While last night’s 2022 Academy Awards most infamous moment came when Will Smith slapped Chris Rock for making a joke at his wife’s expense, another notable moment came when CODA won the Best Picture Oscar.

It marks the first time that a film produced and distributed via a streaming platform has taken home the coveted award, with Apple TV+ beating Netflix to the milestone.

Ever since the pandemic upended the movie industry, traditional cinemas have suffered and streaming platform has thrived, with it serving as a viable alternative to those wanting to watch the latest films.

There are of course outliers, but these pertain mainly to bid budget films like Spider-Man: No Way Home, Dune and The Batman. In the case of CODA, however, which has a distinct indie film vibe to it, it showcases to producers and directors that streaming platforms can indeed be the answer during these chaotic times.

It also serves as an endorsement of Apple’s efforts on the streaming front as it has poured a lot of money into bringing original content to its TV+ platform. Added to this is the fact that having an Oscar winning film in your catalogue will no doubt attract more talent to the platform.

For CODA, Apple reportedly paid $25 million for the exclusive streaming rights to it and paid an estimated $10 million to market the film for the recent awards season. It is a move that clearly paid off.

As such, it will be interesting to see what will happen post-pandemic as streaming platforms and film academies have been at odds when it comes to consideration of their films for award nominations prior to COVID-19.

If you are interested in watching CODA, which follows the life of Ruby, who is the child of deaf adults, which also where the film gets its title, you can stream it as part of a free trial on Apple TV+ locally for seven days, after which the service costs R84.99 per month.