A year that began with Ava DuVernay claiming the first-ever win by a black woman of Sundance’s Best Director prize continues apace this month for the former film publicist. As she told AP entertainment writer Sandy Cohen, “I’m living my dream.”

DuVernay’s sophomore effort Middle of Nowhere has received Twitter seal of approval from Oprah Winfrey. Her previous, first effort was endorsed by Roger Ebert. With that kind of Chicago backing, it’s no surprise that DuVernay is already hard at work on her next project – a documentary about Venus Williams – and palns to make a movie a year. From Cohen’s profile piece:

There’s a massive congratulatory bouquet of orchids on the desk in her small office overlooking Van Nuys Boulevard… A magnum of Moet with a big gold bow on top sits on the floor…

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AP Hollywood correspondent Sandy Cohen has scored a solid Oprah Winfrey interview after bypassing the usual PR channels:

Winfrey tells Cohen she was as surprised as anyone that she was selected to receive the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award. Not because she doesn’t think she is worthy, but rather because she recognizes that her body of big screen acting work is slim:

“”I understand people thinking, `Where’s her list of credentials for films?’” Winfrey said, “but I don’t think there’s room for criticism in the do-good department…”

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Here at FishbowlLA, we can no longer get too excited or angry about matters Oscar-related. The show is a colossal disappointment each and every year, the acceptance speeches are honed for months on end via other telecasts, and in today’s fractious world the whole thing seems less important than ever. But we are clearly in the Hollywood media minority.

In the wake of this week’s announcement that Oprah Winfrey will receive the prestigious Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award on November 21, LA Times media critic Patrick Goldstein, Oscar show spoiler Nikki Finke, and many more are hitting the Kodak Theatre roof. Meanwhile, AP LA reporter Sandy Cohen has since checked in with Oprah (no comment by press time) and Academy president Tom Sherak:

“Oprah has given and given and given,” Sherak said, adding that she has contributed more than $500 million of her own money to charitable causes. “She’s a member of the academy, she was nominated for an Academy Award and she has produced movies. This is not about personality. This is about a person who has come from the depths, risen to the heights and given back. That’s a perfect example of why this award was created.”

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