MUMBAI: Is it time for the most prestigious movie awards ceremony, The Academy Awards, to recognise stuntmen? Four of Hollywood's premier stunt organisations certainly believe so.

With a week to go for the 77th edition of the Oscar Awards four stunt organisations have launched a unified effort to lobby The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (Ampas) for recognition and acceptance of the category of Best Stunt Coordinator. In India the Oscars will air live on Star Movies on 28 February at 6:30 am.

Representatives from Stunts Unlimited, Brand X, The Stuntmen's Association of Motion Pictures and The International Stunt Association have teamed to petition the Academy for recognition of their craft as both an art and a science and worthy of the creation of a new award category. There is an awards ceremony the World Stunt Awards which recognises their work.

In a joint statement they say, "Stunt performers are the only faction of the movie industry that must literally risk their lives for the sake of their art. The talent and expertise that is required of a stunt coordinator to be both creative and safe is enormous and highly deserving of Academy recognition."

Movie mavericks like directors Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese who could win his first Oscar for The Aviator, Jerry Bruckheimer, Robert DeNiro, Dustin Hoffman, Michael Douglas and Arnold Schwarzenegger have all signed the petition. The stunt organisations make a valid point when they state that no one who has contributed a lot to the motion picture industry whether it is make up or costume design has failed to be recognised by the Academy.

On the television front an Emmy is awarded for Outstanding Stunt Coordination. The stunt organisations have further stated that action films that rely heavily on their work are amongst the highest earners at the box office.