Independent Spirit Awards

The Independent Spirit Awards, originally known as the FINDIE or Friends of Independents Awards, and later as the Film Independent Spirit Awards, are awards presented annually in Santa Monica, California, to independent filmmakers.^[2][3] Founded in 1984,^[4][5] the event was renamed the Independent Spirit Awards in 1986. The ceremony is produced by Film Independent, a not-for-profit arts organization that used to produce the LA Film Festival. Film Independent members vote to determine the winners of the Spirit Awards.^[6]

Independent Spirit Awards
Current: 40th Independent Spirit Awards
Awarded for	Excellence in the independent film industry
Country	United States
Presented by	Film Independent[1]
First awarded	March 3, 1984; 40 years ago
Website	www.filmindependent.org/spirit-awards/

The awards show is held in a tent on a beach in Santa Monica, California, historically on the Saturday before the Academy Awards.^[7] In 2023, the ceremony was moved to the week before the Oscars, with the expectation that its winners could influence the final days of Oscar voting.^[8] The show was previously broadcast live on the IFC network in the US until 2023, when it was moved to YouTube,^[9] as well as Hollywood Suite in Canada and A&E Latin America.^[10] Winners were previously presented with acrylic glass pyramids containing suspended shoestrings representing the bare budgets of independent films.^[11] Since 2006, winners receive a metal trophy depicting a bird with its wings spread sitting atop of a pole with the shoestrings from the previous design wrapped around the pole.^{[citation needed]}

In 2020, new categories were announced for the 36th Independent Spirit Awards, which would honor the best in television productions and performances. These categories included Best New Scripted Series, Best New Non-Scripted or Documentary Series, Best Male Performance, Best Female Performance, and Best Ensemble Cast.^[12] In 2022, it was announced that gender neutral acting categories would be implemented and that the previous gendered film categories — Male Lead, Female Lead, Male Supporting and Female Supporting — would be retired in favor of a Best Lead Performance and a Best Supporting Performance categories, which would feature 10 nominees each. Other new categories added included Best Breakthrough Performance and Best Lead and Supporting Performance in the TV section.^[13]

As of 2024^[update], films competing for Independent Spirit Awards must have budgets lower than $28 million, but no budget cap exists for television shows.^[14]

Categories

Current categories

• Best Feature Film
• Best Director
• Best First Feature
• Best Lead Performance
• Best Supporting Performance
• Best Breakthrough Performance
• Best Screenplay
• Best First Screenplay
• Best International Feature Film
• Best Documentary Feature Film
• Best Cinematography
• Best Editing
• Best New Scripted Series
• Best Lead Performance in a New Scripted Series
• Best Supporting Performance in a New Scripted Series
• Best New Non-Scripted or Documentary Series
• Best Ensemble Cast in a New Scripted Series
• John Cassavetes Award
• Piaget Producers Award
• Robert Altman Award
• Someone to Watch Award
• Truer than Fiction Award

Retired categories

• Best Female Lead
• Best Male Lead
• Best Supporting Female
• Best Supporting Male
• Best Female Performance in a New Scripted Series
• Best Male Performance in a New Scripted Series
• Bonnie Award

History

The Independent Features Project/West was founded by Gregory Nava and Anna Thomas.^[15][16]

In 1984 the FINDIE Awards (Friends of Independents) were conceived by Independent Features Project/West board member Jeanne Lucas^[17] and Independent Features Project/West President Anne Kimmel^[18] and director/writer Sam O'Brien was an event producer.^[17] The awards are voted on by a nominating committee.

In 1985, Peter Coyote and Jamie Lee Curtis presented winners with a Plexiglas pyramid designed by Carol Bosselman, which contain a suspended shoestring, printed with sprocket holes, representing the shoestring budgets of independent films. The Reel Gold Award, also designed by Bosselman, was given to Steve Wachtel for allowing Independent Features Project/West continuing free use of his screening room. It was associated with Filmex.^[5] In 1986, Bosselman designed and sculpted the Independent Spirit Award statue that is still given out today, using a lost wax bronze casting method.

