The video games industry is celebrating yet another breakthrough: it’s very first Oscar win. Credit goes to developer Respawn Entertainment for its Medal Of Honor: Above And Beyond documentary tie-in, Colette, which wooed critics over.
We’re over the moon about Colette’s Best Documentary (Short Subject) #Oscars win tonight! From Vince, Peter, and all of us at Respawn, we are humbled and honored. Thank you.
And if you haven’t seen the film, you can watch it for free here: https://t.co/CxwNGWMOXv
— Respawn (@Respawn) April 26, 2021
“I want to thank our amazing E.P., Peter Hirschmann, at Electronic Arts, everyone at Electronic Arts and Respawn, and Oculus, especially Vince, Dusty and Mara,” director Anthony Giacchino said in his acceptance speech.
Medal of Honor: Above and Beyond is a virtual reality first-person shooter that released on PC last December. Interestingly, while its documentary won an Oscar, the game itself received average reviews.
So what’s Colette all about? The short film follows the story of its titular character, 90-year-old Colette Marin-Catherine, who returns to a German concentration camp where her brother was killed after 74 years.
“As a young girl, she fought Hitler’s Nazis as a member of the French Resistance,” reads a synopsis provided by The Guardian. “For 74 years, she has refused to step foot in Germany, but that changes when a young history student named Lucie enters her life. Prepared to re-open old wounds and revisit the terrors of that time, Marin-Catherine offers important lessons for us all.”
Colette is free to watch, so make sure to check it out.