Variety Awards Circuit section is the home for all awards news and related content throughout the year, featuring the following: the official predictions for the upcoming Oscars, Emmys, Grammys and Tony Awards ceremonies, curated by Variety senior awards editor Clayton Davis. The prediction pages reflect the current standings in the race and do not reflect personal preferences for any individual contender. As other formal (and informal) polls suggest, competitions are fluid and subject to change based on buzz and events. Predictions are updated every Thursday.
Visit the prediction pages for the respective ceremonies via the links below:
Oscars | Emmys | Grammys | Tonys
2024 Oscars Predictions:
Best Achievement in Cinematography
Weekly Commentary: The National Board of Review, New York Film Critics and Los Angeles Film Critics Association chose three different cinematographers for their picks as the best of the year.
Rodrigo Prieto won a combination prize from NBR for his work on “Barbie...
Visit the prediction pages for the respective ceremonies via the links below:
Oscars | Emmys | Grammys | Tonys
2024 Oscars Predictions:
Best Achievement in Cinematography
Weekly Commentary: The National Board of Review, New York Film Critics and Los Angeles Film Critics Association chose three different cinematographers for their picks as the best of the year.
Rodrigo Prieto won a combination prize from NBR for his work on “Barbie...
- 12/10/2023
- by Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
Over the span of his 120-plus film career, Nicolas Cage has been a lot of things — but he may have never been as flat-out hilarious as he is in Dream Scenario.
Sporting a balding pate, a gray woolly beard, dated wire-rims and a closetful of dad sweaters, he’s a schlubby sight to behold as Paul Matthews, a tenured college professor who, for some bizarre reason, starts popping up in random dreamers’ nightmares. Much to his chagrin, his presence amounts to that of a casual onlooker, never intervening to rescue them from assorted catastrophes or chase away the monsters.
And that’s just the leap-off point for this gleefully dark social satire, which savagely skewers our click-driven world of insta-celebrities and cancel-culture righteousness. Marking an auspicious English-language film debut for Norwegian director-writer Kristoffer Borgli, whose last film was black comedy Sick of Myself, the production gives us a Cage character...
Sporting a balding pate, a gray woolly beard, dated wire-rims and a closetful of dad sweaters, he’s a schlubby sight to behold as Paul Matthews, a tenured college professor who, for some bizarre reason, starts popping up in random dreamers’ nightmares. Much to his chagrin, his presence amounts to that of a casual onlooker, never intervening to rescue them from assorted catastrophes or chase away the monsters.
And that’s just the leap-off point for this gleefully dark social satire, which savagely skewers our click-driven world of insta-celebrities and cancel-culture righteousness. Marking an auspicious English-language film debut for Norwegian director-writer Kristoffer Borgli, whose last film was black comedy Sick of Myself, the production gives us a Cage character...
- 9/10/2023
- by Michael Rechtshaffen
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
As you catch up with the films featured in our best-of-2022 coverage, it’s time we turn our sights to January. While the first month of the year usually isn’t a treasure trove, there are plenty of worthwhile offerings if one digs deep enough. Featuring some 2022 awards qualifiers finally getting a proper release, a few genre delights, and more, check out our recommendations below.
11. When You Finish Saving the World (Jesse Eisenberg; Jan. 27)
In capturing tangled family dynamics, one wouldn’t be surprised if Eisenberg looked towards The Squid and the Whale, another one of his Sundance selections (albeit from some two decades ago), for inspiration. While there’s a similar lived-in feel courtesy Benjamin Loeb’s warm 16mm cinematography and a keen sense for awkward, fraught drama––including throwing around profanities at the family table––the script isn’t as polished or piercing as Noah Baumbach’s divorce drama.
11. When You Finish Saving the World (Jesse Eisenberg; Jan. 27)
In capturing tangled family dynamics, one wouldn’t be surprised if Eisenberg looked towards The Squid and the Whale, another one of his Sundance selections (albeit from some two decades ago), for inspiration. While there’s a similar lived-in feel courtesy Benjamin Loeb’s warm 16mm cinematography and a keen sense for awkward, fraught drama––including throwing around profanities at the family table––the script isn’t as polished or piercing as Noah Baumbach’s divorce drama.
- 1/3/2023
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
“A cinematographer is a visual psychiatrist–moving an audience through a movie […] making them think the way you want them to think, painting pictures in the dark,” said the late, great Gordon Willis. As we continue our year-end coverage, one aspect we must highlight is, indeed, cinematography. From talented newcomers to seasoned professionals, we’ve rounded up the examples that have most impressed us this year.
Aftersun (Gregory Oke)
It’s been seven months since I unassumingly saw Aftersun at an unspeakable morning hour in the Director’s Fortnight sidebar at Cannes, and I haven’t stopped thinking about that polaroid shot. Just after a photo is taken, the camera cuts to a long, still take of the polaroid image slowly apparating. It’s the shot I’ve thought about most this year (and not just because it’s clever). In narrative context it delivers a heavyweight moment. But in...
Aftersun (Gregory Oke)
It’s been seven months since I unassumingly saw Aftersun at an unspeakable morning hour in the Director’s Fortnight sidebar at Cannes, and I haven’t stopped thinking about that polaroid shot. Just after a photo is taken, the camera cuts to a long, still take of the polaroid image slowly apparating. It’s the shot I’ve thought about most this year (and not just because it’s clever). In narrative context it delivers a heavyweight moment. But in...
