History has been made. Already,Sinners came into the 98th Academy Awards with a record-breaking 16 nominations. And following the show, not only did they take home four trophies, but they also made history along the way courtesy of the film’s cinematographer, Filipino-American Autumn Durald Arkapaw. Autumn, who is of Filipino and African American Creole descent, won the Oscar for Best Cinematography.
In doing so, she achieved a slew of firsts. She is the first woman of Filipino heritage, first woman of color, and first woman ever to win the award. Before her, there were only three women nominated in the category: Rachel Morrison in 2018 for Mudbound, Ari Wegner in 2021 for The Power of the Dog, and Mandy Walker in 2022 for Elvis.
Autumn was also just the second Filipino nominated for Best Cinematography, following Matthew Libatique, who was nominated for Black Swan in 2010, A Star is Born in 2019, and Maestro in 2024. She is also one of a handful of Filipinas to have won an Oscar, with the last one being H.E.R. for Best Original Song in 2021.
Alluding to her historic win, Autumn thanked the women she encountered on her journey, such as cinematographer Rachel Morrison, for helping her get to where she is today. “I have felt so much love from all the women on this whole campaign and gotten to meet so many people, and I just feel like moments like this happen because of you guys, and I want to thank you for that.” In a powerful moment, she also asked all the women in the room to stand up in recognition of their talents and the work they put in to help other women reach success in the industry.
RELATED: Filipino-American Cinematographer Autumn Durald Arkapaw Just Made History With Her Oscar Nomination
A Rising Creative In Hollywood
Even before the Oscars, Autumn was already a history-maker as she was the first female cinematographer to shoot on IMAX 65mm and Ultra Panavision. Her deserved win proved to be another moment that helped break the glass ceiling for women in film. It’s almost shocking to think that in the Oscars’ 98-year history, a woman hasn’t won Best Cinematography until now. And hopefully, Autumn won’t be the last to do so.
It also served as the latest and biggest achievement yet for the fast-rising cinematographer. Growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area, Autumn began her career as a cinematographer and camera operator in the industry in 2009. Some of her previous films include Palo Alto starring Emma Roberts, Teen Spirit starring Elle Fanning, Mainstream starring Andrew Garfield, and The Last Showgirl starring Pamela Anderson. The Oscar winner also served as the cinematographer for all episodes of season one of Loki, where she received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Cinematography for a Single-Camera Series.
As for her partnership with Ryan Coogler, both newly-minted Oscar winners met on Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, where Autumn served as the movie’s cinematographer. When the first film’s cinematographer, Rachel Morrison, couldn’t return for the sequel, she recommended Autumn for the job. With the role, Autumn became the second female cinematographer to work on an MCU feature and the second Filipino-American to serve as the cinematographer for an MCU movie, the first being Matthew Libatique, who shot the first two Iron Man movies.
The film began their collaboration, which continued with Sinners, where Ryan chose Autumn to help bring the movie’s stunning and hauntingly beautiful visual story and craft to life. Clearly, all the hard work paid off. And in case you’re wondering, Autumn’s next project is as the cinematographer on Ryan Coogler’s upcoming X-Files reboot, making for another exciting collaboration to look forward to from these two creative partners.
Photo: THE ACADEMY (via Instagram)
Frequently Asked Questions
Autumn Durald Arkapaw is a Filipino-American cinematographer who won Best Cinematography at the 98th Academy Awards for Sinners, directed by Ryan Coogler. Her win made her the first woman of Filipino heritage, first woman of color, and first woman ever to win the award in the Oscars’ 98-year history. She is also one of only a handful of Filipinas to have won an Oscar.
Autumn Durald Arkapaw won the Oscar for Best Cinematography for Sinners, a film directed by Ryan Coogler that received a record-breaking 16 nominations at the 98th Academy Awards and took home four trophies. The film marked a continuation of Arkapaw and Coogler’s creative partnership, which began with Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
Before her Oscar win, Autumn Durald Arkapaw was already the first female cinematographer to shoot on IMAX 65mm and Ultra Panavision. She was the second female cinematographer to work on an MCU feature — joining Black Panther: Wakanda Forever — and is only the second Filipino nominated for Best Cinematography at the Oscars, following Matthew Libatique’s three nominations.
Autumn Durald Arkapaw’s cinematography credits include Palo Alto, Teen Spirit, Mainstream, The Last Showgirl, and all episodes of Loki Season 1 — for which she received an Emmy nomination. Her MCU work includes Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and Sinners. Her next project is as cinematographer on Ryan Coogler’s upcoming X-Files reboot.
Autumn Durald Arkapaw was recommended for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever by Rachel Morrison, the first film’s cinematographer, when Morrison was unable to return for the sequel. The collaboration continued with Sinners, where Coogler chose Arkapaw to lead the film’s visual storytelling — a partnership that ultimately led to her historic Oscar win for Best Cinematography at the 98th Academy Awards.
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