Misan Harriman’s Oscar Hopes Dashed as ‘Oppenheimer’ Takes Home Most Wins

Vanessa Obioha

Nigeria’s hope for an Oscar win was dashed at the 96th Academy Awards as ‘The After,’ a live-action short film directed by Nigerian-born British photographer, entrepreneur and social activist, Misan Harriman, lost to Wes Anderson’s ‘The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar.’ Both films were nominated in the Live Action Short category and are available on Netflix.

‘The After’ tells a poignant tale of a grieving rideshare driver who after losing family members to a violent crime, picks up a passenger who helps him to confront his grief. It featured the British actor of Nigerian descent David Oyelowo in the lead role.

Christopher Nolan’s biopic ‘Oppenheimer,’ about the physicist who invented the atomic bomb, dominated the awards with seven wins out of its 13 nominations, the most wins of the night. It secured awards for Best Picture, Editing, Cinematography, and Original Score categories, marking a first-time Oscar win for Robert Downey Jr. in the Best Supporting Actor category, as well as for Cillian Murphy, who won Best Actor, and Director Nolan in Best Director.

‘Poor Things,’  a twist on Frankenstein, took home four awards including a Best Actress win for Emma Stone, her second Oscar win in her acting career.
‘Barbie,’ another major contender of the night, left the event with an Original Song award for Billie Eilish’s ‘What Was I Made For?’
The awards held at the Dolby Theatre had a few memorable and ‘memeable’ moments such as WWE legend John Cena appearing naked on stage apart from a meticulously placed envelope, to present the award for costume designing.