Sex worker drama 'Anora' dominates Oscars, wins 5 awards

Independent film "Anora" – the tale of a sex worker whose marriage to the son of a Russian oligarch quickly unravels – was the big winner at the Oscars on Sunday, scooping five awards including best picture. Sean Baker's black comedy also took home the Academy Awards for best director, best editing, best original screenplay and best actress for 25-year-old star Mikey Madison. "This is a dream come true," said Madison. Her win was something of an upset, as she bested 1990s megastar Demi Moore, who had been the odds-on favorite to cap a late career flourish with a golden statuette for body-horror flick "The Substance".
The five wins by "Anora" – out of six nominations – was an impressive haul for a movie made for just $6 million, a tiny sum by Hollywood standards. The film's triumph came at the expense of "Conclave" – a film about the secretive and cutthroat election of a new Catholic leader that had been lent an uncanny timeliness by the real-life health woes of Pope Francis. The Vatican intrigue, starring Ralph Fiennes and Isabella Rossellini, earned top honors from Britain's BAFTAs, and the Hollywood actors' SAG Award, but had to settle Sunday for best adapted screenplay, despite having been seen as a favorite heading into the night.
Brazil won its first Oscar for best international feature for "I'm Still Here" and Latvia's "Flow" won the award for best animated film."Emilia Perez" star Zoe Saldana won for best supporting actress, and she emotionally thanked her family. "My grandmother came to this country in 1961, I am a proud child of immigrant parents with dreams and dignity and hard-working hands, and I am the first American of Dominican origin to accept an Academy Award," she said.