Ava DuVernay Notes Distinction Over Angela Bassett's First-Ever Oscar

Ava DuVernay's just like the rest of us ... thrilled that Angela Bassett's finally bagged an Oscar at the Governors Awards, but she's also clarifying it's its own thing -- separate from an Academy Award at the big show.

TMZ got the director out in NYC, where she made the distinction between the Governors Awards and the prestigious, world-renowned Academy Awards coming up in 2 months ... where bagging a shiny gold statuette is the pinnacle of every actor's career.

Ava says it was high time for the Academy to honor Angela's body of work. Of course, she's also been nominated for 2 acting Oscars -- Best Actress for 1993's "What's Love Got To Do With It" and Best Supporting Actress for 2022's 'Wakanda Forever' -- but has yet to win one.

With that said, Ava -- who's one of the Academy Governors herself -- was thrilled to witness Angela get this well-deserved recognition ... and made it clear the Governors Award and Academy Awards are separate entities.

She also raves about getting to watch Ms. Bassett do her thing, and was especially inspired by her acceptance speech.

As for Angela ... she was stoked to be highlighted -- urging fellow Black actresses to think of who their ancestors intended them to be ... telling them to remain courageous.

She also paid tribute to the empowered women she's represented in her roles -- real queens like Tina Turner, Rosa Parks and Coretta Scott King ... and, of course, Wakanda's fictional Queen Ramonda.