Silent film “The Artist” and the apocalyptic tale “Take Shelter” led the Independent Spirit Award nominations on Tuesday. Both films took nods for best feature, director and acting. Close behind with four nominations each are Beginners, The Descendants, Drive, and Martha Marcy May Marlene.
The Spirit Awards are among the industry’s top honors for art house films. Combine it with New York’s Gotham Awards as well as critics’ accolades and you get a good eye on the year’s best low-budget films. Often those movies also compete for Oscars, the world’s top cinema honors given in February by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Here are the Spirit Award nominees:
Best Feature
The Artist
Beginners
The Descendants
Drive
50/50
Take Shelter
Best Female Lead
Lauren Ambrose, Think of Me
Rachael Harris, Natural Selection
Adepero Oduye, Pariah
Elizabeth Olsen, Martha Marcy May Marlene
Michelle Williams, My Week With Marilyn
Best Male Lead
Demián Bichir, A Better Life
Jean Dujardin, The Artist
Ryan Gosling, Drive
Woody Harrelson, Rampart
Michael Shannon, Take Shelter
Best Supporting Female
Jessica Chastain, Take Shelter
Anjelica Huston, 50/50
Janet McTeer, Albert Nobbs
Harmony Santana, Gun Hill Road
Shailene Woodley, The Descendants
Best Supporting Male
Albert Brooks, Drive
John Hawkes, Martha Marcy May Marlene
Christopher Plummer, Beginners
John C. Reilly, Cedar Rapids
Corey Stoll, Midnight in Paris
Best Director
Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist
Mike Mills, Beginners
Jeff Nichols, Take Shelter
Alexander Payne, The Descendants
Nicolas Winding Refn, Drive
Best Screenplay
Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist
Mike Mills, Beginners
Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon, Jim Rash, The Descendants
Joseph Cedar, Footnote
Tom McCarthy, Win Win
Best First Screenplay
Mike Cahill & Brit Marling, Another Earth
Phil Johnston, Cedar Rapids
Will Reiser, 50/50
J.C. Chandor, Margin Call
Patrick deWitt, Terri
Best First Feature
Another Earth
In the Family
Margin Call
Martha Marcy May Marlene
Natural Selection
John Cassavetes Award (for features under $500,000)
Bellflower
Circumstance
The Dynamiter
Hello Lonesome
Pariah
Best Documentary
An African Election
Bill Cunningham New York
The Interrupters
The Redemption of General Butt Naked
We Were Here
Best Cinematography
The Artist
Bellflower
The Dynamiter
Midnight in Paris
The Off Hours
Best International Film
The Kid With A Bike
Melancholia
A Separation
Shame
Tyrannosaur
Robert Altman Award (for ensemble cast): Margin Call
Piaget Producers Award
Chad Burris, Mosquita y Mari
Sophia Lin, Take Shelter
Josh Mond, Martha Marcy May Marlene
‘The Artist’ and ‘Take Shelter’ Lead Spirit Award Nominations