Steve Kerr involved in Oscar victory for short film ‘All the Empty Rooms’
Golden State coach Steve Kerr has now achieved Oscar-winning status.
Kerr served as one of the executive producers for “All the Empty Rooms,” which received the Oscar for best documentary short.
This 35-minute film explores how broadcast journalist Steve Hartman and photographer Lou Bopp shared the narratives of families who have commemorated the bedrooms of children lost to mass shootings. Kerr, whose father was fatally shot in 1984 while serving as president of American University in Beirut, has consistently advocated for sensible gun regulation.
“I wasn’t involved in the film’s production,” Kerr stated on Monday. “However, I take great pride in being associated with it.”
Kerr, a nine-time NBA champion both as a player and coach, who also led USA Basketball to Olympic gold at the 2024 Paris Games, mentioned that he readily accepted the opportunity to participate in this initiative.
“About a year ago, they reached out to me and asked if I would like to be an executive producer, which essentially meant lending my name and assisting with promotion,” Kerr explained. “It was an obvious choice, considering my passion for the topic. After viewing the film, I was truly impressed by its beauty and emotional depth. It was an easy choice.”
In recent weeks, Kerr conducted screenings for Netflix and penned an op-ed for the Los Angeles Times earlier this month regarding the film, highlighting how he was captivated by the storytelling approach of director Joshua Seftel and the team involved in the project, which focused on families who have suffered losses due to school shootings.
“What struck me immediately was how the film gives a voice to families,” Kerr expressed in that article. “It allows them to share their experiences about their children without turning their stories into political statements or spectacles. There is a dignity in that approach, which is often lacking in the national discourse surrounding gun violence.”
Seftel accepted the Oscar on Sunday night and then handed the microphone to Gloria Cazares, the mother of a 9-year-old who was killed in a school shooting in Uvalde, Texas.
“My daughter Jackie was 9 years old when she was taken from us in Uvalde,” Gloria Cazares stated on stage. “Since that tragic day, her bedroom has remained unchanged. Jackie is more than just a headline; she is our light and our life. Gun violence is now the leading cause of death among children and teenagers. We believe that if the world could witness their empty bedrooms, it would lead to a different America.”
Kerr is the second member of the Warriors to participate in an Oscar-winning project in recent years: Golden State guard Stephen Curry was an executive producer for “The Queen of Basketball,” which won the Oscar for best short documentary in 2022.
Kerr was not present at the Oscars, as the Warriors had a game that evening, and he learned of the win through a family group text. He also noted that he will not receive a statuette.
“I am deeply committed to the cause,” Kerr remarked, “but I don’t anticipate this will transform me into a filmmaker.”
