Autumn Durald Arkapaw becomes first woman and Black person to win Oscar for cinematography

“Whenever I say thank you to Ryan [Coogler], he replies and says, ‘No, thank you, thank you for trusting me, thank you for believing in me.’ That’s the kind of guy I get to make films with,” Durald said at the beginning of her speech as Coogler ran down the aisles of the theater to give the Oscar winner’s child a better vantage point. Durald then asked all of the women in the room to stand up and share the moment with her, saying, “I have felt so much love from all the women on this whole campaign.” 

Durald previously worked with Coogler for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Coogler is only the seventh Black director to ever be nominated for Best Director. Coogler already won an award tonight for Best Original Screenplay, becoming the second Black winner in the category after Jordan Peele’s win for Get Out. Sinners also achieved another notable win, if not a first; Michael B. Jordan’s win made him the first actor to win for playing twins since Lee Marvin won in 1965 for Cat Ballou.