We’re still a long way from the Oscars in February, but that doesn’t mean awards season isn’t heating up! Just this past week, the Independent Spirit Awards announced their nominees for the best of 2018! If you’re not familiar with this particular awards show, it aims to award the best in indie cinema of the year. In order to get nominated, the film must have a budget under $20 million. Who got nominated? Did any of your faves make the cut? Read on to see the nominees!
Best Feature:
Eighth Grade
First Reformed
If Beale Street Could Talk
Leave No Trace
You Were Never Really Here
Best First Feauture
Hereditary
Sorry to Bother You
The Tale
We the Animals
Wildlife
Best Female Lead
Glenn Close: The Wife
Toni Colette: Hereditary
Elsie Fisher: Eighth Grade
Regina Hall: Support the Girls
Helena Howard: Madeline’s Madeline
Carey Mulligan: Wildlife
Best Male Lead
John Cho: Searching
Daveed Diggs: Blindspotting
Ethan Hawke: First Reformed
Christian Malheiros: Socrates
Joaquin Phoenix: You Were Never Really Here
Best Director:
Debra Granik: Leave No Trace
Barry Jenkins: If Beale Street Could Talk
Tamra Jenkins: Private Life
Lynne Ramsay: You Were Never Really Here
Paul Schrader: First Reformed
Best Documentary
Hale County This Morning, This Evening
Minding the Gap
Of Fathers and Sons
On Her Shoulders
Shirkers
Won’t You Be My Neighbor
Best International Film
Burning
The Favourite
Happy as Lazarro
Roma
Shoplifters
Best Supporting Male
Raul Castillo: We the Animals
Adam Driver: BlacKkKlansman
Richard E. Grant: Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Josh Hamilton: Eighth Grade
John David Washington: Monsters and Men
Best Supporting Female
Kayli Carter: Private Life
Tyne Daly: A Bread Factory
Regina King: Support the Girls
Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie: Leave No Trace
J. Smith-Cameron: Nancy
Best Screenplay
Richard Glatzer, Rebecca Lenkiewicz and Wash Westmoreland: Colette
Nicole Holofcener and Jeff Whitty: Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Tamara Jenkins: Private Life
Boots Riley: Sorry to Bother You
Paul Schrader: First Reformed
Best First Screenplay
Bo Burnham: Eighth Grade
Christina Choe: Nancy
Cory Finley: Thoroughbreds
Jennifer Fox: The Tale
Quinn Shephard and Laurie Shephard: Blame
Best Cinematography
Ashley Connor: Madeline’s Madeline
Diego Garcia: Wildlife
Benjamin Loeb: Mandy
Sayombhu Mukdeeprom: Suspiria
Zak Mulligan: We the Animals
Best Editing
Joe Bini, You Were Never Really Here
Keiko Deguchi, Brian A. Kates and Jeremiah Zagar: We the Animals
Luke Dunkley, Nick Fenton, Chris Gill and Julian Hart: American Animals
Anne Fabini, Alex Hall and Gary Levy: The Tale
Nick Houy: Mid 90s
Bonnie Award
Debra Granik
Tamara Jenkins
Karyn Kusama
John Cassavetes Award
A Bread Factory
En el Septimo Dia
Never Goin’ Back
Socrates
Thunder Road
Someone to Watch Award
Alex Moratto: Socrates
Iona Uricaru: Lemonade
Jeremiah Zagar: We the Animals
Truer than Fiction Award
Alexandria Bombach: On Her Shoulders
Bing Liu: Minding the Gap
Ramell Ross: Hale County This Morning, This Evening
That does it for this group of nominees! It looks like We The Animals leads with 5 nominations. Following closely behind are Eighth Grade, First Reformed, and You Were Never Really Here with 4 nominations each. Want to check out some of the nominated films before the show? I recommend seeing Eighth Grade, Won’t You Be My Neighbor, and Wildlife. The Spirit Awards don’t take place until February 23rd, the night before the Oscars. That means you’ve got plenty of time to brush up on your indie spirit!
