After securing the Palme d’Or and the coveted DGA Award for Feature Film, Sean Baker has reached the mountaintop. The 25-year indie veteran has won the Oscar for Best Director for the biggest hit of his career so far, “Anora.” Baker overcame fierce competition from acclaimed filmmakers Brady Corbet (“The Brutalist”), Jacques Audiard (“Emilia Perez”), James Mangold (“A Complete Unknown”), and Coralie Fargeat (“The Substance”).
Earlier in the evening, Baker won the Academy Award for Editing and Original Screenplay.
Over the past few months, Baker has also won the Independent Spirit Award for Best Director (and Best Feature), the WGA Award for Original Screenplay, the Producers Guild of America Award for Theatrical Motion Picture, an the New York Film Critics Circle for Best Screenplay.
Baker was previously honored for with Best Director from the NYFCC and Director of the Year from the London Film Critics’ Circle for 2017’s “The Florida Project.” That A24 saw a Baker-directed performance of Willem Dafoe earn a Supporting Actor Oscar nomination and take numerous critics groups honors. His 2015 breakout, “Tangerine,” saw star Mya Taylor win Breakthrough Actor at the Gotham Awards and become the first trans woman actress to win Best Supporting Female at the Independent Spirit Awards.
Other films on Baker’s resume include 2012’s “Starlet” and 2021’s “Red Rocket.” The latter saw star Simon Rex win Best Actor from both the Los Angeles Film Critics Association and the Spirit Awards.
“Anora” is available on digital download.
Editor-at-Large Gregory Ellwood is one of the entertainment industry's most respected journalists and critics. Based in Los Angeles, he's the only current awards expert who previously worked on Oscar campaigns at a major movie studio. Over the years, he has written for the LA Times, Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, and Vox, among others. He also co-founded the entertainment news site HitFix, which spawned a legion of influential Emmy and WGA Award-winning alumni.
