Kathryn Bigelow
Film: “The Hurt Locker”
Distributed by: Summit Entertainment
Written by: Mark Boal
Produced by: Kathryn Bigelow, Mark Boal, Nicolas Chartier, Greg Shapiro
Synopsis: During the Iraq War, a Sergeant recently assigned to an army bomb squad is put at odds with his squad mates due to his maverick way of handling his work.
Other Oscar nominations: director, actor (Jeremy Renner), original screenplay, cinematography (Barry Ackroyd), film editing (Bob Murawski, Chris Innis), sound mixing (Paul N.J. Ottosson, Ray Beckett), sound editing (Paul N.J. Ottosson) and original score (Marco Beltrami, Buck Sanders)
Wins: picture, director, original screenplay, film editing, sound mixing and sound editing
The scene that proves it: “I got a wire.”
Kathryn Bigelow made history as the first woman to win best director for her best picture-winning war drama, “The Hurt Locker,” when a woman-directed feature led the nomination tally, a first-ever. It’s also the most Oscar won by a best picture winner since the field has expanded from five to 10 (other films like “Gravity” and “Mad Max: Fury Road” have also won the same or more but did not win picture). Despite being one of the lowest box-office-winning films in history, Bigelow also became the first woman to win the DGA award. The film grossed $49 million on a $15 million budget.
Before becoming an Oscar-winner, movie lovers were well-aware of Bigelow’s talents with films like “Near Dark” (1987), “Blue Steel” (1990), “Point Break” (1991) and “Strange Days” (1995) among her finest efforts. After her winning year, she got another film in the Oscars’ top category, “Zero Dark Thirty” (2012), one of the few films that won best film at New York, Los Angeles and National Board of Review awards. After that, she directed “Detroit” (2017), receiving mixed praise from critics but still showcasing her eye for tension. We await the next adventure.
Source: variety.com