- 12/14/2022
- by The Film Stage
- The Film Stage
Norwegian filmmaker Kristoffer Borgli, based in Los Angeles, brings dark humor – and body horror – to Cannes’ Un Certain Regard with “Sick of Myself.” The film was acquired by Memento International.
Signe and Thomas (“Ninjababy” breakout Kristine Kujath Thorp and Eirik Sæther) are an attractive young couple in Oslo. They also happen to bring out the worst in each other. When his career starts to take off, Signe tries to get some attention as well – by making herself sick.
“I definitely recognize the pettiness, the competitiveness, all of these things. I have experienced mini-versions of these arguments and these feelings,” says Borgli, also behind 2017 curio “Drib” combining fact and fiction, and an energy drink campaign.
“I wanted them to be watchable, not likeable. Also, I find it much funnier when the characters in the movie are not in on the joke. When they are stuck inside all this drama the audience...
Signe and Thomas (“Ninjababy” breakout Kristine Kujath Thorp and Eirik Sæther) are an attractive young couple in Oslo. They also happen to bring out the worst in each other. When his career starts to take off, Signe tries to get some attention as well – by making herself sick.
“I definitely recognize the pettiness, the competitiveness, all of these things. I have experienced mini-versions of these arguments and these feelings,” says Borgli, also behind 2017 curio “Drib” combining fact and fiction, and an energy drink campaign.
“I wanted them to be watchable, not likeable. Also, I find it much funnier when the characters in the movie are not in on the joke. When they are stuck inside all this drama the audience...
- 5/12/2022
- by Marta Balaga
- Variety Film + TV
Memento International has acquired “Sick of Myself,” a movie by L.A.-based Norwegian filmmaker Kristoffer Borgli which will world premiere at Cannes in Un Certain Regard.
Borgli previously directed the short films including “Former Cult Member Hears Music For The First Time” and “Eer” which played at Sundance.
“Sick of Myself” stars Kristine Kujath Thorp and Eirik Sæther, a contemporary artist who is making his acting debut. The film was lensed by Benjamin Loeb, the cinematographer of “Pieces of a Woman,” “Mandy” and “When You Finish Saving the World.”
The pic revolves around Signe and Thomas whose dysfunctional relationship takes a vicious turn when Thomas suddenly breaks through as a contemporary artist. Signe embarks on a desperate quest to regain her status and attract attention by creating a new persona at all costs.
Andrea Berentsen Ottmar and Dyveke Bjørkly Graver at Oslo Pictures, the banner behind Joachim Trier’s...
Borgli previously directed the short films including “Former Cult Member Hears Music For The First Time” and “Eer” which played at Sundance.
“Sick of Myself” stars Kristine Kujath Thorp and Eirik Sæther, a contemporary artist who is making his acting debut. The film was lensed by Benjamin Loeb, the cinematographer of “Pieces of a Woman,” “Mandy” and “When You Finish Saving the World.”
The pic revolves around Signe and Thomas whose dysfunctional relationship takes a vicious turn when Thomas suddenly breaks through as a contemporary artist. Signe embarks on a desperate quest to regain her status and attract attention by creating a new persona at all costs.
Andrea Berentsen Ottmar and Dyveke Bjørkly Graver at Oslo Pictures, the banner behind Joachim Trier’s...
- 4/15/2022
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
For Jesse Eisenberg’s feature directorial debut, “When You Finish Saving the World,” he crafted a quirky family dramedy about a woman Evelyn (Julianne Moore) and her “oblivious” son Ziggy (Finn Wolfhard) as they struggle to connect.
The movie debuted Thursday as an opening day selection for Sundance 2022 nearly one year to the day after Eisenberg sat down with Variety to discuss the Audible originals drama on which this script was based. Joining the Variety Virtual Sundance Studio presented by Audible, the emerging filmmaker looked back on the project’s journey from audio production to A24 release.
“I feel so fortunate to have been able to work on something during this time, because I know so many people who would normally be working who just were not able to,” Eisenberg said, taking in the full circle moment. “I feel very fortunate that we were able to finish it and that the movie is coming out,...
The movie debuted Thursday as an opening day selection for Sundance 2022 nearly one year to the day after Eisenberg sat down with Variety to discuss the Audible originals drama on which this script was based. Joining the Variety Virtual Sundance Studio presented by Audible, the emerging filmmaker looked back on the project’s journey from audio production to A24 release.
“I feel so fortunate to have been able to work on something during this time, because I know so many people who would normally be working who just were not able to,” Eisenberg said, taking in the full circle moment. “I feel very fortunate that we were able to finish it and that the movie is coming out,...
- 1/22/2022
- by Angelique Jackson
- Variety Film + TV
A refigured and condensed version of his own audio drama of the same name, When You Finish Saving the World is a slight directorial debut from Jesse Eisenberg featuring sturdy performances working a script that gets a bit lost. Examining a family whose dysfunction can be best described as a detached aloofness when finding common ground for their individual interests and desires, this drama mostly unfolds by contrasting the isolated lives of mother Evelyn (Julianne Moore) and son Ziggy (Finn Wolfhard). Despite perceptive passages and formal confidence telling the small-scale nature of this story, Eisenberg can’t stick the landing, boxing his characters into a cloying, frustrating, and unconvincing conclusion.
With verbose energy and a confident passion for his DIY music ambitions, Ziggy spends his time crafting “classic folk rock with alternative influences” from his bedroom studio, live-streaming to some 20,000 followers. While it’s the only barometer for his self-worth,...
