Independent Spirit Awards 2024: Tótem competes in Best International Film, here all the nominees
Independent Spirit Awards 2024: Tótem competes in Best International Film, here all the nominees – Lila Avilés’ film manages to be nominated, while Past Lives and May December dominate with several nominations that could bring them closer to the Oscar.
By Megan Sauer
The awards season has officially begun and although titles like Los Asesinos de la Luna, Poor Things, Oppenheimer and even Barbie could obtain very important nominations, the public should not forget the independent projects, since in recent years they have found more space to compete with big budget works. That is why one should pay attention to the awards dedicated to this type of cinema, and the Independent Spirit Awards are one of the most relevant in this race and will shed some light on films like May December, Past Lives y All of Us Strangers.
The importance of recognizing the best of independent cinema
The film industry generates billions of dollars a year globally, but that does not mean that as a business it is infallible. In fact, movies that achieve numbers like that are rare, and although for many years the franchises helped sustain things, in 2023 it became clear that this trend is going down with the poor results of The Flash -60% , The Marvels – 52% . Even The Moon Killers failed in its attempt to conquer the masses and although Martin Scorsese ‘s film is one of the favorites of the season, it failed to deliver financially.
That is why it is important to recognize independent cinema, because with lower and limited budgets they manage to offer stories that are on par with other great titles. This type of cinema is far from disappearing, since it is basically a necessity of the industry that serves to give directors greater creative control and even to introduce new artists to the field of Hollywood. Great performances and scripts can be found in these circles and also many original ideas that surprise by connecting very well with audiences of all types without being so commercial.
For example, May December is not only a fight between the talent of Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore , it is also a perfect way to talk about sexual abuse, a topic that usually focuses on female victims and that here shows us what happens with a young man who has to go through something like this without understanding it, a premise that allows Charles Melton to shine and get a unique opportunity in the Oscar race. At the other extreme is a proposal like The Fighting Club which became one of the most interesting comedies in recent years and proves that Emma Seligman has a great future as a director.
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The Independent Spirit Awards recognize the best of independent cinema, and to do so they consider films with a budget of less than US$30 million, making this event one of the most special to recognize high-quality works that could go unnoticed by many. , and those others that thanks to these nominations will surely find a directorial path to more popular awards such as the Golden Globes and the Oscar.
Independent Spirit Awards 2024 Nominations
Best film
All of Us Strangers
American Fiction
May December
Pasajes
Past Lives
We Grown Now
Best First Film
All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt – Raven Jackson
Chronicles of a Wandering Saint – Tomás Gómez Bustillo
Earth Mama – Savanah Leaf
A Thousand and One – AV Rockwell
Upon Entry – Alejandro Rojas and Juan Sebastián Vásquez
John Cassavetes Award (films made for less than US$1 million)
The Artifice Girl
Cadejo Blanco
Fremont
Rotting in the Sun
The Unknown Country
Best Director
Andrew Haigh – All of Us Strangers
Todd Haynes – May December
William Oldroyd – Eileen
Ira Sachs – Passages
Celine Song – Past Lives
Best Screenplay
David Hemingson – The Holdovers
Cord Jefferson – American Fiction
Laura Moss and Brendan J. O’Brien – Birth/Rebirth
Emma Seligman and Rachel Sennott – Fighting Club
Celine Song – Past Lives
Best First Film Screenplay
Samy Burch – May December
Noah Galvin , Molly Gordon , Nick Lieberman and Ben Platt – Theater Camp
Thomas Gomez Bustillo – Chronicles of a Wandering Saint
Laurel Parmet – The Starling Girl
Alexander Rojas and Juan Sebastian Vasquez – Upon Entry
Best Performance
Jessica Chastain – Memory
Greta Lee – Past Lives
Trace Lysette – Monica
Natalie Portman – May December
Judy Reyes – Birth/Rebirth
Franz Rogowski – Pasajes
Andrew Scott – All of Us Strangers
Teyana Taylor – A Thousand and One
Jeffrey Wright – American Fiction
Teo Yoo – Past Lives
Best Supporting Performance
Erika Alexander – American Fiction
Sterling K. Brown – American Fiction
Noah Galvin – Theater Camp
Anne Hathaway – Eileen
Glenn Howerton – BlackBerry
Marin Ireland – Eileen
Charles Melton – May December
Da’Vine Joy Randolph – The Holdovers
Catalina Saavedra – Rotting in the Sun
Ben Whishaw – Pasajes
Best Breakthrough Performance
Marshawn Lynch – The Fighting Club
Atibon Nazaire – Mountains
Tia Nomore – Earth Mama
Dominic Sessa – The Holdovers
Anaita Wali Zada - Fremont
Best Photography
Katelin Arizmendi – Monica
Eigil Bryld – The Holdovers
Jomo Fray – All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt
Pablo Lozano – Chronicles of a Wandering Saint
Pat Scola – We Grown Now
Mejor Edición
Santiago Cendejas , Gabriel Díaz and Sofía Subercaseaux – Rotting in the Sun
Stephanie Filo – We Grown Now
Daniel Garber – How to Blow Up a Pipeline
Jon Philpot – Theater Camp
Emanuele Tiziani – Upon Entry
