With individual Oscar nominations as producer, director, writer, and cinematographer of “Roma,” Alfonso Cuarón has tied an Academy Awards record shared by Warren Beatty, Alan Menken, and Joel and Ethan Coen.
Four individual nominations for a single film remains a milestone in Oscar history. Beatty previously pulled it off on two separate occasions, for “Heaven Can Wait” and “Reds,” while Menken did it with “Beauty and the Beast” and the Coens with “No Country for Old Men.”
For Cuarón, it’s a somewhat unusual entry in the record books, given his recognition for work in an artisan field. Had the film been recognized for film editing, he’d have broken the record, or if the Academy officially recognized the directors of foreign-language nominees, rather than just the country of origin, the 57-year-old filmmaker. With both, in fact, he’d have tied Walt Disney’s overall record for nominations in one year. But sharing a slice of history with legends like those above is nothing to sneeze at.
“For me it was a kaleidoscope of experience,” Cuarón told Variety last year of his drive to make the film. “And I was not confident. It was this kind of need. I was just going to go for it.”
“Roma” was also nominated for lead actress (Yalitza Aparicio), supporting actress (Marina de Tavira), production design, sound editing, sound mixing, and best picture of the year. It marked streaming company Netflix’s first-ever best picture Oscar nomination.
Other films in the mix for best picture include “BlacKkKlansman,” “Black Panther,” “Bohemian Rhapsody,” “The Favourite,” “Green Book,” “A Star Is Born” and “Vice.”