The nominees for the 2015 Film Independent Spirit Awards, which honors the best in indie filmmaking, were announced this morning. Despite the focus on indie films, the nominees still feature countless familiar names and titles expected to dominate the awards season this year.
Alejandro G. Inarritu's Birdman and Richard Linklater’s Boyhood earned multiple awards and both will compete for the Best Feature award. The other nominees there are Selma, Love is Strange and Whiplash.
Inarritu and Linklater will both compete for Best Director as well. Ava DuVernay, the director of Selma, and Whiplash’s Damien Chazelle were also nominated. The fifth nominee is Kumiko, The Treasure Hunter’s David Zellner.
The nominees for Best Screenplay are J.C. Chandor (A Most Violent Year); Scott Alexander & Larry Karaszewski (Big Eyes); Ira Sachs & Mauricio Zacharias (Love is Strange); Dan Gilroy (Nightcrawler); and Jim Jarmusch (Only Lovers Left Alive).
Nightcrawler also scored a nomination for Best First Feature. The other nominees there are Dear White People, Obvious Child, A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night and She’s Lost Control.
Obvious Child’s Jenny Slate will compete for the Best Female Lead prize. Her competition includes Kukimo’s Rinko Kikuchi, Only Lovers Left Alive’s Tilda Swinton; Still Alice’s Julianne Moore and The Immigrant’s Marion Cotillard.
The male lead nominees are Jake Gyllenhaal (Nightcrawler); John Lithgow (Love is Strange); Andre Benjamin (All Is By My Side); Michael Keaton (Birdman); and David Oyelowo (Selma).
Paul Thomas Anderson’s Inherent Vice was mostly shut-out, but the film will receive the Robert Altman Award for its large ensemble cast, headlined by Joaquin Phoenix. Bennett Miller’s Foxcatcher will also receive a Special Distinction award.
The Film Independent Spirit Awards will be handed out on Feb. 21, 2015 and will air live on IFC from Santa Monica.
You can check out all the nominees at Spiritawards.com.
image courtesy of Jennifer Graylock/INFphoto.com