Cassandra Kulukundis wins 1st casting Oscar for 'One Battle After'
Cassandra Kulukundis became the first person ever to win an Oscar for casting, thanks to her work on One Battle After Another.
This is the first new competitive Oscar category since the 2001 film year (about 25 years).
On stage, she thanked The Academy and dedicated her win to all the casting directors who've worked hard behind the scenes and often go uncredited.
Kulukundis has worked on all Anderson's films
Kulukundis has been Paul Thomas Anderson's go-to casting director since 1996, when she began as an intern on his debut film, Hard Eight, shaping every one of his films, including Magnolia and beyond.
At the ceremony, Chase Infiniti introduced Kulukundis.
Kulukundis even joked with Anderson during her speech: "I have one before you," hoping he'd get his own win that night.
Her work on 'One Battle After Another'
She discovered Chase Infiniti for a lead role in One Battle After Another and picked Teyana Taylor for the role of Perfidia after seeing an early version of A Thousand and One.
Her ensemble cast scored four acting nominations: Leonardo DiCaprio, Benicio del Toro, Sean Penn, and Taylor, showing how much great casting shapes a film.