Nomadland Wins Best Feature at the 36th Film Independent Spirit Awards

Chloé Zhao’s Nomadland has won Best Feature at the 36th Film Independent Spirit Awards. The film also won Best Director and Editing for Zhao and Best Cinematography for Joshua James Richards. Elsewhere, Sound of Metal picked up three awards for Best First Feature, Best Male Lead for Riz Ahmed, and Best Supporting Male for Paul Raci, while Promising Young Woman scored two wins for Best Screenplay for Emerald Fennell and Best Actress for Carey Mulligan.

Winners in bold below.

Best Feature
First Cow
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Minari
Never Rarely Sometimes Always
Nomadland

Best Director
Lee Isaac Chung, Minari
Emerald Fennell, Promising Young Woman
Eliza Hittman, Never Rarely Sometimes Always
Kelly Reichardt, First Cow
Chloé Zhao, Nomadland

Best First Feature
I Carry You With Me
The Forty-Year-Old Version
Miss Juneteenth
Nine Days
Sound of Metal

Best Female Lead
Nicole Beharie, Miss Juneteenth
Viola Davis, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Sidney Flanigan, Never Rarely Sometimes Always
Julia Garner, The Assistant
Frances McDormand, Nomadland
Carey Mulligan, Promising Young Woman

Best Male Lead
Riz Ahmed, Sound of Metal
Chadwick Boseman, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Adarsh Gourav, The White Tiger
Rob Morgan, Bull
Steven Yeun, Minari

Best Supporting Female
Alexis Chikaeze, Miss Juneteenth
Yeri Han, Minari
Valerie Mahaffey, French Exit
Talia Ryder, Never Rarely Sometimes Always
Yu-jung Youn, Minari

Best Supporting Male
Colman Domingo, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Orion Lee, First Cow
Paul Raci, Sound of Metal
Glynn Turman, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Benedict Wong, Nine Days

Best Screenplay
Lee Isaac Chung, Minari
Emerald Fennell, Promising Young Woman
Eliza Hittman, Never Rarely Sometimes Always
Mike Makowsky, Bad Education
Alice Wu, The Half of It

Best First Screenplay
Kitty Green, The Assistant
Noah Hutton, Lapsis
Channing Godfrey Peoples, Miss Juneteenth
Andy Siara, Palm Springs
James Sweeney, Straight Up

Best Cinematography
Jay Keitel, She Dies Tomorrow
Shabier Kirchner, Bull
Michael Latham, The Assistant
Hélène Louvart, Never Rarely Sometimes Always
Joshua James Richards, Nomadland

Best Editing
Andy Canny, The Invisible Man
Scott Cummings, Never Rarely Sometimes Always
Merawi Gerima, Residue
Enat Sidi, I Carry You With Me
Chloé Zhao, Nomadland

John Cassavetes Award (Given to the best feature made for under $500,000; Award given to the writer, director and producer)
The Killing of Two Lovers
La Leyenda Negra
Lingua Franca
Residue
Saint Frances

Robert Altman Award (Given to one film’s director, casting director and ensemble cast)
One Night in Miami

Best Documentary
Collective
Crip Camp
Dick Johnson Is Dead
The Mole Agent
Time

Best International Film
Bacurau
The Disciple
Night of the Kings
Preparations to Be Together for an Unknown Period of Time
Quo Vadis, Aida?

Piaget Producers Award (The Producers Award honors emerging producers who, despite highly limited resources, demonstrate the creativity, tenacity and vision required to produce quality independent films)
Lucas Joaquin
Gerry Kim
Kara Durrett

Someone to Watch Award (The Someone to Watch Award recognizes a talented filmmaker of singular vision who has not yet received appropriate recognition)
David Midell, Director of The Killing of Kenneth Chamberlain
Ekwa Msangi, Director of Farewell Amor
Annie Silverstein, Director of Bull

Truer Than Fiction Award The 26th Truer Than Fiction Award is presented to an emerging director of non-fiction features who has not yet received significant recognition)
Cecilia Aldarondo, Director of Landfall
Elegance Bratton, Director of Pier Kids
Elizabeth Lo, Director of Stray