The Film Independent Spirit Awards were announced last night and while there were not many surprises (“Nomadland” won for example), Chadwick Boseman lost to Riz Ahmed in Best Male Lead while Carey Mulligan prevailed in Best Female Lead. The stats surrounding Best Actress and the Spirit awards tell me that only Mulligan and Andra Day now have a chance to win Best Actress since the rule is that if a Best Actress winner is nominated at the Spirits she will win there. Therefore, the race is between Mulligan (the Spirit winner) and Day (who was not nominated at the Spirits). The same rule does not hold as powerfully in Best Actor so don’t count out Boseman yet but I do see a greater opportunity for some one like Hopkins to upset.
BEST FEATURE
(Award given to the producer)
NOMADLAND (WINNER)
Producers: Mollye Asher, Dan Janvey, Frances McDormand, Peter Spears, Chloé Zhao
FIRST COW
Producers: Neil Kopp, Vincent Savino, Anish Savjani
MA RAINEY’S BLACK BOTTOM
Producers: Todd Black, Denzel Washington, Dany Wolf
MINARI
Producers: Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Christina Oh
NEVER RARELY SOMETIMES ALWAYS
Producers: Sara Murphy, Adele Romanski
BEST FIRST FEATURE
(Award given to director and producer)
SOUND OF METAL (WINNER)
Director: Darius Marder
Producers: Bill Benz, Kathy Benz, Bert Hamelinck, Sacha Ben Harroche
I CARRY YOU WITH ME
Director/Producer: Heidi Ewing
Producers: Edher Campos, Mynette Louie, Gabriela Maire
THE FORTY-YEAR-OLD VERSION
Director/Producer: Radha Blank
Producers: Inuka Bacote-Capiga, Jordan Fudge, Rishi Rajani, Jennifer Semler, Lena Waithe
MISS JUNETEENTH
Director: Channing Godfrey Peoples
Producers: Toby Halbrooks, Tim Headington, Jeanie Igoe, James M. Johnston, Theresa Steele Page, Neil Creque Williams
NINE DAYS
Director: Edson Oda
Producers: Jason Michael Berman, Mette-Marie Kongsved, Matthew Linder, Laura Tunstall, Datari Turner
BEST DIRECTOR
Chloé Zhao, Nomadland (WINNER)
Lee Isaac Chung, Minari
Emerald Fennell, Promising Young Woman
Eliza Hittman, Never Rarely Sometimes Always
Kelly Reichardt, First Cow
BEST SCREENPLAY
Emerald Fennell, Promising Young Woman (WINNER)
Lee Isaac Chung, Minari
Eliza Hittman, Never Rarely Sometimes Always
Mike Makowsky, Bad Education
Alice Wu, The Half of It
BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY
Andy Siara, Palm Springs (WINNER)
Kitty Green, The Assistant
Noah Hutton, Lapsis
Channing Godfrey Peoples, Juneteenth
James Sweeney, Straight Up
JOHN CASSAVETES AWARD
(Given to the best feature made for under $500,000; Award given to the writer, director and producer)
RESIDUE (WINNER)
Writer/Director: Merawi Gerima
THE KILLING OF TWO LOVERS
Writer/Director/Producer: Robert Machoian
Producers: Scott Christopherson, Clayne Crawford
LA LEYENDA NEGRA
Writer/Director: Patricia Vidal Delgado
Producers: Alicia Herder, Marcel Perez
LINGUA FRANCA
Writer/Director/Producer: Isabel Sandoval
Producers: Darlene Catly Malimas, Jhett Tolentino, Carlo Velayo
SAINT FRANCES
Director/Producer: Alex Thompson
Writer: Kelly O’Sullivan
Producers: James Choi, Pierce Cravens, Ian Keiser, Eddie Linker, Raphael Nash, Roger Welp
BEST MALE LEAD
Riz Ahmed, Sound of Metal (WINNER)
Chadwick Boseman, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Adarsh Gourav, The White Tiger
Rob Morgan, Bull
Steven Yeun, Minari
BEST FEMALE LEAD
Carey Mulligan, Promising Young Woman (WINNER)
Nicole Beharie, Miss Juneteenth
Viola Davis, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Sidney Flanigan, Never Rarely Sometimes Always
Julia Garner, The Assistant
Frances McDormand, Nomadland
BEST SUPPORTING MALE
Paul Raci, Sound of Metal (WINNER)
Colman Domingo, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Orion Lee, First Cow
Glynn Turman, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Benedict Wong, Nine Days
BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE
Yuh-Jung Youn, Minari (WINNER)
Alexis Chikaeze, Miss Juneteenth
Yeri Han, Minari
Valerie Mahaffey, French Exit
Talia Ryder, Never Rarely Sometimes Always
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Joshua James Richards, Nomadland (WINNER)
Jay Keitel, She Dies Tomorrow
Shabier Kirchner, Bull
Michael Latham, The Assistant
Hélène Louvart, Never Rarely Sometimes Always
BEST EDITING
Chloé Zhao, Nomadland (WINNER)
Andy Canny, The Invisible Man
Scott Cummings, Never Rarely Sometimes Always
Merawi Gerima, Residue
Enat Sidi, I Carry You With Me
BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM
(Award given to the director)
QUO VADIS, AIDA? (Bosnia and Herzegovina) (WINNER)
Director: Jasmila Zbanic
BACURAU (Brazil)
Director: Juliano Dornelles, Kleber Mendonça Filho
THE DISCIPLE (India)
Director: Chaitanya Tamahane
NIGHT OF THE KINGS (Ivory Coast)
Director: Philippe Lacôte
PREPARATIONS TO BE TOGETHER FOR AN UNKNOWN PERIOD OF TIME (Hungary)
Director: Lili Horvát
BEST DOCUMENTARY
(Award given to the director and producer)
CRIP CAMP (WINNER)
Directors/Producers: Jim LeBrecht, Nicole Newnham
Producer: Sara Bolder
COLLECTIVE
Director/Producer: Alexander Nanau
Producers: Hanka Kastelicová, Bernard Michaux, Bianca Oana
DICK JOHNSON IS DEAD
Director/Producer: Kirsten Johnson
Producers: Katy Chevigny, Marilyn Ness
THE MOLE AGENT
Director: Maite Alberdi
Producer: Marcela Santibáñez
TIME
Director/Producer: Garrett Bradley
Producers: Lauren Domino, Kellen Quinn
ROBERT ALTMAN AWARD
(Given to one film’s director, casting director and ensemble cast)
ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI
Director: Regina King
Casting Directors: Kimberly R. Hardin
Ensemble Cast: Kingsley Ben-Adir, Eli Goree, Aldis Hodge, Leslie Odom Jr.
