Next year’s celebration of American independent cinema, the beach-front Spirit Awards, will feature a range of highly regarded films including Take Shelter, Beginners, Drive and the upcoming The Artist and The Descendants.
Two British films will be hoping to follow the rather counter-intuitive lead of last year’s awards darling The King’s Speech, which took the Best Foreign Film prize at this most parochial of ceremonies last year. It’s not about the language at the Spirits, but the country of origin – the prizes are primarily for American films, with all other nationalities reduced to one category. This year, the newly retitled “Best International Film” category will see Shame and Tyrannosaur up against Belgium’s The Kid With a Bike, Iran’s A Separation and Denmark’s Melancholia.
Oddly, an exception to the rule seems to have come in the shape of the French film, The Artist, whose notices have been so impressive, it cannot be constrained to a single category; it isn’t up for the Best International Film, but five of the main categories, including Best Feature, Best Director and Best Screenplay – a category which also includes Israel’s Joseph Cedar for Footnote.
The only other film to have received as many nominations is Take Shelter, which is in the running for the Best Feature, Best Director, Piaget New Producer, Best Actor for Michael Shannon and Best Supporting Actress for the ubiquitous Jessica Chastain – someone certain to have received a nomination, the only question was for which film.
A more established actor to shine particularly this year is John C Reilly, who finds himself nominated for the Best Supporting Actor honour – but not for his astonishing upcoming performance in Roman Polanski’s Carnage, but for the broad comedy Cedar Rapids – a film that feels slightly out of place in a competition that sees itself as being more artistic than commercial, which makes its second nomination for Best First Screenplay even more unexpected.
Another contender for the Best First Screenplay award is Will Reiser for the Best Feature-nominated 50/50, for which Anjelica Houston is also recognised in the Supporting Actress category.
The films to feature in most categories, after Take Shelter and The Artist, are Drive – for which Ryan Gosling is recognised as a Best Actor hopeful while Albert Brooks is up for the supporting actor prize, Beginners – which sees Christopher Plummer in line for the Best Supporting Actor award, The Descendants – which sees newcomer Shailene Woodley earn a Best Supporting Actress nomination alongside Alexander Payne for writing and directing and Martha Marcy May Marlene, for which John Hawkes is hoping to repeat last year’s success in the Best Supporting Actor category for Winter’s Bone.
Other high profile nominees include Michelle Williams for her eponymous role in My Week With Marilyn and Woody Harrelson’s rogue LA cop in Rampart.
A back on form Woody Allen failed to secure any nominations for his well-received Midnight in Paris, but there were nominations for his cinematographer Darius Khondji and Corey Stoll, for his supporting role as Ernest Hemmingway.
Film Independent’s Spirit Awards will be handed out on February 25th, the day before the Oscars.
THE INDEPENDENT SPIRIT NOMINATIONS IN FULL:
BEST FEATURE
Beginners
Drive
Take Shelter
The Artist
The Descendants
BEST DIRECTOR
Michel Hazanavicius – The Artist
Mike Mills – Beginners
Jeff Nichols – Take Shelter
Alexander Payne – The Descendants
Nicolas Winding Refn – Drive
BEST SCREENPLAY
Joseph Cedar – Footnote
Michel Hazanavicius – The Artist
Tom McCarthy – Win Win
Mike Mills – Beginners
Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon, Jim Rash – The Descendants
BEST FIRST FEATURE
Another Earth
In The Family
Margin Call
Martha Marcy May Marlene
Natural Selection
BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY
Mike Cahill, Brit Marling – Another Earth
JC Chandor – Margin Call
Patrick deWitt – Terri
Phil Johnston – Cedar Rapids
Will Reiser – 50/50
JOHN CASSAVETES AWARD (Under $500,000)
Bellflower
Circumstance
Hello Lonesome
Pariah
The Dynamiter
BEST FEMALE LEAD
Lauren Ambrose – Think of Me
Rachael Harris – Natural Selection
Adepero Oduye – Pariah
Elizabeth Olsen – Martha Marcy May Marlene
Michelle Williams – My Week with Marilyn
BEST MALE LEAD
Demian Bichir – A Better Life
Jean Dujardin – The Artist
Ryan Gosling – Drive
Woody Harrelson – Rampart
Michael Shannon – Take Shelter
BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE
Jessica Chastain – Take Shelter
Anjelica Huston – 50/50
Janet McTeer – Albert Nobbs
Harmony Santana – Gun Hill Road
Shailene Woodley – The Descendants
BEST SUPPORTING MALE
Albert Brooks – Drive
John Hawkes – Martha Marcy May Marlene
Christopher Plummer – Beginners
John C Reilly – Cedar Rapids
Corey Stoll – Midnight in Paris
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Joel Hodge – Bellflower
Benjamin Kasulke – The Off Hours
Darius Khondji – Midnight in Paris
Guillaume Schiffman – The Artist
Jeffrey Waldron – The Dynamiter
BEST DOCUMENTARY
An African Election
Bill Cunningham New York
The Interrupters
The Redemption of General Butt Naked
We Were Here
BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM
A Separation (Iran)
Melancholia (Denmark/Sweden/France/Germany)
Shame (UK)
The Kid with a Bike (Belgium/France/Italy)
Tyrannosaur (UK)
PIAGET PRODUCERS AWARDS (Emerging producers)
Chad Burris – Mosquita y Mari
Sophia Lin – Take Shelter
Josh Mond – Martha Marcy May Marlene
SOMEONE TO WATCH
Simon Arthur – Silver Tongues
Mark Jackson – Without
Nicholas Ozeki – Mamitas
TRUER THAN FICTION AWARD (Emerging non-fiction directors)
Heather Courtney – Where Soldiers come From
Danfung Dennis – Hell and Back Again
Alma Har’el – Bombay Beach
ROBERT ALTMAN AWARD
Margin Call