As usual, Sasha Stone and I talked too long, went astray and meandered half-assedly into topics that we should have left well enough alone. But then Sasha cut it down. At least we got into the likelihood of African-American films being front and center in the coming awards season, if for no other reason than to make up for last year’s Oscars-So-White nominations that led, in part, to AMPAS Board of Governors expanding membership and seeking to reduce the influence of old, encrusted white farts. Here’s the mp3.

As I wrote yesterday, Nate Parker‘s The Birth of the Nation and Denzel Washington‘s Fences will probably be eyeball-to-eyeball in the Best Picture race, and it’ll likely be Fences‘ Viola Davis vs. Loving‘s Ruth Negga in the Best Actress race or — this is Sasha’s brilliant suggestion — Negga sidestepping the Davis competish by running for Best Supporting Actress. Again, the mp3.