Paramount's Selma earned two Oscar noms (for best picture and best song), but the film's star David Oyelowo didn't receive a nomination for his role as Martin Luther King Jr., and director Ava DuVernay wasn't included among the nominees for best director, a nomination that would have made her the first black woman to be up for an Oscar in that category.
Selma director Ava DuVernay claims she’s not upset for herself about the Selma’s Oscar nominations, and that the film being shortlisted for best film is “nothing to be sniffed at.”
But speaking at the Berlinale, where the film is receiving a special screening Feb. 10, she admitted that she was “hurt” that David Oyelowo didn’t get a nomination for best actor.
“Because I know what it took,” she told a press conference. “I don’t need people to tell me it’s one of the best performances of 2014, because I already know. It would have nice to have seen him on stage. Because he dresses so nicely.”
DuVernay pointed to The Interview, which she said even fellow Berlinale guest James Franco would admit is a “silly comedy,” and its production cost of $44 million. “Ours was made for half of that,” she said.
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Oyelowo also spoke about Oprah Winfrey’s involvement in the film, claiming that it wouldn’t have been made without her help.
“Oprah is a very magical person,” he said. “The film wouldn’t be in existence if it wasn’t for her.”
The actor added that, after the film languished as a script for seven years, only when Winfrey came on board as executive producer did the wheels start turning.
“She’s a woman of her word, and the reason we’re here before you now.”
