This week, District 9 racked up several Oscar nominations, which is great news for sci-fi films. IO9’s fantastic interview with District 9 screenwriter Terri Tatchell, who is floored by her very recent Oscar nomination (for best adapted screenplay). I was very happily surprised when I found out that the film had a female screenwriter (it’s a genre particularly dominated by men), and even happier to find out that Tatchell seems like a supremely cool, talented, down-to-earth talent.
From the piece:
I’m proud of it. I feel proud that people have said they leave the theater thinking about things. As opposed to just being entertained. Because there was a fine line when we were writing it, as to how serious and heavy-handed we wanted to get with the thoughts that were in our head. It was the first film; we had satire written on the wall. We just kept saying, “Satire, satire — let’s not take ourselves so seriously.” I’m really happy with the balance that came out of the film. I don’t know if that’s to credit the screenplay, or to credit the director. I think maybe Neill gets the credit for that.”
District 9 was one of the best, most truly innovative films of 2009 — It’s good to know that, as we sail through Oscar-betting-and-vetting season, there’s some solid geek material in the running.
How do you feel about District 9 getting nominated?
