best Original Screenplay and Best Cinematography.
2
"Boyhood"
Nominated for Best Picture, Best Director (Richard Linklater), Best Supporting Actress (Patricia Arquette), Best Supporting Actor (Ethan Hawke), Best Original Screenplay and Best Film Editing.
3
"Selma"
Nominated for Best Picture and Best Original Song.
4
"American Sniper
Nominated for Best Picture, Best Actor (Bradley Cooper), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Film Editing, Best Sound Editing and Best Sound Mixing
5
"The Grand Budapest Hotel"
Nominated for Best Picture, Best Director (Wes Anderson), Best Original Screenplay, Best Original Score, Best Costume Design, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, Best Production Design and Best Film Editing.
6
"The Imitation Game"
Nominated for Best Picture, Best Director (Morten Tyldum), Best Actor (Benedict Cumberbatch), Best Supporting Actress (Keira Knightley), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Production Design, Best Film Editing and Best Original Score.
7
"The Theory of Everything"
Nominated for Best Picture, Best Actress (Felicity Jones), Best Actor (Eddie Redmayne), Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Original Score.
8
"Whiplash"
Nominated for Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Film Editing and Best Supporting Actor (JK Simmons).
9
Bradley Cooper
Charles Sykes/Invision/AP
Nominated for Best Actor in "American Sniper."
10
Wes Anderson
Omar Vega/Invision/AP
Nominated for Best Director for "The Grand Budapest Hotel."
11
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu
Omar Vega/Invision/AP
Nominated for best Director for "Birdman"
12
Richard Linklater
Todd Williamson/Invision/AP
Nominated for best Director for "Boyhood"
13
Bennett Miller
Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP
Nominated for best Director for "Foxcatcher"
14
Morten Tyldum
Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP
Nominated for best Director for "The Imitation Game"
15
Marion Cotillard
Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP
Nominated for Best Actress in “Two Days, One Night.”
16
Felicity Jones
Joel Ryan/Invision/AP
Nominated for Best Actress in "The Theory of Everything."
17
Julianne Moore
Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP
Nominated for Best Actress in "Still Alice."
18
Rosamund Pike
Michael Buckner via Getty Images
Nominated for Best Actress in "Gone Girl."
19
Reese Witherspoon
Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP
Nominated for Best Actress in "Wild."
20
Steve Carrell
Dave Kotinsky via Getty Images
Nominated for Best Actor in "Foxcatcher."
21
Benedict Cumberbatch
JB Lacroix via Getty Images
Nominated for Best Actor in "The Imitation Game."
22
Michael Keaton
Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP
Nominated for Best Actor in "Birdman."
23
Robert Duvall
Frazer Harrison via Getty Images
Nominated for Best Supporting Actor in "The Judge."
24
Ethan Hawke
Joel Ryan/Invision/AP
Nominated for Best Supporting Actor in "Boyhood."
25
Edward Norton
Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP
Nominated for Best Supporting Actor in "Birdman."
26
Mark Ruffalo
Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP
Nominated for Best Supporting Actor in "Foxcatcher."
27
JK Simmons Portrait Session
Dan Hallman/Invision/AP
American actor in the 2014 Sundance Film Festival Audience Award and Grand Jury Prize-winning film "Whiplash" J.K. Simmons poses for a portrait, on Monday, Sept. 29, 2014 in New York. (Photo by Dan Hallman/Invision/AP)
28
Patricia Arquette
Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP
Nominated for Best Supporting Actress in "Boyhood."
29
Laura Dern
Steve Granitz via Getty Images
Nominated for Best Supporting Actress in "Wild."
30
Keira Knightley
Steve Granitz via Getty Images
Nominated for Best Supporting Actress in "The Imitation Game."
31
Emma Stone
John Shearer/Invision/AP
Nominated for Best Supporting Actress In "Birdman."
32
Meryl Streep
Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP
Nominated for Best Supporting Actress in "Into The Woods."

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