Crowd control

It's hard enough figuring out exactly what a producer does these days, when just about everyone outside of the kid who bags your groceries claims to be one.

So it's no wonder people have trouble understanding what the Producers Guild of America does, let alone its place in the Milky Way-sized galaxy that is Hollywood's awards season.

This year, the answer gets a lot more interesting.

Last Wednesday, the trade group representing 2,700 producers announced its five nominees for best theatrical motion picture ("Brokeback Mountain," "Crash," "Capote," "Walk the Line" and "Good Night, and Good Luck").

Along with these nominations was a list of people the organization deemed most worthy among those claiming to have made the films.

In doing so, the PGA revealed not only the people in the running for its own awards but, more important, who will make the cut come Oscar time should any of those films be nominated — as most undoubtedly will.

That's because the guild this year has become something of a subcontractor to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, taking charge of the often-acrimonious debate over who gets credit for overseeing production of the nominated pictures.

Making the grade is important because it's the only way the phrase "Oscar-winning producer" will end up in your obituary should your film triumph.

It also means only the producers who pass through the PGA's filters get to rush onstage and read an endless list of names of lawyers, agents and studio executives. (Sorry, executive producers, associate producers, co-producers and myriad hybrids.)

Think of it like a bank officer giving you a pre-approved loan for your car purchase. In both cases, the idea is to be fair, but not irresponsibly generous.

For the academy, the arrangement is a convenient way to play good cop and rid itself of a headache that has turned especially nasty in recent years.

One flashpoint came with complaints that former Miramax chief Harvey Weinstein muscled his way into the producer ranks of "Shakespeare in Love," so he could have his onstage moment when it won the 1999 Oscar for best picture.

Then came last year's controversy with "The Aviator," when producer Charles Evans Jr. insisted he was unfairly aced out of the plaudits.

When the film was announced as an Oscar finalist on the morning TV shows, it was followed by an awkward mention that the credits were still being determined.

"The Aviator" failed to win the big one, but did take home best drama at the Golden Globes. That led to an odd moment in which Evans slipped past a security guard so he could be in the winning photo op, making the other producers livid.