Independent Features Project/West eventually became Film Independent.^[19]

Dawn Hudson was director of Independent Features Project/West in 1995.^[20]

Barbara Boyle was Independent Features Project/West president from 1994 to 1999.^[21]

Ceremonies

#	Date	Year Honored	Best Film	Best First Feature	Host(s)
1st	March 22, 1986	1985	After Hours	—	Peter Coyote
2nd	March 28, 1987	1986	Platoon	She's Gotta Have It	Buck Henry
3rd	February 11, 1988	1987	River's Edge	Dirty Dancing
4th	March 25, 1989	1988	Stand and Deliver	Mystic Pizza
5th	March 24, 1990	1989	Sex, Lies, and Videotape	Heathers
6th	March 23, 1991	1990	The Grifters	Metropolitan
7th	March 28, 1992	1991	Rambling Rose	Straight Out of Brooklyn
8th	March 27, 1993	1992	The Player	The Waterdance
9th	March 19, 1994	1993	Short Cuts	El Mariachi	Robert Townsend
10th	March 25, 1995	1994	Pulp Fiction	Spanking the Monkey	Kevin Pollak
11th	March 23, 1996	1995	Leaving Las Vegas	The Brothers McMullen	Samuel L. Jackson
12th	March 22, 1997	1996	Fargo	Sling Blade
13th	March 21, 1998	1997	The Apostle	Eve's Bayou	John Turturro
14th	March 20, 1999	1998	Gods and Monsters	The Opposite of Sex	Queen Latifah
15th	March 25, 2000	1999	Election	Being John Malkovich (Over $500,000) The Blair Witch Project (Under $500,000)	Jennifer Tilly
16th	March 24, 2001	2000	Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon	You Can Count on Me Chuck & Buck (Under $500,000)	John Waters
17th	March 23, 2002	2001	Memento	In the Bedroom
18th	March 22, 2003	2002	Far from Heaven	The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys
19th	February 28, 2004	2003	Lost in Translation	Monster
20th	February 26, 2005	2004	Sideways	Garden State	Samuel L. Jackson
21st	March 4, 2006	2005	Brokeback Mountain	Crash	Sarah Silverman
22nd	February 24, 2007	2006	Little Miss Sunshine	Sweet Land
23rd	February 23, 2008	2007	Juno	The Lookout	Rainn Wilson
24th	February 21, 2009	2008	The Wrestler	Synecdoche, New York	Steve Coogan
25th	March 5, 2010	2009	Precious	Crazy Heart	Eddie Izzard
26th	February 26, 2011	2010	Black Swan	Get Low	Joel McHale
27th	February 25, 2012	2011	The Artist	Margin Call	Seth Rogen
28th	February 23, 2013	2012	Silver Linings Playbook	The Perks of Being a Wallflower	Andy Samberg
29th	March 1, 2014	2013	12 Years a Slave	Fruitvale Station	Patton Oswalt
30th	February 21, 2015	2014	Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)	Nightcrawler	Fred Armisen, Kristen Bell
31st	February 27, 2016	2015	Spotlight	The Diary of a Teenage Girl	Kate McKinnon, Kumail Nanjiani
32nd	February 25, 2017	2016	Moonlight	The Witch	Nick Kroll, John Mulaney
33rd	March 3, 2018	2017	Get Out	Ingrid Goes West
34th	February 23, 2019	2018	If Beale Street Could Talk	Sorry to Bother You	Aubrey Plaza
35th	February 8, 2020	2019	The Farewell	Booksmart
36th	April 22, 2021	2020	Nomadland	Sound of Metal	Melissa Villaseñor
37th	March 6, 2022	2021	The Lost Daughter	7 Days	Megan Mullally, Nick Offerman
38th	March 4, 2023	2022	Everything Everywhere All at Once	Aftersun	Hasan Minhaj
39th	February 25, 2024	2023	Past Lives	A Thousand and One	Aidy Bryant
40th	February 22, 2025[22]	2024	TBD	TBD

