Film Independent, the non-profit arts organization that produces the Spirit Awards and the Los Angeles Film Festival, announced nominations for the 2012 Film Independent Spirit Awards this morning. Anthony Mackie and Kate Beckinsale served as presenters.
While the big winners of the day were silent movie The Artist and the apocalyptic drama Take Shelter, which came away with 5 nominations each, some are crying foul that George Clooney (The Descendants), Glenn Close (Albert Nobbs), and a few other favorites weren't nominated.
But among filmmakers/films of color, the results are a bit less surprising, as several films we've continued to cover on this site, including Steve McQueen's Shame, Dee Rees' Pariah, Adepero Oduye of Pariah, Harmony Santana of Gun Hill Road, and documentaries The Interrupters, The Redemption of General Butt Naked, and An African Election, all received nominations.
The full slate of nominees for the 2012 Film Independent Spirit Awards is as follows:
Best Feature (Award given to the Producer)
50/50
Beginners
Drive
Take Shelter
The Artist
The Descendants
Best Director
Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist
Mike Mills, Beginners
Jeff Nichols, Take Shelter
Alexander Payne, The Descendants
Nicolas Winding Refn, Drive
Best First Feature (Award given to the director and producer)
Another Earth
In The Family
Margin Call
Martha Marcy May Marlene
Natural Selection
John Cassavetes Award
(Given to the best feature made for under $500,000; award given to the writer, director, and producer)
Bellflower
Circumstance
Hello LOnseome
Pariah
The Dynamiter
Best Screenplay
Beginners
The Descendants
Footnote
The Artist
Win Win
Best First Screenplay
Another Earth
Terri
Cedar Rapids
50/50
Margin Call
Best Female Lead
Elizabeth Olsen
Michelle Williams
Rachael Harris
Adepero Oduye
Lauren Ambrose
Best Male Lead
Michael Shannon
Woody Harrelson
Ryan Golsing
Jean Dujardin
Demian Bichir
Best Supporting Female
Jessica Chastain
Anjelica Huston
Janet McTeer
Harmony Santana
Shailenne Woodley
Best Supporting Male
Albert Brooks
John Hawkes
Christopher Plummer
Corey Stahl
John C. Reilly
Best Cinematography
Bellflower
Midnight in Paris
The Artist
The Off-Hours
The Dynamiter
Best Documentary (Award given to the director)
An African Election
Bill Cunningham New York
The Interrupters
We Were Here
The Redemption of General Butt Naked
Best Foreign Film (Award given to the director)
A Separation
Melancholia
Shame
The Kid With a Bike
Tyrannosaur
Robert Altman Award
(Given to one film’s director, casting director, and its ensemble cast)
Marhgin Call
Piaget Producers Award
Chad Burris (Mosquito y Mari)
Sophia Lynn (Take Shelter)
Josh Bond (Martha Marcy May Marlene)
Someone to Watch Award
Simon Arthur (Silver Tongues)
Mark Jackson (Without)
Nicholas Ozeki (Mamitas)
Truer Than Fiction Award
Where Soldiers Come From
Hell and Back Again
Bombay Beach
The 27th annual awards ceremony will be held February 25th in Santa Monica and broadcast by IFC.
See the full press release from Film Independent here, including who comprised the nominating committees, and details on what glorious spoils will go to the winners.
So, what are your thoughts on the nominess?