Legal Clash For Crash Producers

Crash producer Bob Yari is suing Academy Award organisers after his name was removed from the film's credits for the Oscars.Only two producers from each film nominated in the Best Picture category are eligible collect the prize. Crash writer/director Paul Haggis and Cathy Shulman have been chosen by the Producer's Guild of America (PGA) and approved by the Oscar bosses the Academy Of Motion Pictures, Art And Sciences (AMPAS).But Yari - who helped finance the film - is furious he and three other producers have been left out.Describing the system as "patently unfair" and "a violation of the law", Yari's legal claim adds, "It never reveals who makes its awards-crediting decisions, what evidence is considered, or the basis on which a producer's application for award credit is rejected."Oscar bosses are clamping down this year, in a bid to ensure only genuine producers allowed to be nominated.Meanwhile, Shulman and Crash executive producer Tom Nunan are suing Yari, claiming he failed to pay them more than $2 million (£1.14 million) they are owed in fees and bonuses.Shulman says of Yari's claim, "This action arises from the dark underbelly of Hollywood where an outsider, armed with enormous wealth from a career in another field, can insinuate himself into position to take recognition and money away from the people actually responsible for the creation and execution of profitable and award-winning entertainment content."Both lawsuits were filed on Tuesday (28Feb06), in a bid to avoid negative press that could damage Crash's chances of landing the six awards it is nominated for at the Oscars on Sunday (05Mar06).