Film takes Best Picture, Director, Supporting Actress, Cinematography and Screenplay
SANTA MONICA, Calif. (AP) -- 12 Years a Slave rolled at the Spirit Awards, winning five awards including Best Feature at the annual independent film celebration.
On the eve of the Academy Awards, the historical drama won awards for director Steve McQueen, actress Lupita Nyong’o, screenwriter John Ridley and cinematographer Sean Bobbitt. In a more laid-back, beachside ceremony in Santa Monica, just west of Los Angeles, 12 Years a Slave was clearly the favorite of the indie circuit.
The Spirit Awards could end up being — more than ever before — a dress rehearsal to Sunday's Academy Awards. 12 Years a Slave is considered, albeit extremely narrowly, the favorite for Best Picture over the space spectacle Gravity and the 1970s con-artist tale American Hustle. (Neither film was eligible at the Spirits, which honor films made for $20 million or less.)
All of the acting favorites were honored as expected, including best actor for Matthew McConaughey in Dallas Buyers Club and Cate Blanchett in Blue Jasmine. McConaughey’s co-star, Jared Leto, won best male supporting performance. Along with supporting actress winner Nyong’o, all are the front-runners at the Oscars.
Leto gave what might be the acceptance speech to end all acceptance speeches, rattling off an absurd list of thank yous to not just those with Dallas Buyers Club, but Herman Hess, Wayne Gretzky, home-made burritos, "the seven billion people on the planet" and many more. The actor-rocker added, with emphasis, "all the women I've been with and all the women who think they've been with me."
For many, the Spirit Awards conclude months of award-season events, and they provide a chance to exhale before the Oscars. McConaughey, Blanchett, Leto and Nyong'o have racked up a slew of awards, often triumphing over the same colleagues.
"What am I going to say that I haven't already said?" Blanchett remarked in her acceptance speech. On her way into the luncheon, the actress also repeated her view of the renewed scandal surrounding Blue Jasmine director Woody Allen and Dylan Farrow's claims he sexually assaulted her as a child: "It's a family issue, and I hope they can resolve it as a family."
This award, one of many for Nyong'o, stood out for the now 31-year-old actress: "Not a bad way to celebrate my birthday," she said.
Nyong'o dedicated the award to her mother, Dorothy, who was in the audience, for years of driving her to auditions. "Your love has driven me this far," she said.
Presented by Film Independent (a group of filmmakers, industry professionals and movie buffs) and hosted Saturday by Patton Oswalt, the Spirits are first and foremost a show to fete indie film and cast a spotlight on the little films that have to scrape money together to get made.
McQueen, with 12 Years a Slave producer Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie looking on, reflected on how the naturalistic films of John Cassavetes "changed my life." He dedicated his directing award to Cassavetes and Solomon Northup, the man whose memoir 12 Years a Slave is based on.
In accepting the award for Best First Feature, Fruitvale Station director Ryan Coogler provided the afternoon's most emotional moment. His film is about Oscar Grant, a 22-year-old black man shot while handcuffed by police. Coogler implored the audience to remember the "thousands of other Oscar Grants" and wondered why so many victims of such gun violence "always look like me." The crowd gave him a standing ovation.
Several beloved fixtures of independent film were also remembered. The deaths of James Gandolfini, Philip Seymour Hoffman and critic Roger Ebert over the last year were singled out. Gandolfini's wife, Deborah Lin, and one of their two children attended the ceremony. (The actor was nominated for Best Supporting Male performance.)
The Spirits' Robert Altman Award, an honor for best ensemble and director, was given to Jeff Nichols' coming-of-age tale Mud. The John Cassavetes Award, which honors films made for less than $500,000, went to the unlikely friendship drama This Is Martin Bonner, which director Chad Hartigan said was made for just $42,000. Gasps of admiration were heard throughout the beachside tent.
Other winners included 20 Feet From Stardom for Best Documentary, Blue Is the Warmest Color for Best International Film, Bob Nelson of Nebraska for Best First Screenplay, and Short Term 12 for Best Editing–the film was cut by Nat Sanders.
The spirit of thrifty striving pervaded. McConaughey (also a co-star in Mud) called indie work, "a feeder road" compared to the Autobahn of big-budget moviemaking. But he said he relished the freedom, even though it means "less zeroes on the paycheck."
In his monologue, however, Oswalt put a less optimistic spin on it. He said that in the course of his opening remarks, "The Lego Movie" had made more money than all of the Spirit Award nominees combined.
Here’s a full rundown of winners:
Best Feature: 12 Years a Slave (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
Producers: Dede Gardner, Anthony Katagas, Jeremy Kleiner, Steve McQueen, Arnon Milchan, Brad Pitt, Bill Pohlad
Best Director: Steve McQueen, 12 Years a Slave (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
Best Screenplay: John Ridley, 12 Years a Slave (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
Best First Feature: Fruitvale Station (The Weinstein Company)
Director: Ryan Coogler, Producers: Nina Yang Bongiovi, Forest Whitaker
Best First Screenplay: Bob Nelson, Nebraska (Paramount Pictures)
John Cassavetes Award (For best feature made under $500,000):
This is Martin Bonner (Monterey Media inc)
Writer/Director: Chad Hartigan, Producer: Cherie Saulter
Best Supporting Female: Lupita Nyong’o, 12 Years a Slave (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
Best Supporting Male: Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club (Focus Features)
Best Female Lead: Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine (Sony Pictures Classics)
Best Male Lead: Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club, (Focus Features)
Robert Altman Award: Mud (Roadside Attractions / Lionsgate)
Director: Jeff Nichols, Casting Director: Francine Maisler, Ensemble Cast: Joe Don Baker, Jacob Lofland, Matthew McConaughey, Ray McKinnon, Sarah Paulson, Michael Shannon, Sam Shepard, Tye Sheridan, Paul Sparks, Bonnie Sturdivant, Reese Witherspoon
Best Cinematography: Sean Bobbitt, 12 Years a Slave (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
Best Editing: Nat Sanders, Short Term 12 (Cinedigm)
Best International Film: Blue is the Warmest Color (France- IFC Films)
Director: Abdellatif Kechiche
Best Documentary: 20 Feet From Stardom (Radius-TWC)
Director/Producer: Morgan Neville, Producers: Gil Friesen, Caitrin Rogers
The 2014 Roger and Chaz Ebert Fellowship which includes a cash grant of $10,000 was awarded to Lulu Wang. This annual award is given to a filmmaker currently participating in Film Independent’s signature diversity mentorship program, Project Involve. Wang wrote and directed her first feature film Posthumous set in Berlin, starring Jack Huston and Brit Marling.
The Bright Future Award, sponsored by Unilever Project Sunlight, honors a filmmaker whose work best exemplifies a commitment to telling stories of positive change in the world. The inaugural Bright Future Award recipient is Patrick Creadon, whose film, If You Build It, exemplifies the power of hands-on education and the impact a few budding creative minds can have on the future of a community. The award includes a $25,000 unrestricted grant funded by Unilever Project Sunlight.
