25th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards® “By the Numbers”

25th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards® “By the Numbers”
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Fun facts behind the live Silver Anniversary simulcast
Sunday, Jan. 27, on TNT and TBS 

LOS ANGELES (Jan. 21, 2019)The 25th Annual SAG Awards, hosted by Megan Mullally, will be simulcast live on TNT and TBS on Sunday, January 27, 2018 at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT. It’s the actors’ party in the actors’ house, when many of film and television’s brightest stars get together to mingle with friends and colleagues while recognizing outstanding achievements by their peers.

Each annual SAG Awards® embodies culture, style and community for attendees and audiences alike. That welcoming atmosphere makes it easy to forget that everything here is on a larger-than-life scale. 

How large a scale? Here are just a few of the numbers and other fun facts that go into transforming the huge empty space that is the Shrine Auditorium & Expo Hall into the dazzling event that is the 25th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards.

The Arrivals

  • Guests walk past international media and fans along 17,100 square feet of carpet, the traditional red being replaced this year with plush silver to commemorate the SAG Awards Silver Anniversary
  • There are 12,500 feet of hedges used for edging
  • Three rows of six-foot high bleachers, totaling 180 lineal feet, accommodate 300 fans
  • Attendees are shielded from the weather by 21,500 square feet of tenting that covers the silver carpet

The Actor®

  • Each solid bronze Actor® statuette is 16 inches tall and weighs a substantial 12 pounds
  • It takes a team of ten craftspeople at American Fine Arts Foundry three to four months to make The Actors® each year
  • Since 1995, the Inaugural SAG Awards, 1,158 individually numbered Actor® statuettes have been awarded
  • Each statuette is individually numbered, with The Actor No. 1 on display at SAG-AFTRA headquarters in Los Angeles
  • Seven larger-than-life replicas of The Actor® statuette, each nearly ten feet tall and weighing 162 pounds, are strategically positioned as guardians of the red carpet, the Showroom, the stage, and the official Post-Awards Gala
  • Each giant Actor is made from steel, shaped using a silicone and fiberglass mold before being refined and painted

The Showroom

This year’s stage is dominated by a tunnel of asymmetrical arches that frame the giant screen with layers that provide depth and draw the viewer’s gaze. Each arch is individually lit with a glowing ribbon of light along its edges, adding to the multidimensional experience created by production designers John Shaffner and Joe Stewart.

  • Each arch is outlined by nearly 100 feet of state-of-the-art LED tape
  • Each step from the floor to the stage is edged with a glow matching the arches, totaling another 500 feet of the same LED tape
  • It takes ten days to transform the Showroom for the SAG Awards, a feat made possible by months of pre-planning
  • The Shrine’s Expo Hall’s 34,000 square foot wooden floor is cloaked in 11,800 square feet of black carpet
  • About 15,000 square feet of black drapery swathes the previously bare walls
  • The stage floor is overlaid with 300 sheets, 4 foot by 4 foot each, of black glossy Formica
  • Each circular chandelier is 6 feet across and requires 30 feet of crystals, casting light that plays along the silver-leaf panels spaced along the showroom pillars

The Venue

  • In the 1953 version of A Star Is Born, Judy Garland and James Mason meet at the Shrine Auditorium, and she’s back there – this time onstage – for the heartbreaking finale
  • The iconic Los Angeles Shrine Auditorium and Expo Hall was the largest theater in the United States when it was built in 1926
  • The SAG Awards annually transforms the Shrine’s Expo Hall into an intimate dinner showroom for the televised ceremony and the Auditorium stage into a unique setting for the Post-Awards Gala hosted for the 23rd year in a row by PEOPLE
  • In 1933, David O. Selznick’s groundbreaking King Kong used the Shrine Auditorium as the “New York” theater where the giant gorilla gets exhibited, helping to keep the film’s budget down to $672,000 (under $12 million in 2017 dollars)
  • At 194 feet (59 meters) wide and 69 feet (21 meters) deep, the Shrine’s is thought to be the largest proscenium arch stage in the country.
  • The Shrine was designated a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument in 1975

