+
upworthy
Most Shared

What you didn't see: Jordan Peele's epic answer to a backstage question.

After winning the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay, Jordan Peele's press conference got off to an awkward start backstage.

Standing in front of a room of reporters with numbered cards in hand, the "Get Out" writer and director joked that he felt like he was "about to be auctioned off right now." Someone else in the room replied, "You absolutely are. Get used to it."

[rebelmouse-image 19534047 dam="1" original_size="450x253" caption="GIF from "Entertainment Tonight"/YouTube." expand=1]GIF from "Entertainment Tonight"/YouTube.


The room laughed at what was essentially an unintentional callback to a scene from Peele's award-winning film. "This is creepy," he said. The atmosphere was filled with a kind of enjoyable tension — the same feeling one might have when watching "Get Out" for the first time.

What made the whole experience even more surreal was the fact that Peele almost didn't make the movie, let alone win a top honor for it.

[rebelmouse-image 19534048 dam="1" original_size="450x186" caption="GIF from "Get Out."" expand=1]GIF from "Get Out."

The whole press conference was fascinating, but one question about the importance of awards stood out.

"As you continue to move forward telling stories about race and things that have affected us in our society, how important are Oscars and other awards essential to you for validation or to continue to move forward?" asked one reporter. Peele's response touched on his complicated feelings around awards as a sign of validation, discussing how his 12-year-old self helped him understand why they do matter.

"I didn't know how important this was. I always wanted this, but the campaign is grueling, and there are times when I questioned, what is it all about? You're watching your last jump shot for a year, and as an artist, that doesn't feel right. It doesn't feel right to be complacent and to feel like I've done anything too special to reward myself."

Once he was nominated, however, Peele says he understood how much awards helped inspire him at a young age.

"When the nominations for this came together — first of all, when the nominations came out, I had this amazing feeling of looking at the 12-year-old that had this burning in my guts for this type of validation, and I instantly realized that an award like this is much bigger than me."

All GIFs via Entertainment Tonight/YouTube.

It was Whoopi Goldberg's 1991 Best Supporting Actress Oscar win that helped fuel Peele's own curiosity and ambitions. He hopes his win can have the same effect on others.

"This is about paying it forward to the young people who might not believe that they could achieve the highest honor in whatever craft they want to push for. You're not a failure if you don't get this. But I almost didn't do it because I didn't believe that there was a place for me. Whoopi Goldberg, in her acceptance speech for best supporting actress for 'Ghost,' was a huge inspiration to me, and when I got nominated, one of the first things I did was reach out and call her and thank her for telling young people who maybe doubted themselves that they could do it. So I hope that this does the same and inspires more people to use their voices."

Peele has every reason to be inspired by Goldberg's speech. It was filled with a beautiful combination of honesty and joy.

"I want to thank everybody who makes movies," she said, beaming. "I come from New York. As a little kid, I lived in the projects, and you're the people I watched. You're the people wanted — made me want to be an actor. I'm so proud to be here. I'm proud to be an actor, and I'm gonna keep on acting. And thank you so much."

Peele tweeted that Goldberg's speech "practically reached through my TV and told young me to follow my dreams."

Maybe his speech could inspire another aspiring filmmaker the way hers inspired him.

You can watch Peele's backstage press conference below.

True

Making new friends as an adult is challenging. While people crave meaningful IRL connections, it can be hard to know where to find them. But thanks to one Facebook Group, meeting your new best friends is easier than ever.

Founded in 2018, NYC Brunch Squad brings together hundreds of people who come as strangers and leave as friends through its in-person events.

“Witnessing the transformative impact our community has on the lives of our members is truly remarkable. We provide the essential support and connections needed to thrive amid the city's chaos,” shares Liza Rubin, the group’s founder.

Despite its name, the group doesn’t just do brunch. They also have book clubs, seasonal parties, and picnics, among other activities.

NYC Brunch Squad curates up to 10 monthly events tailored to the specific interests of its members. Liza handles all the details, taking into account different budgets and event sizes – all people have to do is show up.

“We have members who met at our events and became friends and went on to embark on international journeys to celebrate birthdays together. We have had members get married with bridesmaids by their sides who were women they first connected with at our events. We’ve had members decide to live together and become roommates,” Liza says.

Members also bond over their passion for giving back to their community. The group has hosted many impact-driven events, including a “Picnic with Purpose” to create self-care packages for homeless shelters and recently participated in the #SquadSpreadsJoy challenge. Each day, the 100 members participating receive random acts of kindness to complete. They can also share their stories on the group page to earn extra points. The member with the most points at the end wins a free seat at the group's Friendsgiving event.

Keep ReadingShow less
Image from Wikimedia Commons.

Van Gogh’s Starry Night.



Van Gough never got to enjoy his own historic success as an artist (even though we've been able to imagine what that moment might have looked like). But it turns out that those of us who have appreciated his work have been missing out on some critical details for more than 100 years.

I'm not easily impressed, OK?

I know Van Gogh was a genius. If the point of this were "Van Gogh was a mad genius," I would not be sharing this with you.
Keep ReadingShow less
Family

Mom shows why painters tape is her 'weird' thing she'll never travel without

For parents with young kids looking to have a little less travel stress this holiday season—this one's for you.

@nicholaknox/Instagram

A mom shows all the ways painters tape can be useful while traveling

Traveling can be stressful for anyone, but it’s particularly challenging for parents with really young kids. The sitting still for long periods of time, the changes in schedule, the abundance of stimuli, the unexpected stomach bugs, the suddenly running out of diaper wipes…all the things that make trips triggering for toddlers and therefore chaotic for mom and dad.

And while there might not be a way to completely avoid every travel-induced aggravation (it’s all part of the journey!) there are definitely tips and tricks and tools to make it a bit smoother of a process.

For one mom, a peaceful trip always begins with a roll of painter’s tape.
Keep ReadingShow less
via Pexels

Millennials are now old enough to seriously reflect on life.

It seems like only yesterday a millennial was a college kid that baby boomers chided for being entitled and Gen Xers thought were way too sincere and needed to learn how to take a joke. Today, the oldest millennials, those born around 1980, have hit their 40s and have lived long enough to have some serious regrets.

They also have enough experience to take some pride in decisions that, in hindsight, were the right moves.

The good news is that at 40 there is still plenty of time to learn from our successes and failures to set ourselves up for a great second half of life. These lessons are also valuable to the Gen Zers coming up who can avoid the pitfalls of the older generation.

A Reddit user who has since deleted their profile asked millennials nearing 40 “what were your biggest mistakes at this point in life?” and they received more than 2,200 responses. The biggest regrets these millennials have are being flippant about their health and not saving enough money when they were younger.

Keep ReadingShow less
Pets

Dog mom has the most random phone conversation that adorably captures her dog's attention

This nonsensical conversation has the puppy ready for tacos...now!

Dog mom's random conversation has dog on edge of his seat

Dogs are constantly listening even if we don't know it. Their little ears perk up anytime they hear something suspicious or tilt their heads trying to understand what's being said. Some dog owners avoid saying words like "walk," "ride" or "treat" in front of their dogs because they know it will get the dogs overly excited.

One dog mom decided to test her luck by holding a fake phone conversation while her dog was nearby and it was shared to social media by HrtWarming. The conversation was about as nonsensical as it could get because no one else was on the other end of the phone.

"Yeah, did you get the treats? Well, he specifically wanted peanut butter. Yeah. Peanut butter treats. Yeah because we're going to go for a ride later," She says. "I think we're going to go for a ride and go to daycare. Camp. Yeah."

At this point the dog is pretty invested in the conversation as he keeps tilting his head from side to side but as the random conversation goes on, he gets more excited.

Keep ReadingShow less
Family

Baby still in diapers is blowing people away with his musical ability at the piano

Young Gavrill seems to intuitively understand music, and the best part is that he does it with such joy.

Gavrill Scherbenko appears to be a musical prodigy.

Mozart blew people away with his composing abilities at age 5. Franz Liszt played piano professionally for the aristocracy when he was 9. Yo-Yo Ma played cello for President John F. Kennedy at age 7.

Musical prodigies have fascinated people for centuries with their mastery of music at unexpected ages. Most of us have the same questions: How and at what age were their abilities discovered? Is it nature or nurture or a combination of both? Can prodigies be created on purpose, or is it something no one can predict or control?

While each musical prodigy has their own unique story, one family is giving the world some early glimpses of what an innate sense for music looks like in a baby who's still in diapers.

Keep ReadingShow less

Is it always best to be honest with friends?

A big parenting trend over the past few decades is people giving their children names that help them stand out instead of fit in. Social scientists say that a big reason for the change in America is the rise of individualism.

“As American culture has become more individualistic, parents have favored giving children names that help them stand out—and that means more unique names and fewer common names,” Jean Twenge, a San Diego State University psychology professor, told the BBC.

However, being an individualist comes with some risks. One can be an iconoclastic trendsetter or seen as desperate, inauthentic and cringeworthy.

Keep ReadingShow less