Anora, a small-budget film about prostitution, sweeps top Oscar awards

Sean Baker, the winner of Best Picture and Best Director, laments the drop in moviegoer attendance.Five major Academy Awards, including the coveted Best Picture, have been won by Anora, the story of a New York sex worker who, on a whim, marries a wealthy Russian customer, giving her a chance at a new life.No Other Land, a documentary chronicling the suffering of Palestinians under Israeli rule, also won an Oscar at Sunday night's annual star-studded presentation in Los Angeles, California.

Mikey Madison, the 25-year-old star of Anora, won Best Actress, while the movie took home awards for original writing and editing in addition to Best Director for Sean Baker. In his victory speech, Baker lamented the decline of the cinematic experience and urged filmmakers to continue producing films for the big screen."This is more important than ever in a time when the world can feel very divided," Baker stated. You really can't get that community experience at home. We will lose an essential component of our culture if we don't stop this tendency. This is my rallying cry. By Hollywood standards, Anora was made for a pittance of $6 million. It won an unpredictable Oscar race that included the popular musical Wicked, the Jewish immigrant drama The Brutalist, and the papal mystery Conclave.