"Nebraska" earns six nominations
Film Independent, the nonprofit arts organization that produces the Film Independent Spirit Awards, the Los Angeles Film Festival and the Film Independent at LACMA Film Series, announced nominations for the 2014 Film Independent Spirit Awards. Topping the field was 12 Years a Slave with seven nominations: best picture, best director for Steve McQueen, best actor for Chiwetel Ejiofer, supporting actress for Lupita Nyong’o, supporting actor for Michael Fassbender, cinematography for Sean Bobbitt, BSC, and screenplay by John Ridley.
Next up was Nebraska which earned six nominations: best feature, best director for Alexander Payne, best lead actor for Bruce Dern, supporting actor for Will Forte, supporting actress for June Squibb and best first screenplay for Bob Nelson.
The best feature nominations went to 12 Years a Slave, Nebraska, All is Lost, Frances Ha and Inside Llewyn Davis.
All is Lost tallied four nominations, the other three being for director J.C. Chandor, lead actor Robert Redford and cinematographer.
Fruitvale Station, Inside Llewyn Davis, Short Term 12 and Blue Jasmine earned three nominations apiece.
Mud was selected to receive the annual Robert Altman Award, which is bestowed upon one film’s director, casting director and ensemble cast.
In its commitment to recognizing the importance of below the line contributions to the art of filmmaking, Film Independent has now introduced, for the first year, the best editing category in the Spirit Awards. Among those recognized this year are editors of the films Short Term 12, Frances Ha, Upstream Color, Museum Hours, and Una Noche.
“The nominations this year are from such an amazing pool of talented film artists,” said Josh Welsh, president of Film Independent. “Their work demonstrates the deep originality and uniqueness of vision that are at the heart of independent film. At Film Independent, we work all year round to promote that spirit, and the nominees celebrated here today are tremendous ambassadors for their crafts, both in front of and behind the camera.”
Winners will be announced at the Spirit Awards on Saturday, March 1, 2014. The awards ceremony will be held as a daytime luncheon in a tent on the beach in Santa Monica, with the premiere broadcast airing later that evening at 10:00 pm ET/PT exclusively on IFC.
Winners of the Spirit Awards Filmmaker Grants will be highlighted during the awards ceremony and announced at the Film Independent Spirit Awards Nominee Brunch on Saturday, January 11, 2014, at BOA Steakhouse in West Hollywood.
Here’s a category-by-category rundown of the 2014 Film Independent Spirit Award nominations:
BEST FEATURE (Award given to the Producer, Executive Producers are not awarded)
12 Years a Slave
PRODUCERS: Dede Gardner, Anthony Katagas, Jeremy Kleiner, Steve McQueen, Arnon Milchan, Brad Pitt, Bill Pohlad
All Is Lost
PRODUCERS: Neal Dodson, Anna Gerb
Frances Ha
PRODUCERS: Noah Baumbach, Scott Rudin, Rodrigo Teixeira, Lila Yacoub
Inside Llewyn Davis
PRODUCERS: Ethan Coen, Joel Coen, Scott Rudin
Nebraska
PRODUCERS: Albert Berger, Ron Yerxa
BEST DIRECTOR
Shane Carruth
Upstream Color
J.C. Chandor
All Is Lost
Steve McQueen
12 Years a Slave
Jeff Nichols
Mud
Alexander Payne
Nebraska
BEST SCREENPLAY
Woody Allen
Blue Jasmine
Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke & Richard Linklater
Before Midnight
Nicole Holofcener
Enough Said
Scott Neustadter & Michael H. Weber
The Spectacular Now
John Ridley
12 Years a Slave
BEST FIRST FEATURE (Award given to the director and producer)
Blue Caprice
DIRECTOR/PRODUCER: Alexandre Moors
PRODUCERS: Kim Jackson, Brian O’Carroll, Isen Robbins, Will Rowbotham, Ron Simons, Aimee Schoof, Stephen Tedeschi
Concussion
DIRECTOR: Stacie Passon
PRODUCER: Rose Troche
Fruitvale Station
DIRECTOR: Ryan Coogler
PRODUCERS: Nina Yang Bongiovi, Forest Whitaker
Una Noche
DIRECTOR/PRODUCER: Lucy Mulloy
PRODUCERS: Sandy Pérez Aguila, Maite Artieda, Daniel Mulloy, Yunior Santiago
Wadjda
DIRECTOR: Haifaa Al Mansour
PRODUCERS: Gerhard Meixner, Roman Paul
BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY
Lake Bell
In A World
Joseph Gordon-Levitt
Don Jon
Bob Nelson
Nebraska
Jill Soloway
Afternoon Delight
Michael Starrbury
The Inevitable Defeat of Mister and Pete
JOHN CASSAVETES AWARD – Given to the best feature made for under $500,000. Award given to the writer, director, and producer. Executive Producers are not awarded.
