Film

Taika Waititi Wins An Oscar, Dedicates It To “All The Indigenous Kids Who Want To Make Art”

"We are the original storytellers and we can make it here, as well."

by Joseph Earp  10 February 2020
Taika Waititi wins Oscar

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Taika Waititi, your boyfriend and mine, just picked up an Academy Award for his work writing the screenplay for Jojo Rabbit.

It’s a big win for Waititi, who has actually memorably been nominated for an Oscar one time before. Back then, he was up for Best Live Action Short, and he soaked up the attention that comes with getting nominated for Hollywood’s biggest award by pretending to be asleep.

This time, however, Waititi was more alert, springing up to stage to receive his Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar and immediately making a joke about it.

“This is very light,” Waititi said, weighing up the trophy in his hands and soaking up the love in the room.

From there, he thanked his mother, who was the person who first and most loudly told him that he had to direct Jojo Rabbit. Then, admitting that he couldn’t remember most of the people he had to honour, he shrugged and got ready to leave. “That’s it,” he said, before suddenly delivering one of the most important and impactful sentiments of the show so far.

“I dedicate this to all the indigenous kids in the world who want to do art and dance and write stories,” Taika Waititi said. “We are the original storytellers and we can make it here, as well.”

Beautiful. Watch the show-stopping moment here: