Kathryn Bigelow has become the first woman in history to win the Academy Award for best director. Her low-budget Iraq war film, The Hurt Locker, about a bomb disposal team, dominated the ceremony, taking six Oscars including best picture and best original screenplay.
The film triumphed over the 3D blockbuster Avatar, directed by Bigelow's former husband, James Cameron. Cameron, who sat behind Bigelow at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, was among the first to congratulate her, tapping her on the shoulder.
Bigelow described the award as a 'moment of a lifetime' and dedicated her Oscar to servicemen and women in Iraq and Afghanistan, saying: 'May they come home safe.' The Hurt Locker is an apolitical film focusing on the heroism of bomb disposal experts, critically acclaimed but not a box office success, and criticised as unrealistic by bomb experts.
Bigelow was only the fourth woman nominated for best director in the Oscars' 82-year history, following Sofia Coppola, Jane Campion, and Lina Wertmuller. Barbra Streisand presented the award. After the ceremony, Bigelow resisted gloating over Cameron, calling him 'an extraordinary film-maker.'
