Campion, the first woman to receive a Palme d'Or at Cannes with The Piano, has now won her first Academy Award for film direction after previously losing out to Steven Spielberg (Schindler's List) in 1994. That year she instead won the Oscar for best adapted screenplay.
Going in, she was the first woman nominated more than once for best director and had previously won a Bafta in that category for The Power of the Dog.
Campion becomes just the third female winner of best director in the Academy Awards' 94-year history after Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker, 2010) and Chloe Zhao (Nomadland, 2021). Both those films also won best picture but Campion's film was pipped for the top award by CODA.
Winning or being acknowledged among the best rewards the inspiration and efforts of individuals working as a team. But if that team can feel that a community of people was cheering them on, so much the better.
In the case of The Power of the Dog there was a strong New Zealand connection.
The rugged hills of Otago framed Campion's adapted American story of two rancher brothers set in 1920s Montana. The production designer is New Zealander Grant Major, an Oscar-winner for The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. In-demand Kiwi star Thomasin McKenzie had a supporting role.
Anything attracting a lot of attention and praise inevitably draws a few tall-poppy trolls. Those people should just relax: Sometimes it's just good to enjoy the light of reflected glory from a golden statuette.
The Oscars always reflect mainstream taste in movies and end results can be subject to backlashes, last-minute hype, and late enthusiasm. And especially in the era of the preferential ballot system, likeability can succeed over artistry.
It can take years to see if a film - or TV series or album - is a classic and it is not always obvious at the time. Plenty of great films miss out on the top prize, sometimes beaten by inferior and forgettable rivals.
Nominations are a better barometer of the quality of a movie and its year - there are usually at least some films recognised that have won other guild awards and featured on critics' lists.
The Power of the Dog went into the awards as the most-nominated film with 12 and survived as the frontrunner for best picture for about five months before losing to the feel-good option CODA - an Apple film with three nominations. Dune had the best awards day - converting six of its 10 nominations into wins.
The overall craftsmanship of The Power of the Dog was reflected in the breadth of its nominations which covered adapted screenplay, actor, supporting actor (twice), supporting actress, sound, score, editing, cinematography and production design.
It's also a typically uncompromising Campion film that doesn't spell everything out or pander to the audience. It's filled with her visual style, and superb, often non-verbal, acting performances.
It's the sum of great teamwork. And it is also the work of a master.
