So you missed the Oscars? The 89th Academy Awards happened Sunday night, Feb. 26, and it was one for the books. In between Kimmel’s gags, and “La La Land” accidentally being declared the winner of an Oscar that was meant for “Moonlight,” there was a lot going on.
Following the “Oscars So White” controversy of last year (read our recap here!), the Academy aimed to diversify and properly represent at this year’s award ceremony. But if you missed out on the awards due to work, lack of cable access or “The Walking Dead,” fear not! We have compiled a list of things people are sure to be talking about.
The Theme
This year’s theme, which didn’t come up until halfway through the ceremony, was Inspiration. To celebrate what inspires today’s filmmakers, the academy opened with a montage clip of actors accepting awards from previous years. Breaking up the awards were featurettes of previous Oscar nominees speaking on people who inspired them. This included:
• The cast of “Hidden Figures” honoring Katherine Johnson who made a surprise appearance.
• Charlize Theron honoring Shirley MacLaine.
• Seth Rogan honoring “Back to the Future” and Michael J. Fox. The two even sang the ‘Hamilton’ song, ‘Schuyler Sisters’ to a very pleased Lin-Manuel Miranda.
• Javier Bardem honoring Meryl Streep, who secured her 20th nomination that night.
• Jimmy Kimmel mockingly honoring Matt Damon’s box-office bomb, “We Bought a Zoo.”
• A heartwarming montage of foreigners from around the world discussing the magic of cinema. “movies are a universal language, and magic is universal.”
The Host
This year, ABC’s own late night star Jimmy Kimmel hosted the award ceremony. Kimmel’s staple sarcasm and monotone delivery was quite a hit with the crowd. The host made sure to continue his anti-Matt Damon jokes while giving just enough commentary on the political climate. Memorable moments include:
• Justin Timberlake throwing his microphone across the stage at Kimmel.
• “I wanna say thank you to President Trump . . . remember last year when we thought the Oscars were the most racist?”
• Periodic parachute drops of candy, cookies, and doughnuts.
• Lifting up “Lion” star Sunny Pawar to the tune of “Circle of Life.”
• A Kimmel style prank which brought an unsuspecting Hollywood touring bus into the ceremony.
• Celebrity Mean Tweets, Oscars Edition!
The Wins
There were many surprise wins at this year’s Academy Awards. Most especially a “lol jk” victory for best picture. Check out the wins and the memorable moments below:
• Actor in a Supporting Role: Mahershala Ali, “Moonlight” See our interview with the star who thanked his teachers and professors!
• Costume Design: Colleen Atwood, “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”
• Makeup and Hairstyling: Alessandro Bertolazzi, Giorgio Gregorini and Christopher Nelson, “Suicide Squad”
• Documentary Feature: “OJ: Made in America”
• Sound Editing: Sylvain Bellemare, “Arrival”
• Sound Mixing: Kevin O’Connell, Andy Wright, Robert Mackenzie and Peter Grace, “Hacksaw Ridge”
• Actress in a Supporting Role: Viola Davis, “Fences”
o Davis’ tear-jerking speech including high praise for artists. “We are the only profession that celebrates what it means to have a life.”
• Foreign Language Film: Iranian film, “The Salesman”
o In protest of the Travel Ban (read our take on it here) Director Asghar Farhadi did not attend the ceremony.
• Animated Short Film: “Piper”
• Animated Feature: “Zootopia”
• Production Design: David Wasco, Sandy Reynolds-Wasco, “La La Land”
• Visual effects: Robert Legato, Adam Valdez, Andrew R. Jones and Dan Lemmon, “The Jungle Book”
• Film Editing: John Gilbert, “Hacksaw Ridge”
• Documentary Short: “The White Helmets”
• Live-action Short: “Sing”
• Cinematography: Linus Sandgren, “La La Land”
• Original Score: Justin Hurwitz, “La La Land”
• Original Song: “City of Stars,” “La La Land”
• Original Screenplay: “Manchester by the Sea”
• Adapted Screenplay: “Moonlight”
• Best Director: Damien Chazelle, “La La Land”
o At 32 he is the youngest director to win in this category. (watch our interview here!)
• Best Actor: Casey Affleck, “Manchester by the Sea”
o Much to his own surprise, Affleck accepted the award without a speech saying only, “Man I wish I had something more important and meaningful to say.”
• Best Actress: Emma Stone, “La La Land”
• Best Picture: “Moonlight”
o Originally “La La Land” was declared best picture. As the producers came on stage and said their thanks, a scramble began backstage. It was discovered the wrong envelope was given to the presenters. A reprinted copy of Emma Stone’s “La La Land” envelope was handed out instead of the correct envelope holding the true winner of best picture: “Moonlight.”
Now you’re caught up! Be sure to catch next year’s awards, or come back to District to read up on all the things your Film & Television major friends are ranting about!
For a detailed and personal reaction to the awards, check out SCAD Radio’s article on the Oscar’s.
Written by Rummel Medina.
Rummel is a Film and Television major from Caracas, Venezuela. He is in charge of coordinating and editing District’s audio and video content. He is also a co-host of District’s advice podcast The Mutiny!
