5 memorable moments of the 2018 Oscars we can’t forget

Watu Wote cast (left), Tiffany Haddish (right)

The 2018 Academy Awards or the Oscars were held last night with a plethora of highs and lows before, during and after the star-studded event that will never be forgotten, at least in the next year.

African red carpet moment

The few African moments at the event started with African-American comedian and actress Tiffany Haddish who wore an Eritrean dress on the red carpet as a tribute to her late Eritrean father Tsihaye Reda Haddish.

She told ABC that her father, “said one day I would end up here and if I ever ended up at the Oscars I should honour my people so I’m honouring my fellow Eritreans.”

The cream dress had beautiful black and gold embroidered designs on the front and she wore a cape on the dress which was also patterned with gold embroidery.

With the beautiful dress, Tiffany jumped a rope on the Oscar red carpet to meet her idol, Meryl Streep. Hilarious!

Oscar miss for only African nominee

Kenyan film, Watu Wote lost the Oscar for the Best Live Action Short Film category to The Silent Child, a film set in rural England about the life of a deaf four-year-old girl.

The short film directed by a German student Katja Benrath as her graduation project is based on the December 2015 Mandera bus attack by militant group Al-Shabaab in Kenya when Muslims protected Christians.

The second history made by a black person is Kobe Bryant’s win of the Best Short Film (Animated) Award for “Dear Basketball” which is also his first Academy Award.

Controversy

The five-time NBA champion Kobe Bryant’s win ended up in controversies over a 2003 sexual assault allegation which was later settled out of court. The Academy was criticised for awarding the retired basketball star amid the rise of the #MeToo and Time’s Up movement.

Tiffany Haddish and Maya Rudolph all-black comedic moment

The two comedians and actresses were in demand after the pair made a presentation and wowed the audience and viewers. They hilariously addressed the controversial #OscarsSoWhite issue and got everyone laughing and calling for them to host something together.

They mounted the stage with their shoes in hand saying: “We are so happy to be here, but our feet hurt.”

“We are so happy to be here but a little nervous too because a few years ago, people were saying that Oscars were so white. And since then some real progress has been made.

“But when we came out together, we know some of you were thinking, ‘Are the Oscars too black now?

“We just wanna say, don’t worry. There are so many more white people to come today,” they joked.

Ismail Akwei

Ismail Akwei is an international journalist, communications and media consultant, editor, writer, human rights advocate, pan-Africanist, tech enthusiast, history fanatic and a lover of arts and culture. He has worked with multinational media companies across the continent and has over a decade's experience in journalism.