Last night (Saturday 8th February), the 35th Film Independent Spirit Awards took place, in a ceremony hosted by Aubrey Plaza (Parks And Recreation, Life After Beth, Child's Play) for the second year running.
As I'm sure you all know by now, they recognise films made wholly or partly outside the traditional studio system. They're also the first major awards to be announced in any given awards season, and one of the last to be awarded.
Some of the winners are below.
Best Feature: The Farewell
Best Female Lead: Renée Zellweger (Judy)
Best Male Lead: Adam Sandler (Uncut Gems)
Best Supporting Female: Zhao Shuzhen (The Farewell)
Best Supporting Male: Willem Dafoe (The Lighthouse)
Best Director: Benny Safdie and Josh Safdie (Uncut Gems)
Best Screenplay: Noah Baumbach (Marriage Story)
Best First Screenplay: Fredrica Bailey and Stefon Bristol (See You Yesterday)
Best Cinematography: The Lighthouse
Best First Feature: Booksmart
Best International Film: Parasite
Best Documentary: American Factory
John Cassavetes Award: Give Me Liberty
The John Cassavetes Award is given to the creative team of a film budgeted at less than $500,000. The full list of winners can be found here.
So, despite The Farewell taking the main prize of Best Feature, it was Uncut Gems that was the biggest winner of the night with three awards. The Farewell, The Lighthouse, and Marriage Story both won two apiece.
And in case you're wondering (which you probably weren't but anyway...), because Marriage Story had been given the Robert Altman Award- which honours the acting ensemble, director, and casting director of the given film- it meant that the actors weren't eligible to nominated for individual categories, or Baumbach to be nominated for Best Director.
Congratulations to all winners!
The focus now shifts to the big one: the 92nd Academy Awards. I'll be posting my predictions for who will win in the major categories (acting, directing, and Best Picture) later today.
