Anora won Best Feature, Best Director and Best Lead Performance, landing three wins out of five nominations at the Independent Spirit Awards.
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Heading towards next month’s Academy Awards, Sean Baker’s Anora has been on a complete rebound, taking over awards season via the WGA, DGA and PGA. Now, it has added the Independent Spirit Awards to that list, taking home three at yesterday’s ceremony: Best Feature, Best Director for Baker and Best Lead Performance for Mikey Madison. Going in, it co-led the nominees with five, tying with I Saw the TV Glow.
Check out the full list of winners from the 40th Independent Spirit Awards below:
Best Feature: Anora
Best First Feature: Didi
John Cassavetes Award: Girls Will Be Girls
Best Director: Sean Baker, Anora
Best Screenplay: Jesse Eisenberg, A Real Pain
Best First Screenplay: Sean Wang, Dìdi
Best Lead Performance: Mikey Madison, Anora
Best Supporting Performance: Kieran Culkin, A Real Pain
Best Breakthrough Performance: Maisy Stella, My Old Ass
Best Cinematography: Jomo Fray, Nickel Boys
Best Editing: Hansjörg Weissbrich, September 5
Robert Altman Award: His Three Daughters
Best Documentary: No Other Land
Best International Film: Flow
Producers Award: Sarah Winshall, I Saw the TV Glow
Someone to Watch Award: Sarah Friedland, director of Familiar Touch
Truer Than Fiction Award: Rachel Elizabeth Seed, director of A Photographic Memory
On the television front, Shōgun had yet another great night of awards wins, but it was Netflix’s Baby Reindeer that proved dominant, taking home three, which is actually the most any show has ever won ever since the Independent Spirit Awards started recognizing TV in 2021. Check out the small but complete list of TV winners below:
Best New Scripted Series: Shōgun
Best New Non-Scripted or Documentary Series: Hollywood Black
Best Lead Performance in a New Scripted Series: Richard Gadd, Baby Reindeer
Best Supporting Performance in a New Scripted Series: Nava Mau, Baby Reindeer
Best Breakthrough Performance in a New Scripted Series: Jessica Gunning, Baby Reindeer
Best Ensemble Cast in a New Scripted Series: How to Die Alone
Anora might not seem like the most conventional film to win big at the Oscars but after its latest win at the Independent Spirit Awards over the weekend, it has just the sort of momentum it needs. Granted, Academy voting closed last week, but Anora has been picking up steam in a serious way ever since Emilia Pérez took a dive.
What do you think of this year’s Independent Spirit Award winners?