‘Long Live Independent Film’: Best Picture Frontrunner ‘Anora’ Nabs Oscars Top Prize
Anora, where a sex worker’s fairytale goes south, won the Best Picture prize at the Oscars on Sunday. Anora picked up five of its six nominations on Hollywood’s biggest night with wins in Film Editing, Original Screenplay, Best Actress, and Directing. Sean Baker, who previously directed Tangerine, The Florida Project, and Red Rocket, took the stage along with the film’s cast members and producers to accept the award.
During his speech, Baker encouraged the creation of more independent films. “I want to thank the Academy for recognizing a truly independent film,” he said. “This film was made on the blood, sweat, and tears of incredible indie artists. Long live independent film.”
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Anora follows Mikey Madison’s Ani, a stripper and sex worker, and her whirlwind romance with Ivan (Mark Eydelshteyn), the son of a Russian oligarch. The two meet at Ani’s workplace, leading Ivan to pay her $15,000 for a one-week “girlfriend experience.” After the two elope at a Las Vegas chapel, Ivan’s keepers hound him to annul the marriage.
Anora has been an awards season favorite since it won the Palme D’Or at Cannes in May. As Baker won the grand prize, he dedicated the award to “sex workers past, present, and future.” Sex workers have also praised the film, calling it sincere rather than sensationalist. Despite the film losing all five of its Golden Globe nominations, it picked up the top honor at the Directors Guild of America Awards and the Producers Guild of America Awards. Prior to Anora’s win, seven of the last 10 PGA Best Film winners went on to win the Oscars Best Picture title.
Madison, who won the Oscar for Best Actress, learned Russian, worked with a dialect coach to master the Brooklyn accent, shadowed real dancers, and even installed a pole in her living room for the role. “That kind of job is very psychological,” Madison previously told Rolling Stone. “You have to be a very intuitive person to be a dancer. You have to be able to read people in a specific way.”
The film also picked up a surprise supporting acting nomination for Yura Borisov’s role as the kind-hearted Russian henchman. Anora beat out Best Picture nominees James Mangold’s A Complete Unknown, RaMell Ross’ Nickel Boys, Brady Corbet’s The Brutalist, Jacques Audiard’s Emilia Pérez, Coralie Fargeat’s The Substance, Walter Salles’ I’m Still Here, Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part Two, Edward Barker’s Conclave, and Jon M. Chu’s Wicked.
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