February 22, 2025
Film Independent, the nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering independence and inclusivity in visual storytelling, handed out top honors February 22 at the 2025 Film Independent Spirit Awards. Hosted for the second year in a row by acclaimed comedian Aidy Bryant, the awards ceremony was broadcast live on IMDb’s and Film Independent’s YouTube channels. The Spirit Awards are Film Independent’s largest annual celebration, making year-round programming for filmmakers and film loving audiences possible, while amplifying the voices of independent storytellers and celebrating their diversity, originality and uniqueness of vision.
This year’s ceremony, the 40th in Film Independent’s history, celebrated both the best of the past year in film and television as well as the organization’s storied history of supporting independent artists. This included paying touching tribute to Josh Welsh, the beloved longtime president of Film Independent who passed away recently after a courageous five-year battle with cancer.
For this year’s awards, Anora led the way in the film categories with three wins, including Best Feature, Best Director for Sean Baker, and Best Lead Performance for Mikey Madison. Among the other films and artists honored, A Real Pain won Best Supporting Performance for Kieran Culkin and Best Screenplay for Jesse Eisenberg; Maisy Stella won Best Breakthrough Performance for My Old Ass; Dìdi won Best First Feature and Best First Screenplay for Sean Wang; Flow won Best International Film; No Other Land won Best Documentary; Best Cinematography went to Jomo Fray for Nickel Boys; and Hansjörg Weissbrich won Best Editing for September 5.
For the fifth time in its history, the Spirit Awards also honored exceptional content in television. This year’s major winners in the TV categories were Baby Reindeer, which won three awards including Best Lead Performance in a New Scripted Series for Richard Gadd, Best Supporting Performance in a New Scripted Series for Nava Mau, and Best Breakthrough Performance in a New Scripted Series for Jessica Gunning; Shōgun, which won Best New Scripted Series; Hollywood Black, which won Best New Non-Scripted or Documentary Series; and How to Die Alone, which won Best Ensemble Cast in a New Scripted Series.
The 17th annual Robert Altman Award, which was created in 2008 in honor of legendary film director Robert Altman, who was known for creating extraordinary ensemble casts, was awarded to His Three Daughters director Azazel Jacobs, alongside casting director Nicole Arbusto, as well as ensemble cast members Jovan Adepo, Jasmine Bracey, Carrie Coon, Jose Febus, Rudy Galvan, Natasha Lyonne, Elizabeth Olsen, Randy Ramos Jr. and Jay O. Sanders.
Girls Will Be Girls was honored with the John Cassavetes Award, given to the best feature made for under $1,000,000. Also celebrated were the previously announced honors including Sarah Friedland of Familiar Touch with the Someone to Watch Award, recognizing a filmmaker of singular vision who has not yet received appropriate recognition; Rachel Elizabeth Seed of A Photographic Memory with the Truer Than Fiction Award, presented to an emerging director of nonfiction features who has yet to receive significant recognition; and Sarah Winshall with the Producers Award, honoring emerging producers who demonstrate the creativity, tenacity and vision required to produce quality independent films with limited resources.
The winners of the Film Independent Spirit Awards are voted on by Film Independent Members. Membership is open to the public.
Film Independent Spirit Awards are supported by Premier Sponsor Lavazza Coffee, Principal Sponsor IMDbPro and Official Partners Bulleit Frontier Whiskey, FIJI Water and Miraval. Easterseals Disability Services is the accessibility partner. Hotel Casa del Mar and The Georgian are the Official Hotels. Pentagram is the Visual Branding Partner. Getty Images is the Official Photographer. Vision Media is the exclusive screening partner. American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Caffeine Post, Cast & Crew, eTech Rentals, Illuminar and Town and Country Event Rentals are Official Providers.
