Nomadland has swept the Oscars with wins for directing and its lead Frances McDormand as well as best film – with British stars Daniel Kaluuya and Emerald Fennell also among the winners.
The film’s victory this year makes it the second in as many years to have an Asian director and win best picture. It is also the second time in a row that best director has been won by an Asian filmmaker, with Chloe Zhao taking the spoils.
Zhao also becomes only the second woman to win the best director Academy Award.
Accepting her statuette for her directing, Zhao told the audience at Los Angeles’ Union Station: “Even though sometimes it might seem like the opposite is true, but I have always found goodness in the people I have met everywhere I went in the world.
“So this is for anyone who had the faith and the courage to hold on to the goodness in themselves and hold on to the goodness in each other, no matter how difficult it is to do that.
“This is for you, you inspired me to keep going.”
Nomadland continued its dominant run, with Frances McDormand picking up the award for best actress.
Sir Anthony Hopkins, who was absent from the ceremony, won the award for best actor for his performance in The Father, with the film also winning best adapted screenplay.
Sir Anthony’s win came as somewhat of a shock, with Chadwick Boseman widely tipped to win posthumously for his role in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom – one of his final films before his death.
Elsewhere, Daniel Kaluuya was named best supporting actor for his role as Black Panther leader Fred Hampton in Judas And The Black Messiah, while Emerald Fennell walked off with best original screenplay for her debut movie Promising Young Woman.
Judas And The Black Messiah also won best original song, giving the film two wins in LA.
Take to the stage in LA, Kaluuya, who is the first black British winner of the supporting actor award, said he admired Fred Hampton, who was shot and killed by police in Chicago in 1969, adding: “When they played divide and conquer, we say unite and ascend.
“There’s so much work to do guys and that’s on everyone in this room.
“This ain’t no single man job. We’ve got work to do.
“I’m going to get back to work Tuesday morning, because tonight I’m going out.”
Sound Of Metal, starring Briton Riz Ahmed as a punk drummer who loses his hearing, also took home two awards – for sound design and editing.
Also scoring two trophies apiece was Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, for make up and costume design, Mank, for cinematography and production design and Soul, which won best animation and best score.
Best supporting actress went to 73-year-old Youn Yuh-jung, who played Soon-ja in Minari – a film about a Korean family trying to make it as farmers in 1980s America.