CATEGORY: Directing
SPEECH BY: Alejandro G. Iñárritu
FILM: BIRDMAN or (THE UNEXPECTED VIRTUE OF IGNORANCE)"
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Q. [Speaks in Spanish]
Q. Congratulations on your win. You joked on stage that you were wearing the BIRDMAN tighty‑whities. Are you actually wearing them?
A. We should be in a more intimate context to show you, which I don't think will happen.
Q. Alejandro, how do you feel at this moment in your career? Have you reflected on that?
A. No. I don't have a career, I have a life. And I have it today and today I'm living it fully and beautifully, enjoying completely. So I don't know what will happen, but today is great.
Q. [Speaks in Spanish]
A. [Speaks in Spanish] It's so good, it feels like Mexico, this. Oh, my God. I haven't spoken in English.
Q. Alejandro, tell me, from having this wild, artistic idea and seeing it all the way through to experience three Oscars with you, what's the lesson of that for you? What does that tell you about your ambitions?
A. About what, sorry?
Q. To take ‑‑ just like following this dream, how does the trophy sort of validate what you are doing?
A. You know, actually, I think ‑‑ it's a good question because I haven't figured out why I did what I did in this film, why I took those chances. I think it's when you lose fear. I think fear is an incredible ‑‑ fear is the condom of life, you know. It doesn't allow you to enjoy things, so certainly when you fucking get the condom out then you say, okay, probably get it or not, but at least that's what it's ‑‑ so I put it out. So I did it without and this is the result. It was real. It was making love for sure.
Q. Impossible to follow that up. Congratulations. The Oscar, you've got several now. Was this something that, as a child, did you ever watch the Oscars? Was it something like a dream for you when you were younger at all?
A. Honestly, I watched it many times. Obviously as many, I think. Everybody in the world has seen the Oscars, and I enjoy it. Normally I was frustrated because normally never my favorite films won, and it happened. There was a lot of frustration because there's no logic in all this. But I always love to see my favorite directors or actors. I will never remember when Fellini came here and was mentioned or what he said. There have been so many moments in the Oscars that I really treasure in my life, so, in a way, for me to be here tonight is unreal. I would like if you can say something for me. I would like to ask all of you a favor. Please say something that I didn't say on the stage because everything in my brain, my little brain that is now the size of a noodle, couldn't really think. But I would like to say that this is basically, I own this for my mom who was watching TV, and I didn't mention and I would love you to mention in some way that my mom is part of this journey, and I will treasure that you say that. I want her to ‑‑ she is very old and I would like her to know that.
[Repeats in Spanish]
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