How important are awards to the success and professional legitimatization of Black American actors and/or directors?

Although, as we've discussed, awards are not always due to the actual performance or work of the actors/directors, I still think it has some value. Awards are what make a lot of people watch certain movies. They bring the names of these people to the mainstream, and make people know who they are. They give a certain credibility that often times leads the person to get more work that they might not have had access to otherwise. For example, Jennifer Hudson got an Oscar for her role in "Dreamgirls." This was a girl who was rejected on American Idol, and probably got the role for her voice, rather than her acting skills. The fact that she won an Oscar put her out there, and made her a more credible actress and singer. She got several more roles following the award that I doubt she would have gotten if she had just been on American Idol. A director who wins an Oscar is more likely to get a lot more freedom with his next project, since he is now an Oscar winning director. People are a lot more likely to trust someone with an award under their belt. So, to summarize, I guess my definition of success in the movie industry has a lot to do with the number of opportunities and projects you are offered and able to do, and therefore, I do think that awards are fairly important to actors/directors, especially if they haven't one any before.