Though Edward Snowden obviously couldn’t make it to the Oscars on Sunday, his girlfriend Lindsay Mills went in his place. She joined Citizenfour’s filmmakers onstage while accepting the Best Documentary Feature award.
Mills stood among director Laura Poitras, producer Dirk Wilutzky and journalist Glenn Greenwald and thanked Snowden for his efforts.
"Thank you to Edward Snowden for his courage, and for the many other whistleblowers, and I share this with Glenn Greenwald and other journalists who are exposing truth,” Poitras said, ABC News reports.
Jokes about Snowden were not left out of the broadcast, as host Neil Patrick Harris joked about his absence.
"The subject of Citizenfour, Edward Snowden, could not be here tonight for some treason," Harris said.
Snowden, who has been granted asylum in Russia, released a statement through the American Civil Liberties Union upon Citizenfour’s win.
He admitted he was “extremely reluctant” about doing the film with Poitras but it has paid off. “I’m grateful that I allowed her to persuade me. The result is a brave and brilliant film that deserves the honor and recognition it has received,” he said. “My hope is that this award will encourage more people to see the film and be inspired by its message that ordinary citizens, working together, can change the world.”
image via Jennifer Graylock/INFphoto.com