With verbose energy and a confident passion for his DIY music ambitions, Ziggy spends his time crafting “classic folk rock with alternative influences” from his bedroom studio, live-streaming to some 20,000 followers. While it’s the only barometer for his self-worth,...
- 1/21/2022
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
To see 17-year-old Ziggy Katz (Finn Wolfhard) on the street, you’d think he was a decent kid. He says no to drugs, he livestreams milquetoast folk songs that rhyme “foggy” and “doggy,” and he’s even comfortable sporting a pink knitted hat because gender stereotypes are so last generation. Alas, Ziggy has the rotten luck to be trapped in Jesse Eisenberg’s bleak debut “When You Finish Saving the World” where he’s surrounded by sin-counting idealists in a liberal midwestern bubble who consider the fame-seeking teen to be as unenlightened as the hairspray heads who once swaggered down the Sunset Strip — a claustrophobic mockery of do-gooderism that expands upon and simplifies Eisenberg’s 2020 time-bending audio drama of the same name.
In this unnamed Indiana town, Ziggy’s crush Lila (Alisha Boe), a poet who writes ballads against the colonialist occupation of the Marshall Islands, dismisses him as a moron.
In this unnamed Indiana town, Ziggy’s crush Lila (Alisha Boe), a poet who writes ballads against the colonialist occupation of the Marshall Islands, dismisses him as a moron.
- 1/21/2022
- by Amy Nicholson
- Variety Film + TV
Everyone knows the actor, but we might have to think of him differently in the year ahead. Jesse Eisenberg‘s When You Finish Saving the World was an audiobook drama before it became in 2021, his directorial debut. Starring Julianne Moore and Finn Wolfhard, Eisenberg takes the plunge into some deep human condition issues and makes connections between people, time and place. The A24 folks have a huge year ahead of them — and this one certainly has wards potential. After Yang and Pieces of a Woman Cinematographer Benjamin Loeb is part of the crew.
Gist: This tells the story of three individuals working to understand each other and themselves: Nathan, a father learning to connect with his newborn son; Rachel, a young college student seeking to find her place in a relationship and in life, before marriage to Nathan; and Ziggy, their son, a teenager hoping to figure out where he came from,...
Gist: This tells the story of three individuals working to understand each other and themselves: Nathan, a father learning to connect with his newborn son; Rachel, a young college student seeking to find her place in a relationship and in life, before marriage to Nathan; and Ziggy, their son, a teenager hoping to figure out where he came from,...
- 11/25/2021
- by Eric Lavallée
- IONCINEMA.com
The premise of After Yang might require a mild digestif. A work of speculative science fiction from the video-essayist-turned-director kogonada, it concerns the inner workings of an unconventional family: adoptive father Jake (played by Colin Farrel), the proprietor of an artisanal tea shop; his wife Kyra (Jodie Turner-Smith), busy and detached; their daughter Mika (Malea Emma Tjandrawidjaja), an adopted child from China; and Yang, the android they purchased to be her ersatz older brother. Near the film’s start Yang breaks down and, with Mika distraught, Jake must find a way to get him back online. On his travels he discovers that Yang’s hardware has been custom fitted to record and save a few seconds of video each day, a moment that the A.I. finds most valuable; or, in other words, to find evidence of an inner emotional life. Phew.
It is the second feature to be released by kogonada,...
It is the second feature to be released by kogonada,...
- 7/11/2021
- by Rory O'Connor
- The Film Stage
Cinematographer Benjamin Loeb received the script for “Pieces of a Woman” from director Kornél Mundruczó in August 2018.
Loeb, whose credits include “Mandy,” spoke with Mundruczó not about specificities about the loss of a child, grief and what the film would look like, but about their families, experiences and birth.
For Loeb, the words were the backbone of his vision.
“It wasn’t trauma porn and the idea of someone using this [trauma] in the wrong way,” were what connected him to the film.
The Birth Scene
“The main reason why we wanted to shoot the birth first was that there was no way for us to ask the actors to go to this incredibly dark place without learning what that dark place means.
“The scene was about 30-36 pages of script and we had three days to do it. In one conversation, Kornel and I had the idea of time and the idea of we,...
Loeb, whose credits include “Mandy,” spoke with Mundruczó not about specificities about the loss of a child, grief and what the film would look like, but about their families, experiences and birth.
For Loeb, the words were the backbone of his vision.
“It wasn’t trauma porn and the idea of someone using this [trauma] in the wrong way,” were what connected him to the film.
The Birth Scene
“The main reason why we wanted to shoot the birth first was that there was no way for us to ask the actors to go to this incredibly dark place without learning what that dark place means.
“The scene was about 30-36 pages of script and we had three days to do it. In one conversation, Kornel and I had the idea of time and the idea of we,...
- 3/4/2021
- by Jazz Tangcay
- Variety Film + TV
For the longest time, cinematographers have referenced paintings and still photography, whether recreating those images or riffing on them to create the moving images in films. It was no different for Chloé Zhao’s “Nomadland,” which captured the beauty of America, and Regina King’s “One Night in Miami,” which was influenced by historical events. Even more impressive is the fact that some of the lensers behind this year’s top films are somewhat new to the circuit.
For his fourth feature film, “Nomadland” cinematographer Joshua James Richards traveled across the Badlands of South Dakota; Empire, Nev.; and western Nebraska, venturing into real-life nomad territory to tell the story of Fern (Frances McDormand), who lives on the road in her van.
