Kotsur’s Oscar comes at the end of a whirlwind awards season, during which time he earned best supporting actor nods at the Gotham, Independent Spirit, Critics Choice, BAFTA and Screen Actors Guild awards. In 1987, Marlee Matlin, Kotsur’s CODA co-star, was the first and until tonight only deaf performer to win an Oscar, for her break-out role in Children of a Lesser God. Kotsur won for his role in CODA, playing deaf Massachusetts fisherman Frank Rossi. I know you’ve been very busy this year.Troy Kotsur has made history by winning the best supporting actor Oscar and becoming the first deaf male, and the second deaf actor, to earn an Academy Award for acting. I feel like I’m Generation X and I’m ready to pass it on to the next generation. It’s been an amazing transformation for Deaf people. Like how we’re communicating right now, with an interpreter through. With the technology that we have these days, life is getting better for Deaf people. But it’s really important for young Deaf kids out there to feel inspired and have hope, not only as actors but directors, writers, producers, in front of or behind the camera. You could soon make film history as the first Deaf man to win an Academy Award for acting. It took me years of struggle and then, here I am, sitting here today. The only barrier, really, for Deaf people was communication. I can’t sit in a cubicle all day at a computer. I would read and study how they made films for hours, because I wanted to be creative. I would go to the bookstore and pick up an entertainment magazine, like People magazine or anything that reviewed films. When you were younger, did you see a movie or a play that made you think, “That’s what I want to do”? I’d love to hear about what inspired you to pursue a life in the performing arts. Amy Forsyth, Daniel Durant, Marlee Matlin and Troy Kotsur in “CODA.” Apple TV+ I’m really glad that we’ve been as successful as we’ve been with this project. We’ve been waiting for so long for an ensemble Deaf cast. We were like, “Let’s portray real Deaf culture, real language.” We had that trust, and we really knew our passion, which was wanting to give it our best shot. When “CODA” came around, she was like, “Troy would be great for this role.” That really helped. It seemed like she knew that I was a serious artist and I was focused on my craft and honing my instrument. I directed a film, and she was involved in three scenes. Then we worked together on one or two projects. After the show, she’d come up and say hello, we’d give each other a hug, we got to know each other a bit. Marlee would attend a lot of my performances there throughout the years. I wanted to be an actor somehow, so I was involved with the Deaf West Theatre. She really gave me hope and gave me life. She is such an important role model for Deaf people in Hollywood. The Deaf community is pretty small, so it’s easy to bump into other Deaf people from time to time. Did you know each other before production started? You and Marlee Matlin have really easy chemistry in the movie. I’m a family man myself, and my wife was like, “I don’t want Frank in the house!” I think Frank is a bit frustrated with all the hearing people taking advantage of his fishing business, but he has a good heart and he’s a family man.
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