Former Dartmouth classmates nominated for Academy Award for their work on latest ‘Spider-Man’ film

Hollywood's biggest night is this Sunday, and two Dartmouth College graduates are nominated for their work on the film "Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse."The successful duo got their start in the front row of a classroom in Hanover. “I decided, ‘Well, I'm going to put these two together,’” David Ehrlich, former Dartmouth film professor, said.It was 1993 and film professor David Ehrlich decided to sit Phil Lord and Chris Miller next to one another.“And I was kind of watching them and they would complement each other for what they were doing. They would also gently critique each other,” Ehrlich said.Ehrlich says the two became fast friends and forged a unique bond that would be the key to their success.>> Download the free WMUR app to get updates on the go: Apple | Google Play <<“Nothing will stop these two. And they've had a lot of rejections, a lot of disappointments. If they had been one person, those disappointments would have pushed them down, I’m sure,” Ehrlich said. The pair graduated in 1997 and went on to Hollywood success creating "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs," "The Lego Movie” and "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse," which won them an Oscar for best animated feature. Lord and Miller are now up for their second Oscar on Sunday for their Spider-Verse sequel.“Animation will never be the same. They came in like artists, not like animators or filmmakers. It's a revolution,” Ehrlich said.Find out if Lord and Miller can win their second Oscar at 7 p.m. Sunday on WMUR.