The main visual reference, he says, was Andrew Wyeth’s Miss Olson. That painting served as the “texture and palette of the interior of Fern’s van.”
It wasn...
For his fourth feature film, “Nomadland” cinematographer Joshua James Richards traveled across the Badlands of South Dakota; Empire, Nev.; and western Nebraska, venturing into real-life nomad territory to tell the story of Fern (Frances McDormand), who lives on the road in her van.
The main visual reference, he says, was Andrew Wyeth’s Miss Olson. That painting served as the “texture and palette of the interior of Fern’s van.”
It wasn...
- 12/24/2020
- by Jazz Tangcay
- Variety Film + TV
Mentoring emerging cinematographers has always been a key mission at the EnergaCamerimage International Film Festival and this year’s online version of the event features a score of streaming master classes and seminars that inform and offer insights from top filmmakers and technology experts.
Streaming through the end of 2020 (online.energacamerimage.pl), the talks and teach-ins are, with rare exceptions, accessible without a password or online Camerimage entry card – unlike the usual live format of master classes at the festival, which invariably sell out if you don’t find a seat at least 20 minutes before the start.
One of the buzziest events from the festival, which officially ran Nov. 13-20, is the virtual career masterclass with cinematographer Phedon Papamichael, in which he discusses his remarkable career, leading up to his latest feature, Aaron Sorkin’s “The Trial of the Chicago 7.”
The Netflix drama is built around the sensational political...
Streaming through the end of 2020 (online.energacamerimage.pl), the talks and teach-ins are, with rare exceptions, accessible without a password or online Camerimage entry card – unlike the usual live format of master classes at the festival, which invariably sell out if you don’t find a seat at least 20 minutes before the start.
One of the buzziest events from the festival, which officially ran Nov. 13-20, is the virtual career masterclass with cinematographer Phedon Papamichael, in which he discusses his remarkable career, leading up to his latest feature, Aaron Sorkin’s “The Trial of the Chicago 7.”
The Netflix drama is built around the sensational political...
- 12/18/2020
- by Will Tizard
- Variety Film + TV
During a seminar at EnergaCamerimage Film Festival dedicated to their drama “Pieces of a Woman,” acquired by Netflix following its premiere in Venice, cinematographer Benjamin Loeb and Kornél Mundruczó praised their cast, led by Vanessa Kirby and Shia Labeouf playing a couple dealing with the tragic loss of their newborn child. Kirby, who left Italy with the Volpi Cup for best actress, has been the subject of Oscar buzz ever since.
“Vanessa read the script in July and she was in Budapest within 24 hours. She was really touched by it,” said Mundruczó.
“I knew her from ‘The Crown’ and I was a fan, but Princess Margaret was not that close to [the protagonist] Martha – my Martha. When we met, I noticed there is something very classic about her. She is like all the best European icons, like Cardinale or Schygulla, and that’s what this movie needed. Martha has a connection to someone she lost,...
“Vanessa read the script in July and she was in Budapest within 24 hours. She was really touched by it,” said Mundruczó.
“I knew her from ‘The Crown’ and I was a fan, but Princess Margaret was not that close to [the protagonist] Martha – my Martha. When we met, I noticed there is something very classic about her. She is like all the best European icons, like Cardinale or Schygulla, and that’s what this movie needed. Martha has a connection to someone she lost,...
- 11/21/2020
- by Marta Balaga
- Variety Film + TV
Earlier today, Netflix released their First Trailer for Pieces of a Woman, yet another Oscar contender from the streaming giant. Picked up after it made an impact on the Film Festival circuit, the movie is a drama with amazing performances from Vanessa Kirby, Ellen Burstyn, and Shia Labeouf. The Academy is almost certainly going to fall for the acting on display here, as it’s of the first order. At the same time, the flick is going to be challenging for some, so how it does will partly depend on how Netflix is able to position the title during the season. Having someone like Martin Scorsese on as an executive producer certainly doesn’t hurt, though. The Trailer can be seen at the bottom of the post, as always… The film is a wrenching drama, with the simple synopsis from Netflix as follows: “From award-winning director Kornél Mundruczó (White God) and executive producer Martin Scorsese,...
- 11/17/2020
- by Joey Magidson
- Hollywoodnews.com
Above: Pieces of a WomanThe festival’s first weekend, here on the Lido, is always the busiest. Vaporettos come chugging in and out of the Casino Palace from Friday to Sunday, picking up people by the hundreds around Piazza San Marco and dropping them a few meters away from the Excelsior Hotel. It’s a herd of visitors that turn the Lungomare into a cacophonous and smartly dressed bedlam—not as overwhelming as Cannes’ Croisette, perhaps, but still loud enough for the roars around the red carpet to ricochet all the way into the press room. I’d assumed things would have been different this year, but even as the crowd was just a fraction of what it used to be—and even as the Great Wall now flanking the Sala Grande makes those sights a relic from the past—Friday night was still home to a sizable bunch squeezing...
- 9/6/2020
- MUBI
One can imagine such respected studio directors as Norman Jewison or Sidney Lumet directing a film about the legal battle at the heart of “Pieces of a Woman”: A terrible tragedy has occurred, and an expectant young Boston couple (played by Vanessa Kirby and Shia Labeouf) have taken their midwife (Molly Parker) to court. The media are all over the story, which casts the entire practice of home birth into question. But instead of focusing on the trial, Hungarian director Kórnel Mundruczó concentrates our attention on the couple, both of whom are shattered by the experience — but especially on the wife, who has more to rebuild than just her relationship. It is her very identity that’s on the line in this mature, masterfully acted human drama.
