“Nomadland” is continuing its hot streak. The USC Libraries Scripter Awards were held in an online ceremony on Saturday and the writers behind the drama, Chloé Zhao and Jessica Bruder, were honored in the feature film category, per a press release. Zhao penned the Frances McDormand-starrer and Bruder is the author of the non-fiction book on which it is based, “Nomadland: Surviving America in the Twenty-First Century.”
“The Scripter Awards honor each year’s most accomplished adaptations of the written word for the screen and, uniquely, recognize the screenwriters and the authors of the source material,” the press release notes. A committee of 52 writers, producers, and journalists selected this year’s honorees.
A critical and awards darling, “Nomadland” follows a 60-something woman who travels throughout the American West, taking on seasonal jobs and forming a community with fellow itinerant workers in the aftermath of the Great Recession. The film is up for six Oscars.
“Jessica, your love for the people in your book and your love for the road and for the American West is the reason why we’re here today,” Zhao said in her acceptance speech. “And I really look forward to the day when I can sit around a campfire and listen to you rock out on your guitar again.”
Bruder extended thanks to Zhao for bringing her “poetic meditation about life on the road” to the screen, and recognized those who gave her “the time of day when I showed up with a tent and a notepad.”
Also a journalist and educator, Bruder is the author of “Burning Book” and co-author of “Snowden’s Box: Trust in the Age of Surveillance.”
With “Nomadland,” Zhao is the most awarded filmmaker in a single awards season. Among her many accolades is the Golden Globe for Best Director. She is the first woman of color to win in that category. Zhao is also the first WOC to be up for the Best Director Oscar. She is nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Editing, too.
“The Rider” and “Songs My Brothers Taught Me” are among Zhao’s previous credits. Her next pic, Marvel’s “Eternals,” is scheduled to open November 5.
