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For ‘Fruitvale Station’ Director Ryan Coogler, debut film gathers Oscar buzz – could be the start of greatness
Coogler did earn some scholarships while there, including the coveted Jack Nicholson award. “Coog,” as he is known there, caught the faculty’s eye early.
“He was clearly just a standout from day one,” said John Watson, who had Coogler in his production class for two years. “It wasn’t just his abilities, which are fantastic. It was his attitude. He had the ability to make everybody feel like he’s their best friend.”
In his second year, Coogler’s short film “Locks” was accepted into the Cannes Film Festival and he didn’t have the means to go. The school mobilized to collect travel money and the dean paid for his flight, Watson said.
While making “Fruitvale” after he graduated he kept in close touch with the school and even asked 10 faculty members to assemble to critique a near final cut. His success has played a part in inspiring other students to make films this summer.
“Nobody, including me or him, thought that it would happen as fast as it did,” Watson said. “But as soon as I saw the first draft of ‘Fruitvale’ I knew he had something special and that Forest immediately responded to.”
Coogler has been crisscrossing the country, promoting the film with distributor The Weinstein Company and working on his next film projects, one of which is about high school football.
He says he doesn’t think about Oscar nominations, even after favorable reviews across-the-board from the likes of the New York Times, the New Yorker and the Los Angeles Times, whose film critic Kenneth Turan said it was “more than a remarkable directing debut … it’s an outstanding film by any standard.”
