The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has updated its rules and campaign regulations for the 98th Oscars, and it has announced the key dates for the upcoming awards cycle, Animation Magazine reports.

The move resets the compliance framework that every contending studio, publicist and awards strategist must work within during the season ahead. Rule revisions at this stage of the calendar typically land well before eligibility begins, giving campaigns time to adjust distribution and screening plans to the new requirements.

The announcement covers two connected documents. The first is the set of competition rules that govern eligibility and voting across the Academy's categories. The second is the campaign regulations packet — the rules restricting how films may be promoted to members during the voting window.

What does the update change for the 98th race?

Campaign regulations are where the Academy polices the behavior of awards season. The regs govern what studios may send to members, how they may communicate during voting, and which outreach tactics cross the line. Each revision cycle tightens or adjusts those boundaries.

For the 98th Oscars, campaigners now have a fresh rulebook. Any change to the regulations alters the practical calculus of a race: outreach channels that were available last cycle may be restricted, and compliance review may now cover tactics that earlier seasons left unregulated.

The rules update also fixes the mechanics of the competition itself. Eligibility windows, category definitions and voting procedures are all set by this document, and the 98th edition supersedes the version that governed the 97th ceremony.

Why the key dates matter

Alongside the revised rules, the Academy has published the key dates for the 98th Oscars season. That calendar anchors the entire awards ecosystem.

For studios, the dates determine:

• when a film must complete its qualifying run to enter the race;
• when nomination voting opens and closes;
• when the nominations are announced;
• when final voting takes place ahead of the ceremony.

For strategists, the dates dictate the pacing of screenings, talent appearances and mailing campaigns. Every campaign decision works backward from those deadlines, and an early publication of the calendar lets distributors lock release plans months in advance.

The pattern behind the announcement

The Academy reviews its rules annually, with each cycle producing a new rulebook and a refreshed campaign regulations packet. The revisions for the 98th Oscars continue that cadence.

Campaign regulations in particular have drawn repeated adjustments in recent years as the Academy has responded to new outreach methods and to pressure for a cleaner, more equitable race. Each year's packet spells out the contact rules, the restrictions on promotional events and communications, and the consequences for violations.

The 98th Oscars cycle now proceeds under the revised framework. Eligible films will compete under the new rules, voters will cast ballots under the announced calendar, and campaign teams will operate inside the updated regulatory boundaries.

Awards Review will track the revised regulations in detail and report on how the changes shape strategy across the coming season.