Our Night at the Oscars

Plus: a novelist whose inventions went too far; the Silicon Valley Bank disaster; and the season finale of “The Last of Us.” View in browser | Update your preferences Monday, March 13, 2023 In today’s newsletter, Eustace Tilley goes Hollywood, and then: • When a fiction writer fakes his life • The controversial ending of “The Last of Us” • The Silicon Valley Bank disaster Our Night at the Oscars Not so long ago, the idea that The New Yorker would be nominated for five Academy Awards would have seemed about as likely as our making it to the N.B.A. Eastern Conference Finals. But things have changed. These remarkable short films were all up for Oscars, and last night I found myself sitting in the audience at the Dolby Theatre, in Hollywood, with my colleagues from the New Yorker video department and the leadership of Condé Nast Entertainment, celebrating the achievements of these exceptional filmmakers―and witnessing a bit of history as Michelle Yeoh, Ke Huy Quan, and other winners made their way to the stage. Although The New Yorker’s five nominees didn’t receive statuettes, the evening capped off a year of unprecedented achievement for our enterprising video team and the New Yorker Studios. From “Stranger at the Gate,” a documentary short about a narrowly averted terror attack, to “Ice Merchants,” a dreamlike animated short about a parent-child relationship, the films reflect the rigor and craft we strive for in everything we do at The New Yorker. If you haven’t watched them already, I hope you will. While attending the Oscars felt surreal, it was also in keeping with The New Yorker’s steady expansion into new modes of storytelling. In September, the magazine won its first Emmy, for “Reeducated,” a virtual-reality documentary that took viewers inside a secret detention center in Xinjiang, China. In November, we launched a reimagined version of our Political Scene podcast, which will cover more topics, more often, as we plunge toward 2024. And just this past week we announced that The New Yorker and Condé Nast Entertainment are now home to the award-winning investigative podcast “In the Dark,” which will produce its third season for us, as part of our move into long-form audio journalism. A subscription is the best way to support The New Yorker. If you are already a subscriber, thank you for making our growth possible. If you aren’t yet a subscriber, I hope you’ll become one today. Your support and engagement are what make our work––the reporting, the fiction, the poetry, the humor, the audio, the video, and more––possible. —David Remnick More from the Oscars Notes on Hollywood An Oscar-Night Diary: Hollywood Enjoys the Chaos-Free Vibes The feeling in the room was one of cozy normality; it was “the Joe Biden of Oscars.” By Michael Schulman The Front Row At the 2023 Oscars, the Era of Good Feelings Prevailed Jimmy Kimmel and the presenters were as dutiful and cautious as executives at a shareholders’ meeting. By Richard Brody Cultural Comment The 2023 Oscars Were a Vanity Fair The ceremony was filled with royals, courtiers, fools, a donkey, and a cocaine bear. By Anthony Lane Editor’s Pick Life and Letters The Novelist Whose Inventions Went Too Far After the Afro-Cuban writer H. G. Carrillo died, his husband learned that almost everything the writer had shared about his life was made up—including his Cuban identity. By D. T. Max From the News Desk Our Columnists The Old Policy Issues Behind the New Banking Turmoil Many of the issues surrounding the closure of Silicon Valley Bank are the same ones that the 2008 crisis raised. By John Cassidy Cover Story The artist Sergio García Sánchez talks about “Pulling Ahead,” his cover for this week’s issue, and about collaborating with Lola Moral, his wife, on bringing vibrant color to his work. “We study the visual documentation together and decide what is the best option in each case,” he says. “We have been working together for such a long time that we almost don’t have to talk.” Culture Dept. On Television The Ending of “The Last of Us” Is Supposed to Be Uncomfortable How Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann, the creators of the HBO series, thought through the show’s controversial finale. By Alex Barasch Fun & Games Dept. Name Drop Play Today’s Quiz Can you guess the notable person in six clues or fewer? By Will Nediger Daily Shouts Where to Waste Your Wild and Precious Life Wipe down the kitchen counter again. Sit in every chair at the furniture warehouse. By Annah Feinberg Crossword A Challenging Puzzle Research facility at Quantico: six letters. By Natan Last Daily Cartoon Monday, March 13th By Zoe Si P.S. “There is not much of a Western desire to understand the people who make all those Hondas. I don’t know why.” The Japanese Nobel Prize winner Kenzaburo Oe has died at the age of eighty-eight. In 1995, he talked about the perception of Japanese literature in the wider world. Thanks for reading. Let us know your thoughts about today’s edition. Plus, browse more newsletters and invite a friend to sign up for The Daily. You’re receiving this e-mail because you signed up for The Daily from The New Yorker. Manage your preferences | View our Privacy Policy | Unsubscribe Copyright © Condé Nast 2023. One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007. All rights reserved.