More backstage quotes from Oscar winners

SPENCER. Thanks to Steven Spielberg. photo by: Sthanlee B. Mirador

LOS ANGELES—The winners being interviewed backstage at last Sunday’s Academy Awards had to compete again . . . for the assembled journalists’ attention. We were also watching the show on monitors spread throughout the room and keeping track of who was winning. But the winners, in general, managed to draw the reporters’ eyes and ears (headsets were supplied) away from the show.

For one, Michel Hazanavicius, best director for “The Artist,” had everyone’s attention when he revealed what he is planning for a follow-up to his hugely successful film. He announced, “What I want to make now is an adaptation of an American movie, ‘The Search.’ It’s a Fred Zinnemann movie from 1947 with Montgomery Clift. I would like to make an adaptation of this movie which is a melodrama with a political background. It would be a modern movie and it will be with Berenice (Bejo, his wife and actress in ‘The Artist’).”

Thomas Langmann, producer of the best picture, “The Artist,” waxed sentimental about his late father, Claude Berri, who was an Oscar winning director (“Le Poulet”) and a nominated producer himself. “I was thinking about my family because my dad won a BAFTA and an Oscar—he won it in 1966 for a short film,” said the 40-year-old executive. “He was nominated over 30 years ago as producer of ‘Tess’ by Roman Polanski. He didn’t win but now I have all those beautiful objects that I can put next to his. So, for me it’s very personal, and it’s a beautiful evening.”

On his black and white silent film’s success, Thomas said, “It has been an amazing journey. When we started this movie, all the meetings that we had were very short. No one wanted to help us make a silent black and white movie. But I was convinced that Michel was a very gifted director, and I thought that if we gave him the money that he needed…” Thomas added, “All the weaknesses in the beginning became strengths.”

Jim Rash and Nat Faxon, who won the best adapted screenplay (“The Descendants”) with Alexander Payne, provided the humor when they were teased for starting a trend called Jolie-ing. Jim and Nat struck Angelina’s celebrated right leg forward pose when they went on stage to collect their trophy.

“She’s supremely hot,” Nat described Angelina, whose photos and videos of her exposed gam on the Oscar red carpet and when she presented during the show have gone viral on the Internet. “Jim did the leg first and he didn’t tell us so I had to quickly adapt.” Jim quipped, “I just saw her pose and I thought, we have exactly the same legs and I wanted to show everyone what it meant. It was a loving tribute. It was more like, oh, she’s standing great; I’m going to stand like that, too.”

Meryl Streep, best actress (“The Iron Lady”), was asked about one of her projects, the National Women’s History Museum, which she is helping to establish in Washington, D.C.

Contributions

“There is a lot of history that is not written about the contributions of women in our country and around the world,” said Meryl, who was eloquent despite being obviously giddy about her win. “I think it would be really inspiring for people all around the world to have this fantastic center where you can learn the stuff that hasn’t been written about women because for many centuries, history was not interested in us. It would be great for boys and girls to go to a place where they could learn about the contributions of their foremothers as well as their forefathers.”

Octavia Spencer elaborated on why she thanked Steven Spielberg for changing her life in her speech upon winning the best supporting actress prize (“The Help”): “Steven Spielberg is a luminary and as far as I can remember, in every decade of my life, he has been creating brilliance. He has this little studio called DreamWorks that could have put any zaftig actress with acting chops in my role. But he allowed my dear friend, (director) Tate Taylor, to cast me, who is pretty much unknown to most of you, in that role when there were so many others who could have been chosen. That’s the sign of a true filmmaker—to allow another filmmaker to do what he does. So he and (DreamWorks CEO) Stacey Snider changed my professional life, and getting the opportunity to play this role changed my life personally as well.”

Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy made history that evening as the first Pakistani filmmaker to win an Oscar. Sharmeen accomplished the feat by winning in the best documentary (short subject) category for “Saving Face,” which she co-directed with Daniel Junge.

“Saving Face” focuses on survivors of acid attacks, a crime that disfigures hundreds of Pakistani women each year. The documentary shows how survivors are fighting to bring their attackers to justice and the commitment of a plastic surgeon to help restore their faces and lives. Sharmeen is actively involved in the campaign for tougher laws against this violence.

Asked what the Oscar win means to her aside from making her a pioneering Pakistani filmmaker in the Academy’s books, Sharmeen answered, “it reinforces the fact that today, you can be anyone and come from anywhere, but if you put quality work out there, it will be judged on just that.”

When it was the turn of Asghar Farhadi, the director of Iran’s “A Separation,” which won the best foreign language film honors, we asked him for an update on how the Iranian government is reacting to all the awards and acclaim that his movie is reaping.

“I really don’t know and I can’t predict what’s going to happen so I’m just going to wait and see how they respond,” Asghar answered. “The Iranian government is not unanimous at all. When this film was nominated, some were very happy, some were excited, and some were not as happy, so it’s not like you have the same level of people in the system. To me, what matters is that the people of Iran are happy.”

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