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Director Ryan Coogler and director of photography Autumn Durald Arkapaw Coogler in Warner Bros. Pictures\u2019 \u201cSinners.\u201d Credit: courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures<\/p>\nOakland made history this morning when the 98th Academy Awards nominations were announced.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSinners,\u201d the vampire film set in 1932 in the Mississippi Delta, produced, written, and directed by Ryan Coogler \u2014 and produced by Coogler, his wife Zinzi Coogler, and Sev Ohanian \u2014 broke the record for most nominations with a total of 16.<\/p>\n
This also marks the first time a Black director from Oakland has been nominated.<\/p>\n
The 16 nominations included nods for acting, score, and best picture:\u00a0<\/p>\n
Best Picture, Zinzi Coogler, Sev Ohanian and Ryan Coogler, Producers<\/p>\n
Actress in a Supporting Role, Wunmi Mosaku<\/p>\n
Makeup and Hairstyling, Ken Diaz, Mike Fontaine and Shunika Terry<\/p>\n
Original Score, Ludwig G\u00f6ransson<\/p>\n
Casting, Francine Maisler<\/p>\n
Costume Design, Ruth E. Carter<\/p>\n
Original Screenplay, written by Ryan Coogler<\/p>\n
Actor in a Supporting Role, Delroy Lindo<\/p>\n
Original Song, \u201cI Lied to You,\u201d music and lyrics by Raphael Saadiq and Ludwig G\u00f6ransson<\/p>\n
Production Design, Hannah Beachler; Set Decoration: Monique Champagne<\/p>\n
Film Editing, Michael P. Shawver<\/p>\n
Sound, Chris Welcker, Benjamin A. Burtt, Felipe Pacheco, Brandon Proctor and Steve Boeddeker<\/p>\n
Production Design, production design: Hannah Beachler; set decoration: Monique Champagne<\/p>\n
Visual Effects, Michael Ralla, Espen Nordahl, Guido Wolter and Donnie Dean<\/p>\n
Cinematography, Autumn Durald Arkapaw<\/p>\n
Actor in a Leading Role, Michael B. Jordan<\/p>\n
Directing, Ryan Coogler<\/p>\n
\u201cSinners\u201d surpassed the previous record of 14 nominations held by \u201cAll About Eve\u201d (1950), \u201cTitanic\u201d (1997), and \u201cLa La Land\u201d (2016).<\/p>\n
Director Ryan Coogler and director of photography Autumn Durald Arkapaw Coogler in Warner Bros. Pictures\u2019 \u201cSinners.\u201d Credit: courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures<\/p>\n
\u201cSinners\u201d surpassed the previous record of 14 nominations held by \u201cAll About Eve\u201d (1950), \u201cTitanic\u201d (1997), and \u201cLa La Land\u201d (2016).<\/p>\n
This isn\u2019t the first time Coogler\u2019s projects have received Academy Award nominations.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In 2019, Coogler\u2019s film \u201cBlack Panther\u201d was nominated for seven Oscars, including Best Picture, and won three, for Best Costume Design, Best Original Score and Best Production Design. In 2021, \u201cJudas and the Black Messiah,\u201d which Coogler directed and produced, was nominated for five Oscars, including Best Picture, and won for Best Supporting Actor (Daniel Kaluuya) and Best Original Song. In 2023, \u201cBlack Panther: Wakanda Forever\u201d was nominated for five Oscars, including Best Original Song for \u201cLift Me Up,\u201d which Coogler co-wrote; and won for Costume Design.<\/p>\n
Grammy-award-winning Oakland singer-songwriter Raphael Saadiq received his second Oscar nomination for Best Original Song for \u201cI Lied to You,\u201d co-written with Miles Caton & Ludwig G\u00f6ransson. In 2018, Saadiq was nominated in the same category for \u201cMighty River,\u201d which he co-wrote, from the film \u201cMudbound.\u201d<\/p>\n
English-American actor Delroy Lindo, who has lived in Oakland since the mid-90s, scored his first ever nomination for playing Delta Slim in the vampire film.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Cooglers have deep East Bay Roots
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Ryan Coogler and Zinzi Evans speak during a special screening of \u201cSinners\u201d at the Grand Lake Theatre on April 16, 2025 in Oakland, California. Credit: Casey Flanigan\/imageSPACE for Warner Films<\/p>\n
Coogler, an East Bay native, was born in Oakland, raised in Richmond, and attended St. Mary\u2019s College High School in Berkeley. He went to Saint Mary\u2019s College of California in Moraga, where he left after less than a year when the school discontinued its football program, transferring to California State University, Sacramento. He went on to pursue an MFA at the University of Southern California\u2019s School of Cinematic Arts.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was in 2004, during his time at Saint Mary\u2019s College of California, that Coogler found he had a knack for writing. His creative writing professor, the author\u00a0 Rosemary Graham, first discovered Coogler\u2019s aptitude for weaving rich narratives.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was definitely a strong storytelling skill that was very evident, and it was highly visual in the piece that he handed in,\u201d Graham said. \u201cAnd neither of us has it. I searched my office high and low before I retired from Saint Mary\u2019s so we can\u2019t refer to the text from 22 years ago, but I just remember there being a lot of emotion.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Earlier this month, Coogler brought Graham to the National Board of Review Awards, where the two walked the red carpet together<\/a> and reminisced about his early days as a writer. Over the years, Coogler has frequently acknowledged the impact Graham<\/a> had on his decision to pursue filmmaking.<\/p>\n \u201cHe has multi-dimensional characters, strong family themes, and the social history is woven in artfully,\u201d Graham said. \u201cEspecially in \u2018Sinners,\u2019 we really see that.\u201d<\/p>\n Coogler\u2019s wife and business partner, Zinzi Coogler, has also been an influential force behind his success.<\/p>\n Zinzi<\/a>, who was born and raised in Oakland attended San Lorenzo High School and\u00a0 later California State University, Fresno, where she was a top cross country runner<\/a>. The two met as college athletes when Ryan Coogler was playing football at Cal State Sacramento.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIn 2003, I saw a young girl kicking everybody\u2019s ass on the track. I didn\u2019t get her number that day. I built up my courage and got it at the next track meet,\u201d Coogler said at the 8th annual Critics\u2019 Choice Association<\/a>, where he was named Best Director for \u201cSinners.\u201d \u201cShe changed my life. She made me a better football player, a better student, a better person. She made me a better filmmaker when we figured out that that\u2019s what we was gonna do. She was there on every set, always in the background, never getting credit. And in this movie, she was my boss, and it was fucking awesome. I think she\u2019s the biggest reason why this movie is so good.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n When they were both in college, Coogler began writing screenplays in Microsoft Word, which proved difficult for the budding filmmaker.\u00a0<\/p>\n During a 2018 interview with New York\u2019s Hot 97 Morning Show<\/a>, he recalled how Zinzi \u201cscrapped together some cheese\u201d and bought him Final Draft, the industry-standard screenwriting software.<\/p>\n
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Miles Caton as Sammie Moore in Warner Bros. Pictures\u2019 \u201cSinners.\u201d Credit: courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/rev-1-GCH209A_195874r_High_Res_JPEG-1600x573.jpeg\")
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Lola Kirke as Joan, Jack O\u2019Connell as Remmick and Peter Dreimanis as Bert in Warner Bros. Pictures\u2019 \u201cSinners.\u201d Credit: courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures