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Jane Campion makes Oscars history as first woman with two Best Director nominations

Nola Ojomu
·2-min read
Jane Campion and Benedict Cumberbatch on the set of The Power of the Dog (Kirsty Griffin/Netflix)
Jane Campion and Benedict Cumberbatch on the set of The Power of the Dog (Kirsty Griffin/Netflix)

Jane Campion has become the first woman in Oscars history to score two Best Director nominations after landing a nod for her film The Power of the Dog.

Nearly 28 years since she earned her first Best Director nomination for her work in 1993’s The Piano, the 67-year-old has been honoured for helming the Netflix western starring Benedict Cumberbatch.

Tuesday saw the full list of Oscars 2022 nominations announced as it was revealed that Campion will face off against Steven Spielberg for West Side Story, Paul Thomas Anderson for Licorice Pizza, Kenneth Branagh for Belfast and Ryusuke Hamaguchi for Drive My Car.

Jane Campion attends the official screening of Netflix's
Jane Campion attends the official screening of Netflix's The Power Of The Dog (Amy Sussman/WireImage)

The Power of the Dog has already seen Campion win the directing prize at last year’s Venice Film Festival, meaning she is a favourite to bag the Oscar later this year.

A win at this year’s ceremony would be the first for Campion after she ultimately lost out the Best Director category at the 1994 Oscars to Steven Spielberg for Schindler's List.

Read more: Biggest Oscar snubs and surprises

However, the New Zealand-born director did walk away with the Best Original Screenplay category for The Piano.

The Power of the Dog (Kirsty Griffin/Netflix)
The Power of the Dog (Kirsty Griffin/Netflix)

Only seven women have been Oscar-nominated for best director to date: Campion, Lina Wertmüller for Seven Beauties, Sofia Coppola for Lost in Translation, Kathryn Bigelow for The Hurt Locker, Greta Gerwig for Lady Bird, Chloé Zhao for Nomadland and Emerald Fennell for Promising Young Woman.

Bigelow was the first woman to win the award in 2000, while Zhao also made history with her win at last year’s ceremony.

US actress Holly Hunter (L), New Zealand's director Jane Campion (R) and actress Anna Paquin pose with their Oscars during the 66th Annual Academy Awards ceremony after winning respectively the awards for best actress, best original screenplay and best supporting actress for the movie
Holly Hunter (L), Jane Campion (R) and Anna Paquin pose with their Oscars after winning for best actress, best original screenplay and best supporting actress for the movie "The Piano" (Timothy A. CLARY / AFP)

Campion’s western, which also stars Kirsten Dunst, Jesse Plemons and Kodi Smit-McPhee, picked up a total of 12 nominations including Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor (twice) and Best Supporting Actress.

The movie is one of several films directed by a woman to make a splash on this year's nominations list.

Cinematographer Ari Wegner and director Jane Campion on the set of The Power of the Dog (Kirsty Griffin/Netflix)
Cinematographer Ari Wegner and director Jane Campion on the set of The Power of the Dog (Kirsty Griffin/Netflix)

Maggie Gyllenhaal’s directorial debut The Lost Daughter secured nominations for Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress.

Elsewhere, Sian Heder’s CODA also earned Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor nominations.

Watch: Oscars 2022: Andrew Garfield, Benedict Cumberbatch and Olivia Colman among Brits leading nominations