PRODUCERS AWARD
(The Producers Award honors emerging producers who, despite highly limited resources, demonstrate the creativity, tenacity and vision required to produce quality independent films)
Gerry Kim (WINNER)
Lucas Joaquin
Kara Durrett
SOMEONE TO WATCH AWARD
(The Someone to Watch Award recognizes a talented filmmaker of singular vision who has not yet received appropriate recognition)
EKWA MSANGI (WINNER)
Director of Farewell Amor
DAVID MIDELL
Director of The Killing of Kenneth Chamberlain
ANNIE SILVERSTEIN
Director of Bull
TRUER THAN FICTION AWARD
(The 26th Truer Than Fiction Award is presented to an emerging director of non-fiction features who has not yet received significant recognition)
ELEGANCE BRATTON (WINNER)
Director of Pier Kids
CECILIA ALDARONDO
Director of Landfall
ELIZABETH LO
Director of Stray
BEST NEW NON-SCRIPTED OR DOCUMENTARY SERIES
(Award given to the Creator, Executive Producer, Co-Executive Producer)
IMMIGRATION NATION (WINNER)
Executive Producers: Christina Clusiau, Shaul Schwarz, Dan Cogan, Jenny Raskin, Brandon Hill, Christian Thompson
Co-Executive Producers: Andrey Alistratov, Jay Arthur Sterrenberg, Lauren Haber
ATLANTA’S MISSING AND MURDERED: THE LOST CHILDREN
Executive Producers: Jeff Dupre, Joshua Bennett, Sam Pollard, Maro Chermayeff, John Legend, Mike Jackson, Ty Stiklorius
CITY SO REAL
Produced by: Zak Piper, Steve James
Executive Producers: Jeff Skoll, Diane Weyermann, Alex Kotlowitz, Gordon Quinn, Betsy Steinberg, Jolene Pinder
LOVE FRAUD
Executive Producers: Rachel Grady, Heidi Ewing, Amy Goodman Kass, Vinnie Malhotra, Jihan Robinson, Michael Bloom, Maria Zuckerman
WE’RE HERE
Creators/Executive Producers: Stephen Warren, Johnnie Ingram
Executive Producers: Eli Holzman, Aaron Saidman, Peter LoGreco
Co-Executive Producers: Erin Haglund, Sabrina Mar
BEST NEW SCRIPTED SERIES
(Award given to the Creator, Executive Producer, Co-Executive Producer)
I MAY DESTROY YOU (WINNER)
Creator/Executive Producer: Michaela Coel
Executive Producers: Phil Clarke, Roberto Troni
A TEACHER
Creator/Executive Producer: Hanna Fidell
Executive Producers: Michael Costigan, Kate Mara, Louise Shore, Jason Bateman, Danny Brocklehurst
Co-Executive Producer: Daniel Pipski
LITTLE AMERICA
Executive Producers: Lee Eisenberg, Joshuah Bearman, Joshua Davis, Arthur Spector, Alan Yang, Siân Heder, Kumail Nanjiani, Emily V. Gordon
SMALL AXE
Executive Producers: Tracey Scoffield, David Tanner, Steve McQueen
UNORTHODOX
Creator/Executive Producer: Anna Winger
Creator: Alexa Karolinski
Executive Producer: Henning Kamm
BEST FEMALE PERFORMANCE IN A NEW SCRIPTED SERIES
Shira Haas, Unorthodox (WINNER)
Elle Fanning, The Great
Abby McEnany, Work in Progress
Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, Never Have I Ever
Jordan Kristine Seamón, We Are Who We Are
BEST MALE PERFORMANCE IN A NEW SCRIPTED SERIES
Amit Rahav, Unorthodox (WINNER)
Conphidance, Little America
Adam Ali, Little America
Nicco Annan, P-Valley
Harold Torres, ZeroZeroZero