Don't Mess With Taxes

Some of the taxable goodies in this year's Academy Awards swag bag. (Photo: Distinctive Assets)

An Oscar statuette, which is made of gold-plated bronze, costs around $400 to produce. Of course, the value to the winners is decidedly more, both emotionally and when it comes to negotiating their next film contract.

But some 2025 nominees for the movie industry’s biggest prize, which will be handed out tomorrow night, already have received much more expensive tokens.

Yes, we’re talking about the annual Academy Awards swag bag goodies.

This year, Distinctive Assets prepared gift bags for the 25 nominees in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences (A.M.P.A.S.) acting and directing categories. The program’s host Conan O’Brien also gets one.

Taxable swag: The Internal Revenue Service also is happy about the annual handout, which this year is valued by one assessor at around $220,000.

Distinctive Assets’ announcement lists all the gifts and the companies providing them. It doesn’t include values, but several reports, such as this one from Business Insider via Yahoo and CNBC Make It, put price tag numbers on some of the items.

When the Hollywood recipients take possession of their bags, which actually was delivered pre-ceremony in a bag from a high-end luggage maker, they owe tax on the physical items inside.

That’s not too much, according to Distinctive Assets founder Lash Fary.

“Of the $200,0000 approximate value, only a few thousand of it would need to be claimed upfront,” Fary says. “The tax value is based on a couple thousand dollars ’worth of physical items.”

But if the take advantage of the expensive invitations also tucked in the bag, the IRS gets a bigger cut. That tax obligation would apply to those who accept the offered $25,000 body-contouring treatments or a $23,000 stay at a Maldives resort.

IRS privacy laws — still in effect despite efforts by Department of Government Efficiency prying eyes — mean we won’t know exactly how much tax the swag bag recipients ultimately will pay for their goodies.

So, for this weekend’s By the Numbers figure, I’m just going to go with the $220,000 estimated total bag value.

Brand exposure and disaster aid: This is the 23rd consecutive year that the Los Angeles-based marketing company has been handing out swag bags to Academy Award nominees. The company points out that the tradition is not affiliated with the Oscars.

The main reason for the gift bags, says Fary, is to expand attention to the company's clients, many of which are small businesses, minority-owned brands, female entrepreneurs, and companies that give back.

The giving-back component is especially notable this year.

In the aftermath of the deadly and destructive Los Angeles fires, this year’s Distinctive Assets bag also includes a one-year membership to Bright Harbor personalized disaster recovery support, as well as 10 memberships to give to friends and family.

There is also $50,000 worth of project management services from LA-based Maison Construction in this year’s bag. Those services, noted Fary, are completely transferable. “The nominees can give it to a friend or family member or neighbor, whoever might need it,” he said.

Oscars trivia, viewing details: Long-time readers of the ol’ blog know I’m a big movie fan, even when they don’t deal directly with taxes.

Here’s this year’s complete, official Academy Awards nominations list.

I haven’t seen many of this year’s movies, but I’ll be watching the 97th Academy Awards ceremony anyway. Why? The red carpet walking. The attire. The clips. The winners’ (and not-winners’) reactions. The acceptance speeches.

If you also plan to watch the awards program, note that the ABC broadcast starts an hour earlier this year, at 7 p.m. Eastern/6 p.m. Central.

If you’ll be watching at an Oscars watch party, you can wow your fellow film fans with some of these 12 Facts You Didn't Know About the Oscar Statue. If you’re the party host, check out these downloadable Oscars Bingo Cards you and your guests can use during the show.

If you want to catch up on this year’s nominated films, before or after the Oscars are handed out, check out NPR’s guide to Oscar-nominated movies and where to watch them.

You also might find these items of interest:

• Taxes, in a good way, are getting Oscars' attention
• The real-life story of the Barbie movie's tax & IRS references
• 'Love & Taxes' funny on screen, but not filing in real life is no laughing matter
• Movie making tax breaks are still around, and still as controversial as the annual Oscars' picks

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