Though he’d been invited to Cannes before, Mundruczó grabbed the world’s attention a few years ago with a movie called “White God,...
Though he’d been invited to Cannes before, Mundruczó grabbed the world’s attention a few years ago with a movie called “White God,...
- 9/5/2020
- by Peter Debruge
- Variety Film + TV
Earlier today, the Film Independent Spirit Awards were given out during their annual broadcasted show. Always a fun warm up for the next day’s Oscar telecast, the Spirit Awards are the Academy Awards’ hipster cousin. Sometimes, the former opts to copy the latter to some degree, nominee and winner wise, while in other times, they decidedly go to the beat of their own drummer. This is one of those years, as there isn’t a whole lot of crossover between the two. You wouldn’t be able to gather much because of it either way, but just keep that in mind. The Independent Spirit Awards are their own thing, plain and simple. Now, let us look at who and what they honored this afternoon… Leading the way with the Independent Spirit Awards was If Beale Street Could Talk, which took home three prizes. In addition to the top honor of Best Feature,...
- 2/24/2019
- by Joey Magidson
- Hollywoodnews.com
The 2019 Independent Spirit Awards took place on a beach in Santa Monica, Calif., with Barry Jenkins’ “If Beale Street Could Talk” taking the top prize for best feature along with best director for Jenkins.
Ethan Hawke and Glenn Close took the prizes for best male lead and best female lead, respectively. Bo Burnham took the best first screenplay trophy for “Eighth Grade” and Nicole Holofcener and Jeff Whitty won for best screenplay.
The Spirit Awards are chosen by the Film Independent’s 6200 members after an anonymous committee votes on nominations. The eligibility rules require that movies be produced in the U.S. for less than $20 million.
Keep checking back as the winners are updated live.
Best Feature
Eighth Grade
First Reformed
If Beale Street Could Talk (Winner)
Leave No Trace
You Were Never Really Here
Best Director
Debra Granik, Leave No Trace
Barry Jenkins, If Beale Street Could Talk (Winner)
Tamara Jenkins,...
Ethan Hawke and Glenn Close took the prizes for best male lead and best female lead, respectively. Bo Burnham took the best first screenplay trophy for “Eighth Grade” and Nicole Holofcener and Jeff Whitty won for best screenplay.
The Spirit Awards are chosen by the Film Independent’s 6200 members after an anonymous committee votes on nominations. The eligibility rules require that movies be produced in the U.S. for less than $20 million.
Keep checking back as the winners are updated live.
Best Feature
Eighth Grade
First Reformed
If Beale Street Could Talk (Winner)
Leave No Trace
You Were Never Really Here
Best Director
Debra Granik, Leave No Trace
Barry Jenkins, If Beale Street Could Talk (Winner)
Tamara Jenkins,...
- 2/23/2019
- by Variety Staff
- Variety Film + TV
The Film Independent Spirit Awards have come to a close in sunny Santa Monica, with “If Beale Street Could Talk” winning Best Feature, Best Director for Barry Jenkins, and Best Supporting Female for Regina King. The love was spread fairly evenly across the other major prizes, with Glenn Close of “The Wife” taking home Best Actress, Ethan Hawke earning Best Actor for his performance in “First Reformed,” and “Can You Ever Forgive Me?” winning Best Screenplay (Nicole Holofcener & Jeff Whitty) and Best Supporting Male (Richard E. Grant).
“We the Animals” led all films with five nominations, followed by “Eighth Grade,” “First Reformed,” and “You Were Never Really Here” with four apiece. There will be excitingly little overlap between today’s ceremony and tomorrow’s — for the first time since 2008, no movies are up for the top prize at both shows.
Aubrey Plaza hosted the ceremony, which aired on IFC. Full...
“We the Animals” led all films with five nominations, followed by “Eighth Grade,” “First Reformed,” and “You Were Never Really Here” with four apiece. There will be excitingly little overlap between today’s ceremony and tomorrow’s — for the first time since 2008, no movies are up for the top prize at both shows.
Aubrey Plaza hosted the ceremony, which aired on IFC. Full...
- 2/23/2019
- by Michael Nordine
- Indiewire
Winners of the 2019 Independent Spirit Awards, hosted by Aubrey Plaza, were revealed on Saturday, February 23, one day before the Oscars. Unlike years past, when many Best Feature nominees coincided with the Academy Award choices, the 34th edition of the Spirit Awards, which celebrates indie fare, had no cross-over in the Best Picture category.
The biggest winner of the night was “If Beale Street Could Talk,” which took home Best Feature, Best Director for Barry Jenkins and Best Supporting Female for Regina King, who is likely to repeat at the Academy Awards. And Glenn Close, whose little white dog Pippi stole the show, is pretty much a lock to repeat her win for Best Female Lead at the Oscars as well. Otherwise, the Spirits were pretty much spread out, save for two honors granted to the horror remake “Suspiria,” the Robert Altman Award along with cinematography, and two wins, Best Screenplay...