The People

  • All SAG-AFTRA members in good standing are eligible to vote in all categories, which means 120,785 peers in the union choose the honorees this year
  • 186 actors have been nominated for the 25th Screen Actors Guild Awards
  • 769 performers (603 for Film, 166 for Television) are nominated in Outstanding Action Performance by a Stunt Ensemble categories
  • It takes more than 700 staff and crew to make the SAG Awards a reality

The Audience

  • The 25th Annual SAG Awards Ceremony will be simulcast live on TNT and TBS at 8 p.m. (ET) / 5 p.m. (PT)
  • TBS and TNT subscribers can opt to watch the 25th Annual SAG Awards live on their device of choice through the networks’ websites and apps
  • About 300,000 pedestrians a day walk past the giant Spectacolor HD electric billboard in Times Square that will be showing the live webcast of the official live pre-show PEOPLE, Entertainment Weekly & TNT Red Carpet Live: 25th Screen Actors Guild Awards
  • The Spectacolor HD billboard display is 744 pixels x 992 pixels, and it requires video encoded at 10,000 – 25,000 kbits/sec.
  • PEOPLE, Entertainment Weekly & TNT Red Carpet Live: 25th Screen Actors Guild Awards official pre-show will stream for two-and-a-half hours beginning 5:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. PT on PeopleTV, Twitter, Facebook Live, tntdrama.com/sag-awards, sagawards.org, People.com and EW.com

Silver Carpet and Pre-Show Sponsor Reynolds Wrap®

Reynolds Wrap®, a household name in more than 100 countries, is supporting the SAG Awards® and the SAG-AFTRA Foundation in several different ways. Here are some fun factoids about Reynolds Wrap® Aluminum Foil:

  • Reynolds Wrap® is commemorating the SAG Awards Silver Anniversary by substituting 17,100 square feet of silver carpet to replace the traditional red between the limousines and the showroom
  • Searches for foil pack dinner recipes on Pinterest went up 209% in 2018, making it one of their top trends
  • It doesn’t really matter which side of the foil faces outward when used in cooking, because the shiny side is about 88% reflective while the dull side is about 80% reflective
  • Reynolds Wrap® Aluminum Foil is 98.5% pure aluminum, with the remaining 1.5% consisting mainly of iron and silicon to add its characteristic strength and puncture resistance
  • The Guinness World Record for an aluminum foil ball is held by Richard Roman of Alliance, Ohio, who’s entry weighed 1,615 pounds on Sept 17, 1987

Champagne Taittinger

As the Official Champagne of the SAG Awards, Champagne Taittinger is pouring:

  • One magnum of Champagne Taittinger Brut La Française at the traditional Champagne Taittinger toast that officially opens the SAG Awards Red Carpet
  • 160 magnums of Champagne Taittinger Brut La Française at the official Post-Awards Gala hosted by PEOPLE
  • Each magnum contains 500 million bubbles!
  • 480 standard 750 ml bottles of Champagne Taittinger Brut La Française inside the Showroom and at the Post-Awards Gala
  • Champagne Taittinger is also providing two Methuselah (6 liter) bottles of Champagne Taittinger Brut La Française to be signed by Actor® recipients and donated to the auction benefiting the SAG-AFTRA Foundation

Cooper’s Hawk Winery & Restaurants

Cooper’s Hawk Winery & Restaurants is serving the Official Wines of the SAG Awards, including the “Artist’s Red Blend” created in honor of the Silver Anniversary. Not only is the wine an exclusive limited edition, so is its bottle – complete with a specially designed label and even a cork custom printed with the occasion.

