Last night, in the penultimate awards show before we end with the Academy Awards on Sunday, the Spirit Awards honored the best of the best in the world of independent film.
Even without the big cacophonous beach tent, host Melissa Villaseñor made the 2021 awards show unforgettable. She began her monologue addressing the lack of tent to an audience consisting only of production crew. “As you may have noticed, we’re not in the big tent on the beach. Instead we’re in a place more familiar to independent film fans: a completely empty theater.”
The SNL comedian then poked some fun at the lack of moviegoing amid the pandemic: “This was a tough year to get people to watch independent movies. Who spends all day reading COVID statistics and says ‘ooh, I could really go for a long film with an ambiguous ending right now.’ “
Of Nomadland, Villaseñor said the film “really changed the way I look at people who drive around alone in beat up vans.” “I used to think, ‘oh there goes a sex offender.’ But now I think, ‘there goes a nice lady navigating grief and economic uncertainty.’ ”
Here is her opening monologue:
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This was a year of firsts for what hopefully ends the oddest year in film due to the pandemic. The Spirit Awards also introduced TV and Streaming categories, recognizing the great independent work which is showing up there more and more.
Here is a list of Spirit Awards winners:
BEST FEATURE – Nomandland (PRODUCERS: Mollye Asher, Dan Javey, Frances McDormand, Peter Spears, Chloé Zhao)
BEST DIRECTOR – Chloé Zhao, Nomadland
BEST FEMALE LEAD – Carey Mulligan, Promising Young Woman
BEST MALE LEAD – Riz Ahmed, Sound of Metal
BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE – Yuh-Jung Youn, Minari
BEST SUPPORTING MALE – Paul Raci, Sound of Metal
BEST SCREENPLAY – Emerald Fennell, Promising Young Woman
BEST EDITING – Chloé Zhao, Nomadland
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE – Crip Camp (DIRECTORS/PRODUCERS: Jim LeBrecht, Nicole Newnham PRODUCER: Sara Bolder)
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – Joshua James Richards, Nomadland
BEST FIRST FEATURE – Sound of Metal (DIRECTOR: Darius Marder PRODUCERS: Bill Benz, Kathy Benz, Bert Hamelinck, Sacha Ben Harroche)
BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY – Andy Siara, Palm Springs
JOHN CASSAVETES AWARD – La Leyenda Negra (WRITER/DIRECTOR: Patricia Vidal Delgado PRODUCERS: Alicia Herder, Marcel Perez)
ROBERT ALTMAN AWARD – One Night in Miami… (DIRECTOR: Regina King CASTING DIRECTOR: Kimberly R. Hardin ENSEMBLE CAST: Kingsley Ben-Adir, Eli Goree, Aldis Hodge, Leslie Odom Jr.)
BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM – Quo Vadis, Aida? (Bosnia and Herzegovina DIRECTOR Jasmila Žbanić)
PRODUCERS AWARD – Gerry Kim
SOMEONE TO WATCH AWARD – Ekwa Msangi, Farewell Amor
TRUER THAN FICTION AWARD – Elegance Bratton, Pier Kids
BEST NEW SCRIPTED SERIES – I May Destroy You (CREATOR: Michaela Coel EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Phil Clarke, Michaela Coel, Roberto Troni)
BEST NEW NON-SCRIPTED OR DOCUMENTARY SERIES – Immigration Nation (EXEC PRODUCERS: Christina Clusiau, Shaul Schwarz, Dan Cogan, Jenny Raskin, Brandon Hill, Christian Thompson CO-EXEC PRODUCERS: Andrey Alistratov, Jay Arthur Sterrenberg, Lauren Haber)
BEST FEMALE PERFORMANCE (SCRIPTED) – Shira Haas, Unorthodox
BEST MALE PERFORMANCE (SCRIPTED) – Amit Rahav, Unorthodox
BEST ENSEMBLE CAST (SCRIPTED) – I May Destroy You (ENSEMBLE CAST: Michaela Coel, Paapa Essiedu, Weruche Opia, Stephen Wight)https://www.youtube.com/embed/K3yvljqUPoU?feature=oembed
Relive or catch up with our favorite #SpiritAwards moments on our YouTube channel. Only Members vote for the winners of the Spirit Awards—so join now and decide who’ll be on this list in 2022. Make your voice heard!