The biggest winner of the night was “If Beale Street Could Talk,” which took home Best Feature, Best Director for Barry Jenkins and Best Supporting Female for Regina King, who is likely to repeat at the Academy Awards. And Glenn Close, whose little white dog Pippi stole the show, is pretty much a lock to repeat her win for Best Female Lead at the Oscars as well. Otherwise, the Spirits were pretty much spread out, save for two honors granted to the horror remake “Suspiria,” the Robert Altman Award along with cinematography, and two wins, Best Screenplay...
- 2/23/2019
- by Susan Wloszczyna
- Gold Derby
The 2019 Independent Spirit Awards will be handed out on February 23 during an afternoon ceremony on Santa Monica. These awards often preview the winners of the Academy Awards the following day. This year, we are predicting that both actress tipped to take home Oscars will win here first: leading lady Glenn Close (“The Wife”) and supporting player Regina King (“If Beale Street Could Talk”). But for the first time in a decade, none of the five films up for Best Feature here number among the nominees for Best Picture at the Oscars.
Scroll down to see the full list of Indie Spirits nominations. This roster of contenders was determined by committees that included film critics, film programmers, producers, directors, writers, cinematographers, editors, actors, past nominees and winners, and members of Film Independent’s Board of Directors. Only American-made movies with budgets under $20 million were eligible for consideration.
Winners will be revealed...
Scroll down to see the full list of Indie Spirits nominations. This roster of contenders was determined by committees that included film critics, film programmers, producers, directors, writers, cinematographers, editors, actors, past nominees and winners, and members of Film Independent’s Board of Directors. Only American-made movies with budgets under $20 million were eligible for consideration.
Winners will be revealed...
- 2/23/2019
- by Paul Sheehan
- Gold Derby
The 2019 Film Independent Spirit Awards have revealed their nominations. Leading the pack is Jeremiah Zagar’s Malickian coming-of-age tale We the Animals, which nabbed five nods, while grabbing four each were Paul Schrader’s First Reformed, Bo Burnham’s Eighth Grade and Lynne Ramsay’s You Were Never Really Here. Rounding out the Best Feature category was If Beale Street Could Talk and Leave No Trace.
Some of our favourite performances of the year, including Helena Howard, Regina Hall, Carey Mulligan, Richard E. Grant, and Ethan Hawke got nods in their respective categories. Suspiria earned the Robert Altman Award for its ensemble. The Favourite and Roma, which were only eligible for Best International Film, earned nods in that category alongside Burning, Happy as Lazzaro, and Shoplifters.
Check out the nomination list below ahead of a February 23 ceremony.
Best Feature
Eighth Grade
First Reformed
If Beale Street Could Talk
Leave No...
Some of our favourite performances of the year, including Helena Howard, Regina Hall, Carey Mulligan, Richard E. Grant, and Ethan Hawke got nods in their respective categories. Suspiria earned the Robert Altman Award for its ensemble. The Favourite and Roma, which were only eligible for Best International Film, earned nods in that category alongside Burning, Happy as Lazzaro, and Shoplifters.
Check out the nomination list below ahead of a February 23 ceremony.
Best Feature
Eighth Grade
First Reformed
If Beale Street Could Talk
Leave No...
- 11/17/2018
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Roma, The Favourite nominated for best international film.
We The Animals earned five nominations for the upcoming 2019 Spirit Awards, while You Were Never Really Here, First Reformed and Eighth Grade led the field in major categories on four apiece.
You Were Never Really Here, First Reformed and Eighth Grade are up for best feature, alongside Leave No Trace and If Beale Street Could Talk, both of which earned three nods.
We The Animals is in contention for cinematography, editing, first feature, supporting male, and the Someone To Watch Award.
You Were Never Really Here is also in contention for director Lynne Ramsay,...
We The Animals earned five nominations for the upcoming 2019 Spirit Awards, while You Were Never Really Here, First Reformed and Eighth Grade led the field in major categories on four apiece.
You Were Never Really Here, First Reformed and Eighth Grade are up for best feature, alongside Leave No Trace and If Beale Street Could Talk, both of which earned three nods.
We The Animals is in contention for cinematography, editing, first feature, supporting male, and the Someone To Watch Award.
You Were Never Really Here is also in contention for director Lynne Ramsay,...
- 11/16/2018
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Roma, The Favourite nominated for best international film.
We The Animals earned five nominations for the upcoming 2019 Spirit Awards, while You Were Never Really Here, First Reformed and Eighth Grade led the field in major categories on four apiece.
You Were Never Really Here, First Reformed and Eighth Grade are up for best feature, alongside Leave No Trace and If Beale Street Could Talk, both of which earned three nods.
We The Animals is in contention for cinematography, editing, first feature, supporting male, and the Someone To Watch Award.
You Were Never Really Here is also in contention for director Lynne Ramsay,...
We The Animals earned five nominations for the upcoming 2019 Spirit Awards, while You Were Never Really Here, First Reformed and Eighth Grade led the field in major categories on four apiece.
You Were Never Really Here, First Reformed and Eighth Grade are up for best feature, alongside Leave No Trace and If Beale Street Could Talk, both of which earned three nods.
We The Animals is in contention for cinematography, editing, first feature, supporting male, and the Someone To Watch Award.
You Were Never Really Here is also in contention for director Lynne Ramsay,...
- 11/16/2018
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Roma, The Favourite nominated for best international film.
We The Animals earned five 2019 Spirit Awards nominations on Friday (16), while You Were Never Really Here, First Reformed and Eighth Grade led the field in major categories on four apiece.
