Jane Campion has made history once again. Just the second woman nominated for Best Director in 1994 for “The Piano,” she now has become the third woman to win the prestigious Oscar category for “The Power of the Dog.” This is her second Oscar statue after winning Best Original Screenplay for the aforementioned “Piano.”
READ MORE: Kirsten Dunst: “Roles Are Only As Good As The Films They’re In” [Interview]
The Australian native has won a cavalcade of Best Director honors for “The Power of The Dog,” including the DGA Award, the BAFTA Award, the Golden Globe, the LA Film Critics Association, the New York Film Critics Circle, a Venice Film Festival honor, and the Critics Choice Award. This was all quite noteworthy as “Power” was Campion’s first theatrical release since “Bright Star” in 2009. She’d spent much of the past decade writing and directing two seasons of “Top of the Lake.” Her other films include “Sweetie,” “An Angel at my Table,” “The Portrait of a Lady,” “Holy Smoke,” and “In the Cut.”
Campion was also nominated this year in the Adapted Screenplay category and as a producer in the Best Picture category.
The 67-year-old filmmaker created a stir recently when she made an off-hand comment about Serena and Venus Williams while accepting Best Director at the Critics Choice Awards. Out of the blue, she remarked, “Venus and Serena, you’re such marvels. However, you don’t play against the guys, like I have to.” That immediately created a firestorm on social media and she apologized the next day. The incident did not affect her opportunity to take the Best Director Oscar.
“The Power of the Dog” is available worldwide on Netflix.
