The indie darling 'Anora' has taken Hollywood by the storm, scooping five Oscars at the 97th Academy Awards, including the coveted Best Picture. Directed by Sean Baker, the film was shot on location in Brooklyn's very own Brighton Beach and Coney Island, now basking in the reflected glory of Tinsel Town's shiniest baubles. According to ABC7NY, Baker, hailing his New York City crew during his acceptance speech, said, "For $6 Million and shooting on location in New York City with about 40 crew members, they're all back in New York, this is for you guys."
The low-budget film explores a rather bold tale—a sex worker's romance with a Russian oligarch's son—juxtaposed against the backdrop of various Brooklyn locales. Neighbors from William's Candy, a Coney Island sweet spot, are particularly tickled by the film’s Oscar success. As the candy store owner Pete Agrapides narrated to ABC7NY, "It wins an Oscar unbelievable and they were so great to me." The recognition brings a sense of pride to frequent customers like Lisa Schoman, who expressed her delight, "Something that I’ve been coming to all my life, and a movie that just did so well I mean its so awesome, I'm proud."
While the Oscar buzz is unlikely to transform the featured mega mansion in Mill Basin into a tourist hotspot, due to its obscured view from street level, businesses like William's Candy anticipate a sweet uptick in visitors keen to savor a bit of the cinematic magic. The shop's appearance in an Academy Award-winning film is akin to a golden ticket for local commerce. "How could you not come here and enjoy it and say I came here I came to this place where they had the movie in it. It was beautiful," one local, Marianne Palermo, told ABC7NY.
In Brighton Beach, the film's resonance with the local community stretches beyond simple familiarity. According to a PIX11 report, a resident relayed how the area's history as a home for immigrants from former Soviet countries enriched the film's narrative: “This area is known for most communist countries, especially the Soviet Union. They all settled here in the 90s and 2000s, so that makes sense. It was great to see so many familiar places.”
