In the days after the 2017 Academy Awards, I was reminded what’s always drawn me to that awards show: sharing great art and movies.

But that seems like an afterthought this year as people are focused on a major gaffe that ended this year’s Academy Awards.

In the weeks leading up to the Oscars, I tried to see as many of the nominated movies as I could. I knocked off three of the nine best picture nominees: “Arrival,” “La La Land” and “Hidden Figures.” Unfortunately, I ran out of time with “Moonlight,” the eventual winner, next up on my watch-list.

But then two weird things happened.

The first: I wasn’t able to watch this year’s Oscars. I was initially disappointed about missing my favorite awards show of the year, but then I realized it didn’t really matter. I woke up a few hours after the show ended, checked my phone, saw “Moonlight” won best picture and I went back to bed.

Then the second weird thing happened: I read the next morning about the infamous gaffe that ended the show. I’m sure you’ve read about it already, so long story short: “La La Land,” the favorite, was accidentally announced as the winner before a correction was made to show “Moonlight” actually won — after the “La La Land” cast and crew were already onstage and giving speeches.

As the mistake has dominated talk surrounding the Oscars, I’ve been left wishing people would move on and talk about the movies.

I went to “La La Land” in theaters last Sunday and was initially a bit let down. The movie was hyped as the favorite throughout award season, so I was ready to be wowed and was just very impressed.

But then I caught myself a few days later humming tunes from the musical, listening to the soundtrack on Spotify, reading the film’s IMDB trivia (OK, I’m addicted to the trivia feature on IMDB for all movies), mulling the plot and realizing a new appreciation for the film.

Here’s what impressed me most: I’m not a big fan of musicals; however, I wound up enjoying the movie and appreciating it’s achievement. Plus, it’s a movie that appears to be a celebration of vintage Hollywood escapism at first, but then the story produces some unexpected teeth. It pays homage to the classic musicals while achieving something new.

I appreciated it’s creativity and that it took me out of my movie comfort zone. It exposed me to a genre I normally ignore and dismiss.

Is it my favorite movie of the year? Honestly, I liked “Arrival” better, but I left “La La Land” with more respect of its artistic achievement, especially for director Damien Chazelle and best actress-winner Emma Stone — I watched a key scene and thought, “If she wins the Oscar, it’s because of that.”

But that’s just a small part of the discussion that these great movies can spark.

You see, award shows are here really to expose us to something we normally may dismiss and, hopefully, get us talking.

For example, “Arrival” left me thinking and impressed with an ending that expertly unfolded before you during the climax. I was also left curious to see what its director Denis Villeneuve will do with “Blade Runner 2049,” a sequel I first grumbled about but am now warming to.

There’s so much more to talk about than the mistake at the Oscars.

Consider this: Off a $30 million budget, “La La Land” made more than $135 million leading up to the Oscars, while winner “Moonlight” only made a little over $20 million off a budget of about $5 million. That makes it one of the lowest-grossing best picture winners ever.

That’s an interesting point to discuss, especially when you think that “La La Land” is likely destined for years of storytelling life when it inevitably hits the stage on Broadway and, eventually, local towns like Riverland Community College’s Frank W. Bridges Theatre.

All of this is to say: Award shows are great and fun, but an unfortunate mistake at the Oscars is really uninteresting. If you’re like me and you love movies, there’s truly so much more to talk about. Let’s put the focus back on great artistic achievements.