The 89th Academy Awards are about two weeks away. So what’s Oscar Night really like? I’ve had the chance to interview a few past winners who shared their experiences.
Diablo Cody won Best Original Screenplay in 2008 for “Juno”. Following her acceptance speech, she quickly met-up with one of the night’s other big winners:
“Probably my favorite moment of the night was when I was headed backstage with the Oscar to go do the press conference, which they have you do immediately after you win. I passed Daniel Day-Lewis in the hallway, and he had just won. And he held his Oscar up in the air, and he really looked so happy. And it was just this weird private moment that we had. So that was cool.”
Patrick Osborne earned Best Animated Short Film honors two years ago for Disney’s “Feast”. He’s nominated in the category again this year for “Pearl”. After he won for “Feast”, Osborne also had a star-studded backstage experience:
“The coolest part of that night was that my parents were having an Oscar viewing party back in Cincinnati. And backstage I got to FaceTime them and introduce them to Kevin Hart and The Rock and Idris Elba and all the people who were hanging out. So it was really fun to share a little bit of it with my parents and family and friends back there that were watching. You try to take that all in, and it’s kind of hard to remember specifics of the moment or whether or not you spoke well or anything like that. It’s definitely a one of a kind experience and really cool.”
I’ve also talked to some of this year’s Oscar nominees, who are very excited about attending the big show. Another Animated Short contender, “Borrowed Time”, is directed by Andrew Coats and Lou Hamou-Lhadj. They’re thrilled about the recognition:
Coats: “It’s pretty surreal. You wait your whole life watching the Oscars and dreaming of one day being up on stage, but it never feels like it’s really really attainable. It’s hard to quantify, honestly.”
Hamou-Lhadj: “It’s something that both Andrew and I have pushed out of our minds, in terms of it being remotely in the realm of possibilities. So hearing that news…was certainly a shock to our system. There was a lot of jumping, hugging, crying.”
“Kubo and the Two Strings” is nominated for both Animated Feature and Visual Effects (the first animated film to be in that category in 23 years). Director, and Laika Animation President, Travis Knight, is extremely pleased with how his directorial debut turned-out:
“You work on these things, in an insular bubble, for so long – and this one for five years – and never knowing quite how people are going to react to it. So when people respond positively to the work it means a great deal. Everyone at the studio really poured their hearts into this movie, and when people respond well and they’re moved by it, it’s incredibly meaningful for all of us.”
And Best Original Score frontrunner Justin Hurwitz is humbled about “La La Land”‘s success and this Awards Season:
“I’m excited. It’s been such a long time making this movie, and to get the kind of feedback and recognition we’ve been getting is really satisfying and flattering.”