**Nickel Boys Nominated for 97th Academy Awards**
Nickel Boys has emerged as a surprising contender at the 97th Academy Awards. Adapted from Colson Whitehead’s 2019 novel, the film has received nominations for Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay for the Oscars this March. Filmed entirely from a first-person perspective, it explores the friendship between two Black teenagers navigating the harsh realities of a racially segregated reform school in 1960s Florida.
In an effort to amplify the voices of the marginalized, director RaMell Ross shared with Sky News that he intentionally shifted the focus away from violence, instead highlighting the individuals at the heart of the narrative. He describes this approach as “a multiple fold.”
“One aspect is the history of cinema and its voyeuristic portrayal of Black individuals facing harassment, torture, and violence. That imagery is already ingrained in our minds,” he explains. “Another aspect is the myriad ways to explore trauma, many of which remain largely unexamined. So, what alternative perspectives can we uncover?”
The film’s impact is heightened by its basis in reality, specifically the Dozier School in Florida, where mass graves of young Black boys were uncovered.
Ethan Herisse portrays Elwood, a hopeful teenager who unwittingly enters a stolen car and is arrested just as he is on the verge of achieving his dreams. Reflecting on his involvement in the project, Herisse describes it as a unique experience. “While we were making it, it felt like we were doing something special, and there was so much love from everyone on set. I hoped that would resonate once it was completed,” he shares.
“I can’t recall the last time I was so fully immersed in a film’s world. This experience was uniquely absorbing, almost as if I wasn’t entirely in my own body, which is a rewarding feeling for any viewer.
