35th Annual Independent Spirit Award Nominations

The 35th Independent Spirit Award nominations are out. The following is a breakdown of the nomination numbers for people of color for the 2020 awards ceremony followed by the full list of nominees in all of the main categories.

Note: Nominees of color appear in bold text in each category.

African American/Black: 19

Asian & Pacific Islander: 11

Latinx: 4

Best First Feature

(Award given to the director and producer)

• Booksmart

  Director: Olivia Wilde

  Producers: Chelsea Barnard, David Distenfeld, Jessica Elbaum, Megan Ellison, Katie Silberman

• The Climb

  Director: Michael Angelo Covino

  Producers: Noah Lang, Kyle Marvin

• Diane

  Director: Kent Jones

  Producers: Luca Borghese, Ben Howe, Caroline Kaplan, Oren Moverman

• The Last Black Man In San Francisco

  Director/Producer: Joe Talbot

  Producers: Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Khaliah Neal, Christina Oh

• The Mustang

  Director: Laure de Clermont-Tonnerre

  Producer: Ilan Goldman

• See You Yesterday

  Director: Stefon Bristol

  Producer: Spike Lee

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 Female Lead

• Karen Allen, Colewell

• Hong Chau, Driveways

• Elisabeth Moss, Her Smell

• Mary Kay Place, Diane

• Renée Zellweger, Judy

• Alfre Woodard, Clemency

Best Supporting Female

• Jennifer Lopez, Hustlers

• Taylor Russell, Waves

• Zhao Shuzhen, The Farewell

• Lauren “Lolo” Spencer, Give Me Liberty

• Octavia Spencer, Luce

Best Cinematography

• Todd Banhazl, Hustlers

• Jarin Blaschke, The Lighthouse

• Natasha Braier, Honey Boy

• Chananun Chotrungroj, The Third Wife

• Pawel Pogorzelski, Midsommer

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 Documentary

(Award given to the director and producer)

• American Factory

  Director/Producers: Steven Bognar, Julia Reichert

  Producers: Julia Parker Benello, Jeff Reichert

• Apollo 11

  Director/Producer: Todd Douglas Miller

  Producers: Evan Krauss, Thomas Baxley Peterson

• For Sama

  Director: Edward Watts

  Director/Producer: Waad al-Kateab

• Honeyland

  Director: Tamara Kotevska

  Director/Producer: Ljubo Stefanov

  Producer: Atanas Georgiev

• Island Of The Hungry Ghost

  Director/Producer: Gabrielle Brady

  Producers: Gizem Acarla, Samm Haillay, Alex Kelly, Alexander Wadouh

Bonnie Award Sponsored By American Airlines

(Bonnie Tiburzi Caputo joined American Airlines in 1973 at age 24, becoming the first female pilot to fly for a major U.S. airline. In her honor, the 3rd annual Bonnie Award will recognize a mid-career female director with a $50,000 unrestricted grant, sponsored by American Airlines.)

• Marielle Heller

• Kelly Reichardt

• Lulu Wang

Someone To Watch Award

(The Someone to Watch Award, now in its 26th year, recognizes a talented filmmaker of singular vision who has not yet received appropriate recognition. The award includes a $25,000 unrestricted grant.)

• Premature

  Director: Rashaad Ernesto Green

• The Last Black Man in San Francisco

  Director: Joe Talbot

• The Third Wife

  Director: Ash Mayfair

Best Feature

(Award given to the producer)

• A Hidden Life

  Producers: Elisabeth Bentley, Dario Bergesio, Grant Hill, Josh Jeter

• Clemency

  Producers: Timur Bekbosunov, Julian Cautherley, Bronwyn Cornelius, Peter Wong

• The Farewell

  Producers: Anita Gou, Daniele Melia, Andrew Miano, Peter Saraf, Marc Turtletaub, Lulu Wang, Chris Weitz, Jane Zheng

• Marriage Story

  Producers:  Noah Baumbach, David Heyman

• Uncut Gems

  Producers: Eli Bush, Sebastian Bear McClard, Scott Rudin

Best Director

• Robert Eggers, The Lighthouse

• Alma Har’el, Honey Boy

• Julius Onah, Luce

• Benny Safdie, Uncut Gems

• Josh Safdie, Uncut Gems

• Lorene Scafaria, Hustlers

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 Male Lead

• Chris Galust, Give Me Liberty

• Kelvin Harrison Jr., Luce

• Robert Pattinson, The Lighthouse

• Adam Sandler, Uncut Gems

• Matthias Schoenaerts, The Mustang

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

John Cassavetes Award

(Award given to the best feature made for under $500,000; award given to the writer, director and producer)

• Burning Cane

  Writer/Director/Producer: Phillip Youmans

  Producers: Ojo Akinlana, Jakob Johnson, Karen Kaia Livers, Mose Mayer,

  Wendell Pierce, Isaac Web, Cassandra Youmans

• Colewell

  Writer/Director: Tom Quinn

  Producers: Joshua Blum, Alexandra Byer, Craig Shilowich, Matthew Thurm

• Give Me Liberty

  Writer/Director/Producer: Kirill Mikhanovsky

  Writer/Producer: Alice Austen

  Producers: Val Abel, Wally Hall, Michael Manasseri, George Rush, Sergey Shtern

• Premature

  Writer/Director/Producer: Rashaad Ernesto Green

  Writer: Zora Howard

  Producers: Darren Dean, Joy Ganes

• Wild Nights With Emily

  Writer/Director/Producer: Madeleine Olnek

  Producers: Anna Margarita Albelo, Casper Andreas, Max Rifkind-Barron

Best International Film

• Invisible Life (Brazil)

  Director: Karim Aïnouz

• Les Misérables (France)

  Director: Ladj Ly

• Parasite (South Korea)

  Director: Bong Joon-ho

• Portrait of a Lady on Fire (France)

  Director: Céline Sciamma

• Retablo (Peru)

  Director: Álvaro Delgado-Aparicio L.

• The Souvenir (United Kingdom)

  Director: Joanna Hogg

Robert Altman Award

(Award given to one film’s director, casting director and ensemble cast)

Marriage Story

Director: Noah Baumbach

Casting Directors: Douglas Aibel, Francine Maisler

Ensemble Cast: Alan Alda, Laura Dern, Adam Driver, Julie Hagerty, Scarlett Johansson, Ray Liotta, Azhy Robertson, Merritt Wever

 Producers Awards

(The Producers Award, now in its 23rd year, 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.)

• Mollye Asher

• Krista Parris

• Ryan Zacarias

 Truer Than Fiction Award

(The Truer Than Fiction Award, now in its 25th year, 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.) 

• 17 Blocks

  Director: Davy Rothbart

• América

  Directors: Erick Stoll, Chase Whiteside

• Black Mother

  Director: Khalik Allah

• Jaddoland

  Director: Nadia Shihab