As the Academy prepares to award its Best Picture prize to yet another male-directed movie, Film Independent offered up an alternative, more refreshing perspective on the best in cinema last year with their Spirit Awards last night. The Safdie brothers' Uncut Gems may have been the biggest award winner of the night with three, including Best Director and Best Male Lead, but Lulu Wang's The Farewell was voters' choice for Best Feature. It becomes the first movie directed by a woman of colour to win the top Spirit Award, and it also won Best Supporting Female for Zhao Shu Zhen's unforgettable turn as Nai Nai.
Best Feature
THE FAREWELL (ANITA GOU, ANDREW MIANO, PETER SARAF, DANIELE TATE MELIA, MARC TURTLETAUB, LULU WANG, CHRIS WEITZ AND JANE ZHENG)
Best Director
BENNY SAFDIE AND JOSH SAFDIE (UNCUT GEMS)
Best Female Lead
RENEE ZELLWEGER (JUDY)
Best Male Lead
ADAM SANDLER (UNCUT GEMS)
Best Supporting Female
ZHAO SHU ZHEN (THE FAREWELL)
Best Supporting Male
WILLEM DAFOE (THE LIGHTHOUSE)
Best Screenplay
NOAH BAUMBACH (MARRIAGE STORY)
Best Cinematography
JARIN BLASCHKE (THE LIGHTHOUSE)
Best Editing
RONALD BRONSTEIN AND BENNY SAFDIE (UNCUT GEMS)
Robert Altman Award
DOUGLAS AIBEL, ALAN ALDA, NOAH BAUMBACH, LAURA DERN, ADAM DRIVER, JULIE HAGERTY, SCARLETT JOHANSSON, RAY LIOTTA, FRANCINE MAISLER, AZHY ROBERTSON AND MERRITT WEAVER (MARRIAGE STORY)
Best Documentary
AMERICAN FACTORY (STEVEN BOGNAR, JULIE PARKER BENELLO, JEFF REICHERT AND JULIA REICHERT)
Best International Film
PARASITE (BONG JOON HO)
Best First Feature
BOOKSMART (CHELSEA BARNARD, DAVID DISTENFELD, JESSICA ELBAUM, MEGAN ELLISON, KATIE SILBERMAN AND OLIVIA WILDE)
Best First Screenplay
FREDRICA BAILEY AND STEFON BRISTOL (SEE YOU YESTERDAY)
John Cassavetes Award
GIVE ME LIBERTY (VAL ABEL, ALICE AUSTIN, WALTER S. HALL, MICHAEL MANASSERI, KIRILL MIKHANOVSKY, GEORGE RUSH AND SERGEY SHTERN)
Bonnie Award
KELLY REICHARDT
Piaget Producers Award
MOLLYE ASHER
Kiehl's Someone to Watch Award
RASHAAD ERNESTO GREEN (PREMATURE)
Truer Than Fiction Award
NADIA SHIHAB (JADDOLAND)
Image credit: MovieStillsDB