Two Birmingham natives, Director and Screenwriter Daniel Scheinert and film editor Paul Rogers have been nominated for an Oscar for their work on the film Everything Everywhere All at Once.

The film, which received 11 nominations, is a quirky sci-fi action adventure about an exhausted Chinese American woman who discovers she can access different versions of herself from different universes.

Scheinert received two nominations for Best Director (joined by co-director Daniel Kwan) and Best Original Screenplay.

Rogers was nominated for Best Film Editing.

Birmingham Natives

After the Oscars announcement this morning, Bham Now reached out to Melissa Springer, Paul Rogers’ mother, about the nomination.

Rogers produced his first film as an eight year old child, according to Springer.

“It was hilarious!” she told us.

He went on to graduate from Homewood High School, worked at Alabama Public Television and met Scheinert at a birthday/skating party in Los Angeles a decade ago. Both had two things in common—they were Birmingham natives and loved filmmaking.

Scheinert, who was also born in Birmingham, attended Oak Mountain Elementary and Middle Schools before going to high school at the International Baccalaureate School at Shades Valley.

“They immediately started talking because they had so much in common and of course, Daniel and Paul both had the same kind of weird sense of humor. So that’s bonded them.
~Melissa Springer

Soon both collaborated on a music video by DJ Snake “Turned Down for What.” The video has over 1.1 billion views.

Scheinert has remained connected to the Alabama film scene, filming his Alabama based movie The Death of Dick Long here in Birmingham which was featured at the Sidewalk Film Festival. He also served on the jury for the film festival.

He Conquered It

Oscars — (Melissa Springer Facebook page)

Springer, who is also a renown photographer in Birmingham, is very proud of her son.

“I’m so excited for him. I had this mama feeling that he was gonna get this nomination but it’s not real until you actually see it on the screen. And then of course I screamed. He (Paul) probably heard me in LA — and I woke him up. I’m so very proud of him. It’s an incredible movie and the editing for that film was very hard. He conquered it.”