You Were Never Really Here, First Reformed and Eighth Grade are up for best feature, alongside Leave No Trace, and If Beale Street Could Talk, both of which earned three nods on the day.
We The Animals is in contention for cinematography, editing, first feature, supporting male, and the Someone To Watch Award.
You Were Never Really Here is also contention for director Lynne Ramsay,...
We The Animals earned five 2019 Spirit Awards nominations on Friday (16), while You Were Never Really Here, First Reformed and Eighth Grade led the field in major categories on four apiece.
You Were Never Really Here, First Reformed and Eighth Grade are up for best feature, alongside Leave No Trace, and If Beale Street Could Talk, both of which earned three nods on the day.
We The Animals is in contention for cinematography, editing, first feature, supporting male, and the Someone To Watch Award.
You Were Never Really Here is also contention for director Lynne Ramsay,...
- 11/16/2018
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Roma, The Favourite nominated for best international film.
You Were Never Really Here and First Reformed led the 2019 Spirit Awards announced in Los Angeles on Friday (16), earning four nods apiece.
Both films are up for best feature, alongside Leave No Trace, If Beale Street Could Talk, and Eighth Grade.
You Were Never Really Here is also contention for director Lynne Ramsay, lead male Joaquin Phoenix, and editor Joe Bini while First Reformed earned additional nods for Paul Schrader in the director and screenplay categories, and Ethan Hawke for male lead.
Leave No Trace is nominated for director Debra Granik and supporting female Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie,...
You Were Never Really Here and First Reformed led the 2019 Spirit Awards announced in Los Angeles on Friday (16), earning four nods apiece.
Both films are up for best feature, alongside Leave No Trace, If Beale Street Could Talk, and Eighth Grade.
You Were Never Really Here is also contention for director Lynne Ramsay, lead male Joaquin Phoenix, and editor Joe Bini while First Reformed earned additional nods for Paul Schrader in the director and screenplay categories, and Ethan Hawke for male lead.
Leave No Trace is nominated for director Debra Granik and supporting female Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie,...
- 11/16/2018
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Coming-of-age drama “We the Animals” has scored a leading five Spirit Awards nominations, with “Eighth Grade,” “First Reformed,” and “You Were Never Really Here” taking four each.
The nominees for best feature are “Eighth Grade,” “First Reformed,” “If Beale Street Could Talk,” “Leave No Trace,” and “You Were Never Really Here.”
“We the Animals” received nominations for best first feature, best supporting male actor for Raul Castillo, cinematography, editing, and the Someone to Watch award for Jeremiah Zagar, who directed and adapted the script from Justin Torres’ debut novel of the same name. The movie, which focuses on a mixed-race family in upstate New York, opened at the Sundance Film Festival in January.
Bo Burnham’s comedy-drama “Eighth Grade” took nods for feature, first feature, actress for Elsie Fisher, and supporting male actor for Josh Hamilton. “First Reformed” landed noms for feature, director and screenplay for Paul Schrader, and male lead for Ethan Hawke.
The nominees for best feature are “Eighth Grade,” “First Reformed,” “If Beale Street Could Talk,” “Leave No Trace,” and “You Were Never Really Here.”
“We the Animals” received nominations for best first feature, best supporting male actor for Raul Castillo, cinematography, editing, and the Someone to Watch award for Jeremiah Zagar, who directed and adapted the script from Justin Torres’ debut novel of the same name. The movie, which focuses on a mixed-race family in upstate New York, opened at the Sundance Film Festival in January.
Bo Burnham’s comedy-drama “Eighth Grade” took nods for feature, first feature, actress for Elsie Fisher, and supporting male actor for Josh Hamilton. “First Reformed” landed noms for feature, director and screenplay for Paul Schrader, and male lead for Ethan Hawke.
- 11/16/2018
- by Dave McNary
- Variety Film + TV
The Film Independent Spirit Awards announced their 2019 nominations on Friday, November 16. So who made the cut at these kudos, which celebrate the best in American independent films? Scroll down to see the complete list.
These Spirit contenders were decided by nominating committees that included film critics, film programmers, producers, directors, writers, cinematographers, editors, actors, past nominees and winners, and members of Film Independent’s Board of Directors. The winners will be chosen by all of Film Independent’s eligible members, including industry insiders and any movie fans who sign up for membership starting at $95 per year.
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Eligible films must be American productions with budgets within $20 million, which this year excluded awards contenders like “Vice,” “Mary Queen of Scots,” “Bohemian Rhapsody,” “The Hate U Give,” “Widows,” “Beautiful Boy” and “Black Panther,” among others. Additional titles like “Roma,” “22 July” and “The Favourite...
These Spirit contenders were decided by nominating committees that included film critics, film programmers, producers, directors, writers, cinematographers, editors, actors, past nominees and winners, and members of Film Independent’s Board of Directors. The winners will be chosen by all of Film Independent’s eligible members, including industry insiders and any movie fans who sign up for membership starting at $95 per year.
Sign UPfor Gold Derby’s free newsletter with latest predictions
Eligible films must be American productions with budgets within $20 million, which this year excluded awards contenders like “Vice,” “Mary Queen of Scots,” “Bohemian Rhapsody,” “The Hate U Give,” “Widows,” “Beautiful Boy” and “Black Panther,” among others. Additional titles like “Roma,” “22 July” and “The Favourite...
