The Oscar nominations are read in Los Angeles at just after 5 in the morning, a time when most late-to-wake Hollywood types would rather be slumbering underneath high-thread-count sheets. Still, the Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige wasn’t about to miss the televised announcement.

“I watched them this morning for the first time in many years,” Feige told your Carpetbagger today by phone. “I set my alarm, and I haven’t done that since I was a film nerd in college.”

His interest was well-rewarded: “Black Panther” became the first Marvel film to score a nomination for best picture, and the phenomenally successful superhero film picked up six more nominations to boot. “I’m feeing a sense of pride and humility and immense gratitude,” Feige said.

[Read more about the nominations | Check out the full list of nominees | See the snubs and surprises.]

And though the academy failed to nominate Ryan Coogler for directing and co-writing the film, “you’re going to hear me say the name ‘Ryan Coogler’ constantly on this phone call,” Feige said, emphasizing the importance of inclusive and diverse filmmaking. “To me, the best thing a producer can do is find a person with something to say, who has a story to tell and can tell it in a way that the world responds to. That’s what Mr. Coogler has done for us.”