Even with several awards to go, the 3-D space spectacle was assured to be the most honored film at the Dolby Theatre ceremony hosted nimbly by Ellen DeGeneres. The Mexican Cuaron is the first Latino filmmaker to take best director.
"It was a transformative experience," said Cuaron, who spent some five years making the film and developing its visual effects. "For a lot of people, that transformation was wisdom. For me, it was the color of my hair."
He thanked his star, Sanda Bullock, the sole person on screen for much of the lost-in-space drama: "Sandra, you are 'Gravity.'" Bullock lost the best actress award to Cate Blanchett, the star of Woody Allen's "Blue Jasmine."