See also

• American Cinematheque
• Sundance Film Festival
• Indiewood

References

1. "Film Independent". filmindependent.org. Archived from the original on June 9, 2017. Retrieved June 12, 2017.
2. Picker, David V. (2004), "The Film Company as Financier-Distributor", in Jason E. Squire (ed.), The movie business book, Simon & Schuster, ISBN 978-0-7432-1937-2, OCLC 53953524, retrieved September 29, 2011
3. English, James F. (2008), "The Age of Awards", The Economy of Prestige: Prizes, Awards, and the Circulation of Cultural Value, United States of America: Harvard University Press, p. 86, ISBN 978-0-674-03043-5, OCLC 221175319, retrieved September 29, 2011
   provides alternative start date as 1986, not 1984
4. "History - Film Independent". Filmindependent.org. Archived from the original on October 18, 2017. Retrieved October 17, 2017.
5. Collins, Keith (February 25, 2005). "Independence days". variety.com. Archived from the original on October 18, 2017. Retrieved June 12, 2017.
6. Sickels, Robert (2009), "Coveted Awards", The Business of Entertainment: Movies, United States of America: Greenwood Publishing Group, p. 141, ISBN 978-0-275-99840-0, OCLC 644042790, retrieved September 28, 2011
7. Steele, Bruce C. (February 28, 2006), "It's Ang Lee vs. Gregg Araki!", The Advocate, Here Media, p. 49, retrieved September 28, 2011
8. Thompson, Anne (March 5, 2023). "How the Film Independent Spirit Awards Winners Could Impact Oscar Voting". IndieWire. Retrieved December 4, 2024.
9. Film Independent Spirit Awards, IFC, archived from the original on May 22, 2011, retrieved September 28, 2011. Citation supporting televised on IFC in 2011.
10. "A&E Latinoamérica". mx.canalaetv.com. Archived from the original on June 3, 2017. Retrieved June 12, 2017.
11. 'Everything Everywhere All at Once' lands 8 Independent Spirit Award nominations - Yahoo News
12. D'Alessandro, Anthony (September 29, 2020). "Film Independent Spirit Awards Adds TV Categories For Upcoming 2021 Program". Deadline. Retrieved December 7, 2020.
13. Chapman, Wilson (August 23, 2022). "Spirit Awards to Implement Gender Neutral Acting Categories". Variety. Retrieved September 9, 2022.
14. Lang, Bret; Moreau, Jordan (December 4, 2024). "Spirit Awards 2025 Nominations: 'Anora' and 'I Saw the TV Glow' Lead Film Categories, 'Shogun' Rules TV". Variety. Retrieved December 4, 2024.
15. "Familiar names top Indie awards - Roger Ebert's Journal". Rogerebert.com. Archived from the original on May 17, 2017. Retrieved June 12, 2017.
16. Page, Anna Thomas Tribute (August 10, 2009). "A Tribute to Anna Thomas: Biography for Anna Thomas". annathomastribute.blogspot.com. Archived from the original on October 14, 2017. Retrieved June 12, 2017.
17. FOX, DAVID J. (March 27, 1992). "The Little Award Show That Could : Film: Since it started in the '80s, the Independent Spirit Awards, sort of an offbeat Oscar, has gained big-name supporters. Saturday's ceremony is sold out". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on October 23, 2015. Retrieved June 12, 2017.
18. FOX, DAVID J. (March 30, 1992). "'Rose' and 'Idaho' Get the Spirit : Movies: Each takes three trophies in the offbeat independent counterpoint to tonight's Academy Awards". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on May 18, 2015. Retrieved June 12, 2017.
19. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on July 11, 2017. Retrieved June 12, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
20. "The Oscars Upstaged (Almost)". The New York Times. March 19, 1995. Archived from the original on October 18, 2017. Retrieved June 12, 2017.
21. "Producer Barbara Boyle to Head UCLA Department of Film, Television and Digital Media". Businesswire.com. Archived from the original on October 18, 2017. Retrieved June 12, 2017.
22. Lewis, Hilary (December 4, 2024). "Independent Spirit Awards: 'Anora,' 'I Saw the TV Glow' Top Nominations With Six Each". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 4, 2024.