Here is the complete list of nominees and winners for the 2025 Film Independent Spirit Awards:
*=winner
BEST FEATURE
(Award given to the producer)
Anora*
Producers: Sean Baker, Alex Coco, Samantha Quan*
I Saw the TV Glow
Producers: Ali Herting, Sam Intili, Dave McCary, Emma Stone, Sarah Winshall
Nickel Boys
Producers: Joslyn Barnes, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, David Levine
Sing Sing
Producers: Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar, Monique Walton
The Substance
Producers: Tim Bevan, Coralie Fargeat, Eric Fellner
BEST FIRST FEATURE
(Award given to director and producer)
Dìdi*
Director/Producer: Sean Wang*
Producers: Valerie Bush, Carlos López Estrada, Josh Peters*
In the Summers
Director: Alessandra Lacorazza Samudio
Producers: Janek Ambros, Lynette Coll, Alexander Dinelaris, Cynthia Fernandez De La Cruz, Cristóbal Güell, Sergio Alberto Lira, Rob Quadrino, Jan Suter, Daniel Tantalean, Nando Vila, Slava Vladimirov, Stephanie Yankwitt
Janet Planet
Director/Producer: Annie Baker
Producers: Andrew Goldman, Dan Janvey, Derrick Tseng
The Piano Lesson
Director: Malcolm Washington
Producers: Todd Black, Denzel Washington
Problemista
Director/Producer: Julio Torres
Producers: Ali Herting, Dave McCary, Emma Stone
JOHN CASSAVETES AWARD
Given to the best feature made for under $1,000,000. (Award given to the writer, director, and producer)
Big Boys
Writer/Director/Producer: Corey Sherman
Producer: Allison Tate
Ghostlight
Writer/Director: Kelly O’Sullivan
Director/Producer: Alex Thompson
Producers: Pierce Cravens, Ian Keiser, Chelsea Krant, Eddie Linker, Alex Wilson
Girls Will Be Girls*
Writer/Director/Producer: Shuchi Talati*
Producers: Richa Chadha, Claire Chassagne*
Jazzy
Writer/Director/Producer: Morrisa Maltz
Writer/Producer: Lainey Shangreaux
Writers: Andrew Hajek, Vanara Taing
Producers: Miranda Bailey, Tommy Heitkamp, John Way, Natalie Whalen, Elliott Whitton
The People’s Joker
Writer/Director: Vera Drew
Writer: Bri LeRose
Producer: Joey Lyons
BEST DIRECTOR
Ali Abbasi
The Apprentice
Sean Baker*
Anora*
Brady Corbet
The Brutalist
Alonso Ruizpalacios
La Cocina
Jane Schoenbrun
I Saw the TV Glow
BEST SCREENPLAY
Scott Beck, Bryan Woods
Heretic
Jesse Eisenberg*
A Real Pain*
Megan Park
My Old Ass
Aaron Schimberg
A Different Man
Jane Schoenbrun
I Saw the TV Glow
BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY
Joanna Arnow
The Feeling That the Time for Doing Something Has Passed
Annie Baker
Janet Planet
India Donaldson
Good One
Julio Torres
Problemista
Sean Wang*
Dìdi*
BEST LEAD PERFORMANCE
Amy Adams
Nightbitch
Ryan Destiny
The Fire Inside
Colman Domingo
Sing Sing
Keith Kupferer
Ghostlight
Mikey Madison*
Anora*
Demi Moore
The Substance
Hunter Schafer
Cuckoo
Justice Smith
I Saw the TV Glow
June Squibb
Thelma
Sebastian Stan
The Apprentice
BEST SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE
Yura Borisov
Anora
Joan Chen
Dìdi
Kieran Culkin*
A Real Pain*
Danielle Deadwyler
The Piano Lesson
Carol Kane
Between the Temples
Karren Karagulian
Anora
Kani Kusruti
Girls Will Be Girls
Brigette Lundy-Paine
I Saw the TV Glow
Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin
Sing Sing
Adam Pearson
A Different Man
BEST BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE
Isaac Krasner
Big Boys
Katy O’Brian
Love Lies Bleeding
Mason Alexander Park
National Anthem
René Pérez Joglar
In the Summers
Maisy Stella*
My Old Ass*
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Dinh Duy Hung
Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell
Jomo Fray*
Nickel Boys*
Maria von Hausswolff
Janet Planet
Juan Pablo Ramírez
La Cocina
Rina Yang
The Fire Inside
BEST EDITING
Laura Colwell, Vanara Taing
Jazzy
Olivier Bugge Coutté, Olivia Neergaard-Holm
The Apprentice
Anne McCabe
Nightbitch
Hansjörg Weissbrich*
September 5
Arielle Zakowski
Dìdi
ROBERT ALTMAN AWARD
Given to one film’s director, casting director, and ensemble cast.
