Oppenheimer won the Best Film Award at the 96th Oscar Gala held in Los Angeles on Sunday evening local time, where Zsuzsa Mihalek, the set designer of Poor Things, also received the American Film Academy’s award for Best Production Design alongside British production designers Shona Heath and James Price.
The big winner of the awards ceremony was Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer, which garnered seven awards. Nolan also received the Best Director award from the Film Academy, thus leaving the ceremony with two Oscars. Receiving the Oscar statue, the director remarked that the film industry has a centuries-old history and is still evolving, adding: ‘It means the world to me that you think I am a significant part of it’. Actor Cillian Murphy, who played the protagonist of the film about the father of the atomic bomb, J. Robert Oppenheimer, won the Oscar for Best Actor. As he remarked: ‘we all live in Oppenheimer’s world,’ so he dedicated his award to ‘the peacemakers present everywhere’.
Robert Downey Jr, who portrayed Lewis Strauss, the former chairman of the United States Atomic Energy Commission, received the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. ‘I would like to thank my terrible childhood and the Academy, in that order,’ the actor joked, who won his first Oscar. Hoyte van Hoytema won the award for Best Cinematography for Oppenheimer, and Jennifer Lame, the film’s editor, was also honored. Oppenheimer also won in the Best Original Score category, with composer Ludwig Göransson taking home his second Oscar.
From the eleven nominations for Poor Things, based on the novel by Scottish writer Alasdair Gray, it ultimately received four awards, including in the production design category. At the Oscars, the award was accepted by Shona Heath and James Price on behalf of Zsuzsa Mihalek.
‘It is a huge joy, an excellent result, and further momentum for Hungarian filmmakers and the entire industry
due to Zsuzsa Mihalek’s Oscar for Jórgosz Lánthimos’ film Poor Things, made in Hungary,’ Csaba Káel, the government commissioner responsible for the development of the Hungarian film industry, stated, adding:
‘Zsuzsa Mihalek, along with her team of Hungarian professionals, contributed to the creation of a film of historical significance, which has been praised and awarded worldwide since its premiere. Once again, Hungarian filmmakers have proven that with their talent, enthusiasm, and diligence, they create productions of world-class quality that further enhance the prestige of the Hungarian film industry globally. I congratulate Zsuzsa Mihalek, producer Ildikó Kemény, and the entire team with great pleasure!’
Poor Things also won in the categories of hair and makeup, as well as costume design. Costume designer Holly Waddigton, upon receiving the award, also
talked about the filming in Hungary with appreciation.
Jimmy Kimmel hosted the gala, returning to this role for the fourth time. Among the presenters were Steven Spielberg and Al Pacino, who were greeted with standing ovations by the stars.
Traditionally, tribute was paid to filmmakers who passed away in the past year. The tribute started with the words of the late Alexei Navalny quoted from last year’s Oscar-winning documentary Navalny.
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Sources: Hungarian Conservative/MTI
