On Tuesday morning, “La La Land” was nominated for 14 Academy Awards, tying the film with “Titanic” and “All About Eve” for the most nominations ever.
The film’s two main stars, Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling, are nominated in the top acting categories, while Damien Chazelle is up for directing. The film was also recognized for Cinematography, Sound Editing, Sound Mixing, Production Design, Costume Design, Original Score, Original Screenplay, Film Editing and for two original songs.
Stone reacted to the news with a heartfelt statement, saying, “What a morning. I am so grateful for this honor and I’m so happy to share this feeling with my ‘La La Land’ family.”
“The greatest part of life is connecting with people, and I love the deeply talented, kind and passionate people I was lucky enough to work with on this movie,” she added. “I’m also overjoyed that the movie has connected with audiences in the way it has, and that it’s hopefully putting a kick in their step to those who watch it. This is beyond any of our wildest imaginings and we can’t wait to celebrate together.”
Gosling was equally pleased, saying in a statement, “I’m very grateful to the Academy for recognizing my work in ‘La La Land.’ It was a true collaboration, so to see everyone else’s wonderful work on the film acknowledged so generously makes it even more special.”
Chazelle said he was “humbled and grateful” for the film’s nominations, noting, “its been a tremendous year for films and I’m deeply honored to be in such amazing company with my fellow nominees, along with my phenomenal producers — Fred, Jordan and Marc.”
He also expressed gratitude to Stone and Gosling “who brought these characters to life with such humanity and depth” and gave a special nod to the film’s composer (and his college roommate) Justin Hurwitz for creating the music.
“As a filmmaker, you are only as strong as the team around you and so to share this moment and recognition with my brilliant team — Tom, Linus, Mary, Benj, Justin, David, Sandy, Milly, Ai–Ling, Andy and Steve — the people that worked so hard and tirelessly and collaborated so creatively, is more than I could ask for,” he added. “And finally, I want to thank Lionsgate for their unwavering support.”