Keivonn Woodard wins Independent Spirit Award; Troy Kotsur presents at SAG Awards

Keivonn Woodard wins Independent Spirit Award

Alex Abenchuchan, Daily Moth Reporter:

Hello, here are two Deaf News briefs.

The first is that Keivonn Woodard, the Deaf actor who had a key role in an episode of “The Last of Us,” won an award from the Film Independent Spirit Awards for the Best Breakthrough Performance in a New Scripted Series on Sunday. Here is a short clip showing the moment. You will see his mother, April Jackson-Woodard, in the audience.

[Clip] Credit: YouTube/Film Independent

Congratulations to Keivonn! This year is the first time that Film Independent added the Breakthrough award. He’s the first.

If you haven’t seen Keivonn’s acting, you can check out Episode 5 in “The Last of Us” on HBO Max. His role is prominent throughout the episode.

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Troy Kotsur presents at SAG Awards

The second news is that actor Troy Kotsur attended the 2024 SAG Awards on Saturday to present an award. He won a SAG for his role in “CODA” in 2022. I’ll show you a clip of him signing onstage with his co-presenter, Greta Lee.

[Clip] Credit: Netflix

That’s a great idea, to have Greta Lee sign, to have both signing. I’ll show you a clip of his interview with “People.”

[Clip] Credit: People

People: I wanted to ask you about (Deaf) representation and its increase since “CODA” was released. How do you feel about increasing representation? Is Hollywood changing?

Troy Kotsur: In general, yes I’ve seen it. For example, “Echo.” And I’ve heard from several birds that there are several productions coming up with a lot of Deaf — not just actors, but producers, writers, and directors. I’ve seen an increase in Hollywood opening doors. I’m excited to see more projects coming.

[End clip]

Nice of him to recognize that there’s more excitement and success with more Deaf representation in TV and film.

That’s the two Deaf News briefs for today.

Keivonn wins award: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ktyytVsNNdg

Troy Kotsur / SAG: Available on Netflix (SAG Awards 2024)

People: https://people.com/sag-awards-2024-troy-kotsur-talks-deaf-representation-8599791