Meet Oscar-winning Fil-Am cinematographer Autumn Durald Arkapaw
The 98th Oscars was a night of firsts and broken records.
“One Battle After Another,” starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn, and Teyana Taylor, was the ceremony’s biggest winner, securing six out of 13 nominations.
Meanwhile, Ryan Coogler’s “Sinners” followed closely, winning four awards out of an Academy record-breaking 16 nominations. Michael B. Jordan took home the best actor honors, while Ludwig Goransson won his third trophy for best original score. Coogler also bagged his first Academy Award win with a best original screenplay nod.
But making history on several different fronts was Filipino American Autumn Durald Arkapaw, who took home the best cinematography award for her work in “Sinners.”
The first of many things
Arkapaw was the first woman, first Filipino, first Black, and first Asian woman in the Academy’s history to win the best cinematography category. She was the fourth woman to be nominated, following the likes of Rachel Morrison in 2018 for “Mudbound,” Ari Wegner in 2021 for “The Power of the Dog,” and Mandy Walker in 2022 for “Elvis.”
As if that weren’t enough of a feat, Arkapaw also made history as the first woman to shoot on IMAX film and Ultra Panavision. She is also the first director of photography to shoot using the Kodak Ektachrome, which Kodak specially manufactured in 65mm for the film.
While not many would understand the gravity of this feat, to be included in a list practically occupied solely by Christopher Nolan projects is indicative enough of the achievement.
Filipino and creative roots
Arkapaw was born in 1979 in Oxnard, California to a Filipino mother and New Orleans-born father, and was raised in the San Francisco Bay Area.
In an interview with Ruben V. Nepales for Inquirer USA, she traced her roots, starting with her grandfather, who grew up in Masantol, Pampanga. “My mom’s maiden name is Peggy Bautista. She was born in England because my grandfather joined the service in World War II. And so he moved his family to the UK, and then they traveled and made it to America,” she says.
She also explains that her grandmother influenced her affinity for photography. “They traveled a lot, and they took a lot of photographs. My grandmother had tons of photo books that I remember we would always look through,” shares Arkapaw.
Filipinos uplifting other Filipinos
Being a cinematographer wasn’t always in the cards for Arkapaw. In fact, she studied art history at Loyola Marymount University. However, taking a film course as a requirement exposed her to the beauty of movies, piquing her interest and setting her on the road she has traveled so far.
When she later enrolled in the Master of Fine Arts in Cinematography program at the American Film Institute Conservatory, she explained that an encounter with Filipino cinematographer Matthew Libatique further inspired her to continue pursuing a career in film.
Libatique is known as the first Filipino with several Academy Award nominations, earning nods for “Black Swan” in 2010, “A Star Is Born” in 2018, and “Maestro” in 2023.
Cinematography power couple
Arkapaw is married to Adam Arkapaw, an Australian cinematographer known for his contribution to shows “Top of the Lake” and “True Detective”—he notably won two Emmy Awards for both. He’s also worked on films such as “Assassin’s Creed” and “The King.”
Autumn and Adam have been married since 2015 and have a child together.
From the MCU and beyond
Arkapaw has shot music videos for artists such as Haim, Tiësto, Jonas Brothers, SZA, The Weeknd, and Rihanna. In film and TV, her filmography represents a steady growth that has only just recently reached fruition following her meeting with Coogler.
In 2022 she got her big break after she officially joined the MCU in season one of the Disney+ series “Loki.” She notably shot the “Lamentis” episode and was nominated for outstanding cinematography in that year’s Emmy Awards.
Rachel Morrison, Coogler’s director of photography in 2018’s “Black Panther,” later connected the two for the “Wakanda Forever” sequel in 2022. Morrison couldn’t return for the project and recommended Arkapaw, marking the beginning of a beautiful and successful collaborative relationship.
Following the massive success of “Sinners,” Arkapaw and Coogler are set to continue working together on an “X-Files” reboot.
