And The Oscar Goes To... A Bed-Stuy Resident!

Luke Matheny, a Bed-Stuy resident, snagged an Oscar award on Sunday for his live action short "God of Love," which he wrote and directed, and he also played the main character.

Matheny is a graduate student in New York University's film program. So winning the top prize at the Academy Awards was a big coup for the newcomer, as he swapped out sneakers and a sweatshirt for a tuxedo and tie at the star-studded event.

On the red carpet before the Oscar's telecast, Matheny admitted he was "standing behind Robert Downey Jr., trying to get on TV."

And at the nominees luncheon earlier this month, the student was equally star-struck.

"When you're in a room and there's one famous person, it's very distracting," he said backstage. "But the nominees luncheon was wall-to-wall, and I kind of clicked into this other level of reality."

Matheny's new reality has yet to set in, he said, despite the barrage of congratulations he was already received from his friends and family.

"I'm still processing it here. I have 73 unread text messages and 50 unread e-mails," he laughed.

Last night on his Facebook page, Matheny said he'd sent out a message of gratitude to his NYU buddies.

"I sent out a link that said, 'This is how I feel,' and it was a clip from the end of 'It's a Wonderful Life.' So that summed up what this experience has been like."

*Source, www.facebook.com/pages/Luke-Matheny