Computer Chess
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Andrew Bujalski
PRODUCERS: Houston King & Alex Lipschultz
Crystal Fairy
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Sebastiàn Silva
PRODUCERS: Juan de Dios Larraín & Pablo Larraín
Museum Hours
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Jem Cohen
PRODUCERS: Paolo Calamita & Gabriele Kranzelbinder
Pit Stop
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Yen Tan
WRITER: David Lowery
PRODUCERS: Jonathan Duffy, James M. Johnston,Eric Steele, Kelly Williams
This is Martin Bonner
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Chad Hartigan
PRODUCER: Cherie Saulter
BEST FEMALE LEAD
Cate Blanchett
Blue Jasmine
Julie Delpy
Before Midnight
Gaby Hoffmann
Crystal Fairy
Brie Larson
Short Term 12
Shailene Woodley
The Spectacular Now
BEST MALE LEAD
Bruce Dern
Nebraska
Chiwetel Ejiofor
12 Years a Slave
Oscar Isaac
Inside Llewyn Davis
Michael B. Jordan
Fruitvale Station
Matthew McConaughey
Dallas Buyers Club
Robert Redford
All Is Lost
BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE
Melonie Diaz
Fruitvale Station
Sally Hawkins
Blue Jasmine
Lupita Nyong’o
12 Years a Slave
Yolonda Ross
Go For Sisters
June Squibb
Nebraska
BEST SUPPORTING MALE
Michael Fassbender
12 Years a Slave
Will Forte
Nebraska
James Gandolfini
Enough Said
Jared Leto
Dallas Buyers Club
Keith Stanfield
Short Term 12
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Sean Bobbitt
12 Years a Slave
Benoit Debie
Spring Breakers
Bruno Delbonnel
Inside Llewyn Davis
Frank G. DeMarco
All Is Lost
Matthias Grunsky
Computer Chess
BEST EDITING
Shane Carruth & David Lowery
Upstream Color
Jem Cohen & Marc Vives
Museum Hours
Jennifer Lame
Frances Ha
Cindy Lee
Una Noche
Nat Sanders
Short Term 12
BEST DOCUMENTARY (Award given to the director and producer)
20 Feet From Stardom
DIRECTOR/PRODUCER: Morgan Neville
PRODUCERS: Gil Friesen & Caitrin Rogers
After Tiller
DIRECTORS/PRODUCERS: Martha Shane & Lana Wilson
Gideon’s Army
DIRECTOR/PRODUCER: Dawn Porter
PRODUCER: Julie Goldman
The Act of Killing
DIRECTOR/PRODUCER: Joshua Oppenheimer
PRODUCERS: Joram Ten Brink, Christine Cynn, Anne Köhncke, Signe Byrge Sørensen, Michael Uwemedimo
The Square
DIRECTOR: Jehane Noujaim
PRODUCER: Karim Amer
BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM (Award given to the director)
A Touch of Sin
(China)
DIRECTOR: Jia Zhang-Ke
Blue is the Warmest Color
(France)
DIRECTOR: Abdellatif Kechiche
Gloria
(Chile)
DIRECTOR: Sebastián Lelio
The Great Beauty
(Italy)
DIRECTOR: Paolo Sorrentino
The Hunt
(Denmark)
DIRECTOR: Thomas Vinterberg
ROBERT ALTMAN AWARD – (Given to one film’s director, casting director, and its ensemble cast)
Mud
Director: Jeff Nichols
Casting Director: Francine Maisler
Ensemble Cast: Joe Don Baker, Jacob Lofland, Matthew McConaughey, Ray McKinnon, Sarah Paulson, Michael Shannon, Sam Shepard, Tye Sheridan, Paul Sparks, Bonnie Sturdivant, Reese Witherspoon
17th ANNUAL PIAGET PRODUCERS AWARD – The 17th annual Producers Award, sponsored by Piaget, honors emerging producers who, despite highly limited resources demonstrate the creativity, tenacity, and vision required to produce quality, independent films. The award includes a $25,000 unrestricted grant funded by Piaget.
Toby Halbrooks & James M. Johnston
Jacob Jaffke
Andrea Roa
Frederick Thornton
20th ANNUAL SOMEONE TO WATCH AWARD – The 20th annual Someone to Watch Award recognizes a talented filmmaker of singular vision who has not yet received appropriate recognition.
My Sister’s Quinceañera
DIRECTOR: Aaron Douglas Johnston
Newlyweeds
DIRECTOR: Shaka King
The Foxy Merkins
DIRECTOR: Madeline Olnek
19th ANNUAL STELLA ARTOIS TRUER THAN FICTION AWARD – The 19th annual Truer Than Fiction Award, sponsored by Stella Artois, is presented to an emerging director of non-fiction features who has not yet received significant recognition. The award includes a $25,000 unrestricted grant.
Kalyanee Mam
A River Changes Course
Jason Osder
Let the Fire Burn
Stephanie Spray & Pacho Velez
Manakamana
After 20 Years of Acting, Megan Park Finds Her Groove In The Director’s Chair On “My Old Ass”
Megan Park feels a little bad that her movie is making so many people cry. It's not just a single tear either — more like full body sobs.
She didn't set out to make a tearjerker with "My Old Ass," now streaming on Prime Video. She just wanted to tell a story about a young woman in conversation with her older self. The film is quite funny (the dialogue between 18-year-old and almost 40-year-old Elliott happens because of a mushroom trip that includes a Justin Bieber cover), but it packs an emotional punch, too.
Writing, Park said, is often her way of working through things. When she put pen to paper on "My Old Ass," she was a new mom and staying in her childhood bedroom during the pandemic. One night, she and her whole nuclear family slept under the same roof. She didn't know it then, but it would be the last time, and she started wondering what it would be like to have known that.
In the film, older Elliott ( Aubrey Plaza ) advises younger Elliott ( Maisy Stella ) to not be so eager to leave her provincial town, her younger brothers and her parents and to slow down and appreciate things as they are. She also tells her to stay away from a guy named Chad who she meets the next day and discovers that, unfortunately, he's quite cute.
At 38, Park is just getting started as a filmmaker. Her first, "The Fallout," in which Jenna Ortega plays a teen in the aftermath of a school shooting, had one of those pandemic releases that didn't even feel real. But it did get the attention of Margot Robbie 's production company LuckyChap Entertainment, who reached out to Park to see what other ideas she had brewing.
"They were very instrumental in encouraging me to go with it," Park said. "They're just really even-keeled, good people, which makes... Read More