His Three Daughters
Director: Azazel Jacobs
Casting Director: Nicole Arbusto
Ensemble Cast: Jovan Adepo, Jasmine Bracey, Carrie Coon, Jose Febus, Rudy Galvan, Natasha Lyonne, Elizabeth Olsen, Randy Ramos Jr., Jay O. Sanders
BEST DOCUMENTARY
(Award given to the director and producer)
Gaucho Gaucho
Directors/Producers: Michael Dweck, Gregory Kershaw
Producers: Christos Konstantakopoulos, Cameron O’Reilly, Matthew Perniciaro
Hummingbirds
Directors: Silvia Del Carmen Castaños, Estefanía “Beba” Contreras
Co-Directors/Producers: Miguel Drake-McLaughlin, Diane Ng, Ana Rodriguez-Falco, Jillian Schlesinger
Producers: Leslie Benavides, Rivkah Beth Medow
No Other Land*
Directors/Producers: Yuval Abraham, Basel Adra, Hamdan Ballal, Rachel Szor*
Producers: Fabien Greenberg, Bård Kjøge Rønning*
Patrice: The Movie
Director: Ted Passon
Producers: Kyla Harris, Innbo Shim, Emily Spivack
Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat
Director: Johan Grimonprez
Producers: Rémi Grellety, Daan Milius
BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM
(Award given to the director)
All We Imagine as Light
France, India, Netherlands, Luxembourg
Director: Payal Kapadia
Black Dog
China
Director: Guan Hu
Flow*
Latvia, France, Belgium*
Director: Gints Zilbalodis*
Green Border
Poland, France, Czech Republic, Belgium
Director: Agnieszka Holland
Hard Truths
United Kingdom
Director: Mike Leigh
PRODUCERS AWARD presented by Bulleit Frontier Whiskey
The Producers Award, now in its 28th year, honors emerging producers who, despite highly limited resources, demonstrate the creativity, tenacity, and vision required to produce quality independent films.
Alex Coco
Sarah Winshall*
Zoë Worth
SOMEONE TO WATCH AWARD
The Someone to Watch Award, now in its 31st year, recognizes a talented filmmaker of singular vision who has not yet received appropriate recognition.
Nicholas Colia
Director of Griffin in Summer
Sarah Friedland*
Director of Familiar Touch*
Pham Thien An
Director of Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell
TRUER THAN FICTION AWARD
The Truer Than Fiction Award, now in its 30th year, is presented to an emerging director of non-fiction features who has not yet received significant recognition.
