"I come from a community that loves me and spoke a lot of power into me."

The win feels extra special knowing that 21 years ago, Coogler wasn't even thinking about films — he was on a football scholarship at a California college when his creative writing professor was so impressed with his first assignment that she suggested he look into writing screenplays. At first, he shrugged it off. Then, he thought, "Why not?"

Now, he has a packed roster of projects ahead of him that are bound to break further ground in Hollywood. 

Right before he started USC's prestigious graduate film program, his hometown newspaper dubbed him the "Spike Lee of the East Bay," a prophecy in hindsight — Lee has helped mentor Coogler in his Hollywood journey, and the two directors are close. 

* Well, all the films we could track down. There are mentions of two short films, Story of a Dollar and Eyes Like Mine, that he created even before USC — there is no trace of them online. I looked. 

Fig screened at the 2010 Tribeca Film Festival and won the HBO Short Filmmaking Award, DGA Student Filmmaker Award, and was also nominated for the Black Reel Award for Outstanding Independent Short Film. 

You can watch the award-winning short here on Kanopy (free with your local library card). 

So much of this movie stuck with me, though one scene that really stayed with me is the 36-second continuous shot of Oscar, played by Jordan, walking through the empty daycare center to pick up his daughter. This quiet private moment, that in writing seems so mundane, is so intimate that it really humanizes Oscar — it almost feels like a reminder that even though he was grown, he was still a 22-year-old with an entire life ahead of him. 

Fruitvale Station is packed with powerful performances (including Octavia Spencer) that are all worth watching. It's available online, and you can rent or purchase it through Apple TV, Amazon, and YouTube. 

From Rocky to Creed originally aired on EPIX in 2015 and was available to stream on Hulu until 2017 — it can currently be watched online here.

Creed was a hit with critics and audiences, grossing over $173.6 million against a $35 million budget. The film feels just as much of a love letter to Philadelphia as it does to the original Rocky movies, and Coogler's creative voice in it was just as pervasive as it is in his short films and Fruitvale Station — he doesn't shy away from addressing the often limited options Black people have to escape systemic generational poverty ("We're not singing! We're not dancing! We're fighting!") and portrays neighborhoods stereotypically seen as "rough" to be brimming with love, culture, and kinship.

Coogler excels at lingering in the private, quiet moments of a hero's journey (the long, continuous take prevails — a one-shot of Creed walking from backstage to the boxing ring clocks in at over two minutes) and at building out the cities his characters live in. Fortunately for us, Coogler takes these auteur abilities with him to his next milestone: the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Creed is available to rent on YouTube, Apple TV, and Prime Video.

Black Panther is available for streaming on Disney+.

The film's emotion is felt throughout, though it really shines through Angela Bassett, who plays T'Challa's mother. Coogler really gave her so much to work with, and she in return delivered a powerful performance that rightfully earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. 

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is available to stream on Disney+.

Coogler took on a story and producing credit for Creed III, intentionally stepping aside so Michael B. Jordan could make his directorial debut — it feels like a passing of the torch and testament to Coogler’s growing role as a mentor shaping the next generation of Black storytellers. Coogler was also a producer on Creed II, but was less involved overall due to his commitment to Black Panther, which came out the same year as Creed II. 

And his involvement as executive producer on Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time, directed by Traci Curry, is another project that aligns with a theme present throughout his work: the institutions that fail and/or ostracize Black people, and the humanity that persists anyway.

Creed III is available to stream on YouTube, Apple TV, and Prime Video. Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time can be found on Hulu and Disney+.

Coogler's inspiration for the Sinners screenplay was his late uncle who was diagnosed with terminal cancer and died while Coogler was in post-production on Creed. The two were incredibly close and he credits his uncle for introducing him to blues music, a key player in the Sinners' soundscape. He described making Sinners as a "ritual of remembrance," and based on our retrospective, I'd say that's true of every project in his catalogue. 

Sinners is available for streaming on HBO Max.