Best Director nominees once again will receive a lavish gift bag of curated consolation gifts, but this year's will include a one-of-a-kind piece of digital content in the form of an NFT fit for foodies.
Celebrity chef Rocco DiSpirito spoke to "Good Morning America" about the unique opportunity to share a never-before-published recipe, authenticated as a non-fungible token, that will be gifted to each nominee.
"My NFT is my favorite dish, Spaghetti Carbonara, paired with a unique fractal art piece of art that is reflective of how I see flavor in four colors: red, yellow, blue, green," which he said represents his food philosophy and the four basic flavors of sour, salty, bitter, sweet. "It's a four-ingredient dish, it's bacon, eggs, cheese and pasta, and it's one of the simplest dishes in Italian culinary history, yet one of the hardest dishes to get right."
DiSpirito's NFT that all nominated directors will have access to will also make history as the first food-and-recipe token on the crypto-blockchain.
"There's a trick in the recipe that I haven't revealed and have never published -- that's the beauty of an NFT, you can create a unique product that the person who owns it can only enjoy, which is hard to do when you're publishing a recipe," he said.
Additionally, the winner in the category will receive "a couture recipe for them and them only" from DiSpirito that he will customize using three ingredients of the winning director's choosing and which will be authenticated as an NFT, paired with an original piece of art and music to enjoy they cook the dish.
12/ Chef DiSpirito is a competitor on Guy Fieri’s Tournament of Champions of The Food Network. Rocco will create a unique custom recipe for the Best Director, the agreement embedded, using steganography, in a still from the paired fractal-based artwork. pic.twitter.com/VjKi1nwWLa
— Isaac Rudansky (@isaacrudansky) April 23, 2021
"I've always been looking for a way to memorialize the work we do in restaurants -- our product is created and consumed in them the same 30-minute period -- there's no way to create a permanent record of it," DiSpirito explained.
The chef revealed if he could cook a meal for one past or current Oscar winner or nominee, he would choose Viola Davis.
"She apparently really loves good food, really understands and enjoys great food. And I'm a big fan of her work. Everything she does just blows my mind," he said.
The "Everyone Wins" Nominee Gift Bag is awarded to all 25 Oscar-nominated actors and directors by Distinctive Assets, a celebrity and product-placement marketing company that is not affiliated with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Check out this Chadwick Boseman Tribute #nftart by world-famous #cryptoartist @andreoshea!! Bidding opens on @rariblecom TODAY. Proceeds going to @ColonCancerFdn for their nationwide effort to bring 10,000 colorectal screenings to underserved communities! https://t.co/CzlCyWaoMa pic.twitter.com/9q6zpJ4RlF
— Isaac Rudansky (@isaacrudansky) April 23, 2021
Other exclusive digital artwork included in the nominee gifts will be auctioned on Rarible to benefit a charity of each nominee’s choosing, including a unique tribute piece to Chadwick Boseman with proceeds directed to benefit colon cancer foundations.
"All of us are donating proceeds to the colon cancer foundation," DiSpirito said. "Whatever awareness we can help bring to the prevention of colon cancer we're thrilled to have an opportunity to do so and to raise important funds."