Julian Brave NoiseCat, Emily Kassie
Directors of Sugarcane
Carla Gutiérrez
Director of Frida
Rachel Elizabeth Seed*
Director of A Photographic Memory
BEST NEW NON-SCRIPTED OR DOCUMENTARY SERIES
(Award given to the Creator, Executive Producer, Co-Executive Producer)
Erased: WW2’s Heroes of Color
Executive Producers: Idris Elba, Johanna Woolford Gibbon, Jamilla Dumbuya, Jos Cushing, Khaled Gad, Matt Robins, Chris Muckle, Sean David Johnson, Simon Raikes
Co-Executive Producer: Annabel Hobley
Hollywood Black*
Executive Producers: Shayla Harris, Dave Sirulnick, Stacey Reiss, Jon Kamen, Justin Simien, Kyle Laursen, Forest Whitaker, Nina Yang Bongiovi, Jeffrey Schwarz, Amy Goodman Kass, Michael Wright, Jill Burkhart*
Co-Executive Producers: David C. Brown, Laurens Grant*
Photographer
Executive Producers: Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, Jimmy Chin, Pagan Harleman, Betsy Forhan
Co-Executive Producers: Anna Barnes, Brent Kunkle
Ren Faire
Executive Producers: Ronald Bronstein, Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie, Eli Bush, Dani Bernfeld, Lance Oppenheim, David Gauvey Herbert, Nancy Abraham, Lisa Heller, Sara Rodriguez
Co-Executive Producers: Abigail Rowe, Christian Vasquez, Max Allman
Social Studies
Creator/Executive Producer: Lauren Greenfield
Executive Producers: Wallis Annenberg, Regina K. Scully, Andrea van Beuren, Frank Evers, Caryn Capotosto
BEST NEW SCRIPTED SERIES
(Award given to the Creator, Executive Producer, Co-Executive Producer)
Baby Reindeer
Creator/Executive Producer: Richard Gadd
Executive Producers: Wim De Greef, Petra Fried, Matt Jarvis, Ed Macdonald
Diarra From Detroit
Creator/Executive Producer: Diarra Kilpatrick
Executive Producers: Kenya Barris, Miles Orion Feldsott, Darren Goldberg
Co-Executive Producers: Ester Lou, Mark Ganek
English Teacher
Creator/Executive Producer: Brian Jordan Alvarez
Executive Producers: Paul Simms, Jonathan Krisel, Dave King
Co-Executive Producers: Kathryn Dean, Jake Bender, Zach Dunn
Fantasmas
Creator/Executive Producer: Julio Torres
Executive Producers: Emma Stone, Dave McCary, Olivia Gerke, Alex Bach, Daniel Powell
Co-Executive Producer: Ali Herting
Shōgun*
Creators/Executive Producers: Rachel Kondo, Justin Marks
Executive Producers: Edward L. McDonnell, Michael De Luca, Michaela Clavell
Co-Executive Producers: Shannon Goss, Andrew Macdonald, Allon Reich
BEST LEAD PERFORMANCE IN A NEW SCRIPTED SERIES
Brian Jordan Alvarez
English Teacher
Richard Gadd*
Baby Reindeer
Lily Gladstone
Under the Bridge
Kathryn Hahn
Agatha All Along
Cristin Milioti
The Penguin
Julianne Moore
Mary & George
Hiroyuki Sanada
Shōgun
Anna Sawai
Shōgun
Andrew Scott
Ripley
Julio Torres
Fantasmas
BEST SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE IN A NEW SCRIPTED SERIES
Tadanobu Asano
Shōgun
Enrico Colantoni
English Teacher
Betty Gilpin
Three Women
Chloe Guidry
Under the Bridge
Moeka Hoshi
Shōgun
Stephanie Koenig
English Teacher
Patti LuPone
Agatha All Along
Nava Mau*
Baby Reindeer
Ruth Negga
Presumed Innocent
Brian Tee
Expats
BEST BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE IN A NEW SCRIPTED SERIES
Jessica Gunning*
Baby Reindeer
Diarra Kilpatrick
Diarra From Detroit
Joe Locke
Agatha All Along
Megan Stott
Penelope
Hoa Xuande
The Sympathizer
BEST ENSEMBLE CAST IN A NEW SCRIPTED SERIES
How to Die Alone
Ensemble Cast: Melissa DuPrey, Jaylee Hamidi, KeiLyn Durrel Jones, Arkie Kandola, Elle Lorraine, Michelle McLeod, Chris “CP” Powell, Conrad Ricamora, Natasha Rothwell, Jocko Sims
