Black stories came to the forefront early on at the Oscars Sunday night, with Academy Awards presented to Mahershala Ali, Viola Davis and the documentary O.J.:Made in America.
Ali`s landed the first Oscar of the night for his widely praised turn as a drug dealer-turned-father figure to Moonlight`s central character — a young black man struggling with his identity and sexuality. He won best supporting actor and a standing ovation at the Academy Awards, taking place in Los Angeles.
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CBC News is following the events as they unfold on our live blog.
Ali paid tribute to the teachers who told him: "it's not about you. It's about these characters. You are a servant.You're in service to these characters and these stories," he recounted.
Later on in the evening Davis earned the best supporting actress trophy for her role as a put-upon wife in Fences, reprising her Tony-winning role opposite Denzel Washington in his adaptation of the August Wilson play.
"I become an artist and thank God I did because we are the only profession that celebrates what it means to live a life. Here's to August Wilson, who exhumed and exaulted the ordinary people," said Davis, who has previously won Emmy and Tony Awards.
Ezra Edelman and Caroline Waterlow won best documentary feature for their film O.J.: Made in American, examining the O.J. Simpson trial but also the tumultuous social history of the United States.
Canadian Sylvain Bellemare gave a shout out to Montreal upon winning best sound editing for Arrival.
Other winners so far have included:
Justin Timberlake gave the show a rollicking musical kick-off, leading a line of dancers into the Hollywood and Highland Center`s Dolby Theatre. His upbeat performance of Can't Stop the Feeling from Trolls brought the stars to their feet to join in. Other best original song nominees punctuated the show, including Lin-Manuel Miranda and Auli'i Cravalho performing How Far I'll Go from Moana and Sting singing The Empty Chair from Jim: The James Foley Story.
Late night's Jimmy Kimmel slightly toned down his typical snark for his debut as Oscar host, but still managed to take digs at Matt Damon, Donald Trump and the diversity problems suffered by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
The musical love story La La Land was the one to beat heading into the awards after it nabbed a record-tying 14 nominations. Its has been a favourite of critics groups and other awards shows this season. Its rivals for best picture are:
With a former reality TV star who delights in creating controversy now in the Oval Office, politics has seeped into all aspects of American life, including the entertainment world. It's widely expected that speeches will get political, as they have throughout the preceding awards season. Whether viewers tune out remains to be seen.
It's a banner year for Canuck finalists at this year's Academy Awards, with Ontario-born actor Ryan Gosling vying for a trophy and Quebec filmmaker Denis Villeneuve's sci-fi thinker Arrival a top contender.
Aside from Gosling and Villeneuve's bids for best actor and director respectively, Canadians are also nominated across multiple Oscar categories.