11 Oscar nominations for 'Everything Everywhere All At Once' tops all movies

 

The Asian American universe-switching science fiction film Everything Everywhere All At Once is poised to make history after receiving  11 Oscar nomination Tuesday morning.

After each nomination, the cast and crew, united by Zoom, let out cheers and applause. The movie was picked for Best Picture. The directors and writers, Daniel Kwan and Daniel Schienert were nominated Best Director and for Best Original Screenplay.

As expected, still basking from their Golden Globe wins, Michelle Yeoh was nominated for Best Actress and Ke Huy Quan landed a Best Supporting Actor. Stephanie Hsu and Jamie Lee Curtis were both nominated for Best Actress.

Should she win, Yeoh would become the first woman of Asian descent to win a Best Actress Oscar.

"Of course, I’m over the moon, but I feel a little sad because I know we know there have been amazing actresses from Asia that come before me, and I stand on their shoulders,” reports the New York Times interviewing Yeoh, who was in France. “I hope this will shatter that frigging glass ceiling to no end, that this will continue, and we will see more of our faces up there.”

“I was jumping up and down, screaming at the top of my voice, exactly the same way that I did when I got the phone call from my agent that the Daniels wanted me to play Waymond,” Quan told the NYTimes. He described his Oscar nomination, “It’s so surreal. I am ecstatic.”

The film's nominations also included behind-the-camera Asian Americans for Best Original Score by Son Lux, Best Costume Design by Shirley Kurata, Best Original Song "This Is A Life" which was co-written by Japanese American singer-songwriter Mitski. The movie also won Oscar nods for Best Editing.

The 11 Academy Award nominations is the most by an Asian or Asian American production.

AANHPI REPRESENTATION

With EEAAO earning the most Academy Award nominations, the AANHPI presence will be stronger than usual this year.

Joining EEAAO's Hsu and Curtis in the Best Supporting Actress category is Thai-born actress Hong Chau from The Whale.  

Other Asian and AAPI nominated for the Academy Award include: 

• Chinese Canadian Turning Red filmmaker Domee Shi in Best Animated Film;  
• Judy Chin for Make-up/hairstyling for The Whale, 
• Japanese born-UK scribe Kazuo Ishiguro for Living in Adapted Screenplay, 
• Indian producer Aman Mann and filmmaker Shaunak Sen for All That Breathes  in Best Documentary Feature, 
• Indian film producer Guneet Monga and Kartiki Gonsalves in Best Documentary Short for The Elephant Whisperers,
• “Naatu Naatu,” from RRR, for Best Song with music by M.M. Keeravaani and lyric by Chandrabose.
• Judy Chin, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, The Whale.

ACTORS & MONTEREY PARK

The day before the announcement of Oscar nominations, the cast of EEAAO gathered for dinner at a restaurant in Monterey Park a city still reeling from the mass shooting that killed 11 Lunar New Year celebrants.

The event for the EEAAO cast and crew was planned weeks earlier but it was decided to go ahead with the dinner.

“It was so sad when we saw the streets were empty. We walked into the restaurant, and it was empty,” said Quan, who lived in Monterey Park for many years. “I’m so glad we went. We didn’t shy away from it. We didn’t cancel. We went there, we showed them our love, we supported the business, and I think that’s what people should do. That’s what I hope.”

"This is not the time to stay away from Monterey Park," quan told the LA Times. "Instead we should go there and support them and show them our love. The local businesses need us.”

Yeoh expressed hope to the LA Times that the EEAAO's message of intergenerational healing will offer a “beacon of light.”

“We must hold hands, hold each other and have hope in our hearts that we can step forth and make things better,” she said. “Hopefully this will be a little beacon of light, that we can collectively embrace each other and say, ‘Let us lift each other out of this grief and sadness.’ We have to usher in hope, love and forgiveness."

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow @DioknoEd on Twitter.