Arkapaw, first woman to win Oscar for cinematography

This year, the conversation shifted from red carpet glitz to a woman’s grit, writes Vivekananda Kodandaraman.

The Oscars have often relied on hosts, mostly men, making jokes about inclusivity and marginalised identities that provoke laughter instead of results. People talk about it briefly and move on.

Against such a backdrop who would have thought a woman with Filipino roots would make history?

Autumn Durald Arkapaw became the first woman to win the Best Cinematography Award for ‘Sinners’ at the recently concluded Oscars — a first in the Awards’ 97-year history. 

Arkapaw’s acceptance speech was historic and momentous. “I’m so honoured to be here and I really want all the women in the room to stand up, because I feel like I don’t get here without you guys (sic),” she said at the ceremony.

She is only the fourth woman to be nominated in this category after Rachel Morrison for ‘Mudbound’ (2017), Ari Wegner for ‘The Power of the Dog’ (2021), and Mandy Walker for ‘Elvis’ (2022). Arkapaw is also the first woman to shoot a feature film on 65mm and IMAX.

The widescreen shots in ‘Sinners’, directed by Ryan Coogler, became the most talked about aspect upon its release last year. Viewers called it an immersive experience. Arkapaw says it was a “genuine thrill” to shoot using Kodak Ektachrome in 15-perf IMAX.

In an interview, she explained, “I captured some handheld portrait-style shots with the IMAX camera, not knowing exactly where they would land in the cut. Ryan used them so beautifully in the flashback sequence, and it ended up becoming a real iconic moment in the film.” 

Coogler also gave her black and white photographs by Eudora Welty — an American short story writer and novelist for reference. She says it helped her because she has always been fond of looking at photography references because they are real people and real places.

She wanted to make the shots as good as those photographs because films are about make-believe.

Childhood fascination

As a child, she spent a lot of time taking photographs. In many of her interviews, she recalls travelling frequently with her grandparents, which was when she would experiment with photography. 

As she grew older, she revisited those photos, which helped her connect with her family and the world. Her interest in films also began when she was a child. It was her mother who played a significant role in instilling in her a love for cinema. She would often take her along to the movies. 

But it was not until college that she began to think about how films are made. She dreamt of shooting a big action film, even at a time when such opportunities were rare for female DOPs.

Arkapaw studied art history at Loyola Marymount University in California with the aim of becoming a curator. She was fascinated by the films of Woody Allen and Martin Scorsese. When she tried to get into the American Film Institute Conservatory’s cinematography programme, her application was rejected due to a ‘lack of experience’.

She then worked as an assistant on the Sundance Channel’s documentary TV series, ’On the Road in America’, with cinematographer Guy Livneh. She was then accepted at AFI in 2006. ‘Macho’ (2006), a mumblecore film that she made with her friends at AFI, was her first film as a cinematographer.

Road to Oscars

After graduating from AFI in 2009, she worked in an advertising company and made short films on weekends. Her first film was ‘Palo Alto’ (2013) by Gia Coppola. One of her major films as cinematographer was ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ (2022).

When Rachel Morrison could not return for the sequel of ‘Black Panther’ (2018), she recommended Arkapaw to Ryan Coogler. Eight years later, the same duo came together and created history.

‘Sinners’ (2026) made history at the Academy Awards securing a record-breaking 16 Oscar nominations. People were already excited about how many awards the film would receive but little did they know that Arkapaw was going to create another record which took far more time than the 16 nominations milestone.

Women at the Oscars are often discussed for what they wear on the red carpet. However, this year, a woman was being widely discussed for her work in a film that highlights Black culture and their music.

“Young girls will look up this nomination and see that film and will associate with all the people that made it, people that are people of color (sic),” she said in an interview.