  • The Artist’s Red Blend label features a sculpted emboss of The Actor® statuette, a graphic element that took over five hours to create using a 3D modeling program
  • The team in charge of the labels have a combined print experience of nearly 100 years
  • Over nine miles of material – mostly 100% “tree free” cotton to reduce its carbon footprint -- was run to create the labels
  • It took approximately 102,000,000 grapes to create the Artist’s Red Blend wine
  • Counted another way, that’s about 204 tons of grapes that previously covered 29 acres of vineyard
  • One unique large-format bottle, which holds the equivalent of 25 regular-size bottles, will make its debut to members of the media on Jan. 24

FIJI® Water

FIJI® Water is the Official Water of the SAG Awards, a role that includes:

  • Eight consecutive years in which FIJI® Water has been the Official Water of the prestigious event
  • 315 of Earth’s Finest™ signature silver sleeves adorning the tables inside the SAG Awards Showroom
  • 1,500 reusable, recyclable FIJI® Water Straws visible and in use along the entire red carpet

Chopin Vodka and Dorda Liqueur

Chopin Vodka and Dorda Liqueur, working with The Blinn Group, are offering three specially crafted cocktails and a Classic Martini at the Showroom bars and at the official Post-Awards Gala. The cocktails – named The Silver Anniversary, The Silver Lining and Happy 25th! – require many premium ingredients for their artisanal recipes.

  • 26 bottles of Chopin Wheat Vodka
  • 42 bottles of Portobello Road Gin
  • 20 bottles of Dorda Sea Salt Carmel Liqueur
  • 36 bottles of Bourbon
  • 25 bottles of Scotch Whisky
  • 25 bottles of Light Rum
  • 45 bottles of Tequila
  • 18 bottles of Blue Curaçao
  • 26 gallons of fresh lime juice
  • 42 bottles of club soda
  • 24 fresh oranges
  • 25 bottles of Chambord
  • 26 one-quart bottles of Grenadine
  • 25 jars of blue cheese olives
  • 16 bottles of Amaretto
  • 16 bottles of Fresh Cream

Lindt Chocolate

Lindt Chocolate is providing its signature LINDOR truffles as part of its being the Official Chocolate Confectioner of the 25th Annual SAG Awards

  • There will be over 10K LINDOR truffles served at the 25th Annual SAG Awards
  • 4.5 billion LINDOR Truffles are made every year in the USA, 11 billion globally
  • 92% of Lindt’s cocoa beans are traceable to their source, with a goal of 100% by 2020
  • It takes 400 cocoa beans to create a pound of chocolate

The Flowers by CJ Matsumoto & Sons

The Silver Anniversary arrangements were inspired by the harmony of a much-loved garden, expressed with a simple monochromatic palette of burgundies. Green highlights accentuate the marriage of burgundies with their silver containers.

  • There are more than 375 individual arrangements
  • Creating these compositions requires a talented staff of 25 floral architects working countless hours
  • There are more than 1,800 blossoms of cymbidium orchids
  • There are over 1,500 stems of miniature calla lilies
  • There are at least 3,500 stems of roses
  • More than 1,200 stems of foliages are needed

Repeat Roses

  • Repeat Roses, working with CJ Matsumoto & Sons, will repurpose the event flowers to deliver over 100 petite arrangements to victims of sexual violence and domestic abuse at local women's shelters and emergency treatment centers 

Wolfgang Puck Catering

Wolfgang Puck Catering is serving an intriguing antipasto plate. The dishes are: Squash and Endive Salad with Dried Cherries, Mustard Greens, and Maple Vinaigrette; Maple and Soy Glazed Salmon with Sesame Cauliflower and Crispy Shiso Leaf; and Grilled Chicken with Meyer Lemon Salsa and Lemon Scented Fingerling Potato. Some of the ingredients needed to prepare these recipes for the 25th Annual SAG Awards are:

  • 1,600 Jidori chicken breasts
  • 450 pounds of Scottish farm salmon
  • 3000 endive leaves
  • 240 pounds of Meyer lemons
  • 3 gallons of Vermont maple syrup
  • 3,000 shiso leaves
  • 1,100 acorn squash
  • 3,000 lavosh sticks
  • 2,000 Wolfgang Puck Signature Tuna Cones
  • 450 pounds line-caught Virginia striped sea bass
  • 15 gallons of Spanish sherry vinegar
  • 800 pounds prime skirt steak
  • 5 gallons of chimichurri sauce
  • 1 pound of spanish saffron
  • 3,000 crab claws
  • 5,000 shrimp
  • 10 gallons of Green Goddess dressing
  • 3,000 cocktail flavored macarons
  • 300 pounds of chocolate
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