The 2019 Oscar nominations were announced on Tuesday with “Roma” and “The Favourite” each leading with 10 nominations. As usual there were surprises and snubs but there were some notable firsts.
Here are some of the 2019 Oscar firsts.
“Roma” is Netflix’s first original film to be nominated for Best Picture
The 2018 drama film is one of the most celebrated 2019 Oscar firsts. It becomes Netflix’s first original to be nominated for the Academy’s most coveted award. Roma’s 10 nominations include; Best Picture, Best Foreign Language Film, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Cinematography and Best Production Design.
“Roma” is set in 1970 and 1971, and is a semi-autobiographical take on Cuarón’s upbringing in Mexico City. The film follows the life of a live-in housekeeper to a middle-class family. “Roma” is streaming on Netflix.
“Blank Panther” became the first superhero film to be nominated for Best Picture
Marvel’s “Black Panther” makes history as the first superhero film to be nominated in the Best Picture category. The film’s production designer, Hannah Beachler, is also nominated for best production design.
Spike Lee gets his first Best Director nomination
Director of “Malcom X” and “Do The Right Thing”, Spike Lee, received his first Oscar nomination in the Best Director category on Tuesday. He earned the nomination for his film, “BlacKkKlansman.”
BlacKkKlansman is a 2018 American biographical crime comedy-drama starring Denzel Washington’s son, John David Washington. The film is set in 1970s Colorado Springs, and the plot follows the first African-American detective in the city’s police department as he sets out to infiltrate and expose the local chapter of the Ku Klux Klan.
Screenwriter, Paul Schrader, received his first nomination
Paul Schrader earned his first nomination for “First Reformed”. His body of work includes; the 1976 thriller “Taxi Driver” and 1980’s “Raging Bull,” both of which had earned past Oscar nominations in other categories including best picture.
Peter Ramsey makes history as the first black nominee for Best Animated Feature
“Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse,” already scooped a Golden Globe Award for Best Animated Feature Film at the 76th edition earlier this month. And it is nominated in the same category for an Academy Award. The nomination is a historic moment for director, Peter Ramsey.
The 91st Academy Awards hold on Monday, 25 February at 2:00am WAT and airs on DStv.
Source: The WashingtonPost.com
