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Uncut Gems, The Lighthouse, Give Me Liberty Score Big as Film Independent Announces 2019 Spirit Award Nominees
Adam Sandler in Uncut Gems Josh and Benny Safdie’s Uncut Gems and Robert Eggers’s The Lighthouse topped the nominations list with five nominations each as Film Independent announced today the 2019 Film Independent Spirit Award nominees. Chinonye Chukwu’s Sundance winner Clemency, Julius Onah’s Luce and Alma Har’el’s Honey Boy also received multiple nominations as did lesser-promoted films such as Kirill Mikhanovsky’s Give Me Liberty and Tom Quinn’s Colewell. And so did one festival sleeper that premiered in Tribeca before then going to Netflix: Stefan Bristol’s See You Yesterday.
That particular Spirit blend of higher-profile titles mixed with smaller ones continues throughout the rest of the list, with mini-major-produced films like Lorene Scafaria’s Hustlers and Laure de Clermont-Tonnere’s The Mustang rubbing up against bootstrapped indies like Shawn Snyder’s To Dust and Andrew Ahn’s Driveways.( All four titles above also each received multiple nominations.)
Noah Baumbach’s Marriage Story, one of the fall juggernauts, received two nominations — Best Feature and Best Screenplay — as well as receiving this year the Robert Altman Award for its cast — a group award that also means that its individual actors were not eligible in the acting categories.
The Bonnie Award, which is given to a mid-career filmmaker, spans a wide range this year, from second-time feature directors Lulu Wang and Marielle Heller to Kelly Reichardt, who made her debut in 1994.
The Film Independent Spirit Awards will be presented February 20, 2020, in Santa Monica, CA.
The complete list of nominations follows.
BEST FEATURE
A Hidden Life
Clemency
The Farewell
Marriage Story
Uncut Gems
BEST FIRST FEATURE
Booksmart
The Climb
Diane
The Last Black Man in San Francisco
The Mustang
See You Yesterday
BEST FEMALE LEAD
Karen Allen – Colewell
Hong Chau – Driveways
Elisabeth Moss – Her Smell
Mary Kay Place – Diane
Alfre Woodard – Clemency
Renée Zellweger – Judy
BEST MALE LEAD
Chris Galust – Give Me Liberty
Kelvin Harrison, Jr. – Luce
Robert Pattinson – The Lighthouse
Adam Sandler – Uncut Gems
Matthias Schoenaerts – The Mustang
BEST DIRECTOR
Robert Eggers – The Lighthouse
Alma Har’el – Honey Boy
Julius Onah – Luce
Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie – Uncut Gems
Lorene Scafaria – Hustlers
BEST DOCTUMENTARY
American Factory
Apollo 11
For Sama
Honeyland
Island of the Hungry Ghosts
BEST SUPPORTING MALE
Willem Dafoe – The Lighthouse
Noah Jupe – Honey Boy
Shia Labeouf – Honey Boy
Jonathan Majors – The Last Black Man in San Francisco
Wendell Pierce – Burning Cane
BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE
Jennifer Lopez – Hustlers
Taylor Russell – Waves
Zhao Shuzhen – The Farewell
Lauren “Lolo” Spencer – Give Me Liberty
Octavia Spencer – Luce
ROBERT ALTMAN AWARD
The Robert Altman Award is given to the ensemble cast, director & casting director of one film: Marriage Story – Noah Baumbach, Douglas Aibel, Francine Maisler, Alan Alda, Laura Dern, Adam Driver, Julie Hagerty, Scarlett Johansson, Ray Liotta, Azhy Robertson, Merritt Wever
BEST SCREENPLAY
Noah Baumbach – Marriage Story
Jason Begue, Shawn Snyder – To Dust
Ronald Bronstein, Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie – Uncut Gems
Chinonye Chukwu – Clemency
Tarell Alvin Mccraney – High Flying Bird
BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY
Fredrica Bailey, Stefon Bristol – See You Yesterday
Hannah Bos, Paul Thureen – Driveways
Bridget Savage Cole, Danielle Krudy – Blow the Man Down
Jocelyn Deboer, Dawn Luebbe – Greener Grass
James Montague, Craig W. Sanger – The Vast of Night
BEST EDITING
Julie Béziau – The Third Wife
Ronald Bronstein, Benny Safdie – Uncut Gems
Tyler L. Cook – Sword of Trust
Louise Ford – The Lighthouse
Kirill Mikhanovsky – Give Me Liberty
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Todd Banhazl – Hustlers
Jarin Blaschke – The Lighthouse
Natasha Braier – Honey Boy
Chananun Chotrungroj – The Third Wife
Pawel Pogorzelski – Midsommar
BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM
Invisible Life, Brazil
Les Miserables, France
Parasite, South Korea
Portrait of a Lady on Fire, France
Retablo, Peru
The Souvenir, United Kingdom
JOHN CASSAVETES AWARD
The John Cassavetes Award is presented to the best feature made for under $500,000 and is given to the writer, director, and producer. 2020 Spirit Awards Nominees are:
Burning Cane
Colewell
Give Me Liberty
Premature
Wild Nights with Emily
PRODUCERS AWARD
Now in its 23rd year, honors emerging producers who demonstrate creativity, tenacity and vision, despite highly limited resources. The award includes an unrestricted grant. These are the finalists:
Mollye Asher
Krista Parris
Ryan Zacarias
SOMEONE TO WATCH AWARD
The Someone To Watch Award, in its 26th year, recognizes a talented filmmaker of singular vision and includes an unrestricted grant. The finalists are:
Rashaad Ernesto Green – Premature
Ash Mayfair – The Third Wife
Joe Talbot – The Last Black Man in San Francisco
TRUER THAN FICTION AWARD
The Truer Than Fiction Award, in its 25th year, is for emerging directors of non-fiction features and includes an unrestricted grant. Finalists:
Khalik Allah – Black Mother
Davy Rothbart – 17 Blocks
Nadia Shihab – Jaddoland
Erick Stoll & Chase Whiteside – América
THE BONNIE AWARD
Now in its 3rd year, the Bonnie Award will recognize a mid-career female director with a $50,000 unrestricted grant sponsored by American Airlines. The 2020 Film Independent Spirit Awards Bonnie Award finalists are:
Marielle Heller
Kelly Reichardt
Lulu Wang