- 11/16/2018
- by Daniel Montgomery
- Gold Derby
The nominations for the 34th Independent Spirit Awards were announced live this afternoon, setting the stage for the awards season with a decidedly indie bent. Over the last several years, the Indie Spirits have become both a champion of underdog indies and a key indicator in which films and performances could end up with the Oscar.
Some of the year’s biggest titles are, however, not eligible for this year’s Indie Spirits per their rules, including “Vice,” “The Sisters Brothers,” and “Mary Queen of Scots,” while Alfonso Cuarón’s lauded “Roma” only qualifies for Best International Film.
Favorites like “Eighth Grade” and “First Reformed” dominated the big categories, with each film earning four nominations, including Best Feature for both, Best Actress for “Eighth Grade” lead Elsie Fisher, and Best Actor for “First Reformed” star Ethan Hawke. “We the Animals” led the entire field with five total noms. A number...
Some of the year’s biggest titles are, however, not eligible for this year’s Indie Spirits per their rules, including “Vice,” “The Sisters Brothers,” and “Mary Queen of Scots,” while Alfonso Cuarón’s lauded “Roma” only qualifies for Best International Film.
Favorites like “Eighth Grade” and “First Reformed” dominated the big categories, with each film earning four nominations, including Best Feature for both, Best Actress for “Eighth Grade” lead Elsie Fisher, and Best Actor for “First Reformed” star Ethan Hawke. “We the Animals” led the entire field with five total noms. A number...
- 11/16/2018
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
I was incredibly fortunate to have been able to experience Panos Cosmatos’ Mandy at its world premiere screening at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival this past January, and it’s a film that hasn’t left my psyche since. Cosmatos’ directorial follow-up to Beyond the Black Rainbow features stunning performances from both Nicolas Cage and Andrea Riseborough, and is truly unlike any other movie that you will see this year.
In anticipation of Mandy’s upcoming theatrical release on September 14th, I had the chance to speak with Cosmatos about the influences behind his latest feature, his experiences working with both Cage and Riseborough, as well as several key creative collaborators, including cinematographer Benjamin Loeb, co-writer Aaron Stewart-Ahn and composer Jóhann Jóhannsson, who sadly passed away earlier this year, and why he never imagined getting back into the director’s chair after Beyond the Black Rainbow.
Congratulations on Mandy, Panos. I...
In anticipation of Mandy’s upcoming theatrical release on September 14th, I had the chance to speak with Cosmatos about the influences behind his latest feature, his experiences working with both Cage and Riseborough, as well as several key creative collaborators, including cinematographer Benjamin Loeb, co-writer Aaron Stewart-Ahn and composer Jóhann Jóhannsson, who sadly passed away earlier this year, and why he never imagined getting back into the director’s chair after Beyond the Black Rainbow.
Congratulations on Mandy, Panos. I...
- 9/11/2018
- by Heather Wixson
- DailyDead
There are some actors who aim for a sort of modest-to-Method-run-amuck realism — they want/need you to see every muscle straining in the name of disappearing into an everyman character, to prove they can turn the quotidian task of putting on socks into an elaborate tribute to commitment. There are some performers who prefer a more minimalist approach, for whom less-is-more is a mantra. And then there are others for whom no gesture is too broad or baroque, the kind who not only want to plays all the scales but...
- 9/6/2018
- by David Fear
- Rollingstone.com
In an era of dime-a-dozen Nicolas Cage movies, you may think you know what you’re getting when sitting down for his latest feature. Rest assured, nothing could prepare you for the experience of Mandy. I’m not even referring to the gory and gleeful shocks–of which the back half has many–but rather Panos Cosmatos’ intoxicating, singular version, which mixes beauty and batshit insanity for an LSD-fueled descent into darkness like no other.
Of course, those familiar with his vibrant debut feature Beyond the Black Rainbow–also set in 1983–will be no stranger to Cosmatos’ phantasmagorical style, having waited nearly a decade for a follow-up. With his revenge tale Mandy, he shows an impressive expansion of scope while still retaining a hazy psychedelic palette, but most compelling is his union with the perfect actor to lead this psychotic vision: Nicolas Cage. Working as a lumberjack in what looks like the Pacific Northwest,...
Of course, those familiar with his vibrant debut feature Beyond the Black Rainbow–also set in 1983–will be no stranger to Cosmatos’ phantasmagorical style, having waited nearly a decade for a follow-up. With his revenge tale Mandy, he shows an impressive expansion of scope while still retaining a hazy psychedelic palette, but most compelling is his union with the perfect actor to lead this psychotic vision: Nicolas Cage. Working as a lumberjack in what looks like the Pacific Northwest,...
- 1/21/2018
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
The strains of “O Canada” faintly emanate from a television set towards the end Hello Destroyer, Kevan Funk's bold, and boldly Canadian, feature debut, which recently premiered in Toronto and will play in the BC Spotlight program of the Vancouver International Film Festival. That it takes place in the world of (junior) hockey makes it recognizably, unmistakably Canadian; that it puts that hallowed institution under an unsparing microscope is what makes makes it daring. Red background—white lettering. Hello Destroyer—hello, Canada. From its opening frames—an intense on-ice scuffle, shot in tight, almost abstract closeups—the film is steeped in the hyper-masculine milieu of professional hockey that Funk first explored in his 2013 short, Destroyer (which shares the same setting, but charts a standalone narrative). But it would be inaccurate to call the feature (or the short film, for that matter) a “hockey movie,” much less a “sports movie.
- 9/23/2016
- MUBI
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