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NOMINEES ANNOUNCED FOR IFP’S 21st ANNUAL GOTHAM INDEPENDENT FILM AWARDS

Posted Thursday, October 20th, 2011 - Comments Off on NOMINEES ANNOUNCED FOR IFP’S 21st ANNUAL GOTHAM INDEPENDENT FILM AWARDS
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Monday, November 28that Cipriani Wall Street

The Descendants and Martha Marcy May Marlene Receive Three Nominations Each

Beginners and Take Shelter Both Receive Two Nominations

New York, NY (October 20, 2011) – The Independent Filmmaker Project (IFP), the nation’s oldest and largest organization of independent filmmakers announced today the nominees for the Gotham Independent Film Awards.  Signaling the kick-off to the film awards season, IFP’s Gotham Independent Film Awards nominations were given to a total of 24 films across six competitive categories for Best Feature, Best Documentary, Breakthrough Director, Breakthrough Actor, Best Ensemble Performance, and Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You.

The Gotham Awards’ ceremony will be held on Monday, November 28th at Cipriani Wall Street.  In addition to the competitive awards, Charlize Theron, Gary Oldman, David Cronenberg and  Tom Rothman will each be presented with a career tribute.

As the first major awards ceremony of the film season, the Gotham Independent Film Awards provide critical early recognition and media attention to worthy independent films. Previous winners for Best Feature and Best Documentary include WINTER’S BONE (2010), THE OATH (2010), THE HURT LOCKER (2009), FOOD, INC (2009), FROZEN RIVER (2008) and TROUBLE THE WATER (2008). The awards are also unique for their ability to assist in catapulting award recipients prominently into national awards season attention, including recent winners and ultimate Oscar contenders: feature winners WINTER’S BONE (2010) and THE HURT LOCKER (2009); Breakthrough Actors Melissa Leo (2008), Ellen Page (2007), Rinko Kikuchi (2006) and Amy Adams (2005).

Primary criteria for nomination consideration includes American (US-based or US-born directors and producers), feature-length films made with a point of view. Additional criteria include independently distributed films made with an economy of means. For a complete list of criteria, see http://gotham.ifp.org.

Selecting this year’s nominees were 21 film critics, journalists, and curators (see list below). Separate juries of writers, directors, actors, producers, editors and others directly involved in making films will determine final award recipients.

“The high caliber of this year’s Gotham Awards nominees’ work is truly remarkable,” said Joana Vicente, Executive Director of IFP. “This extraordinary group of filmmakers and talent, both established and new, are breaking barriers and finding fresh, innovative ways to engage audiences through unique storytelling.  We’re passionate about shedding light on well deserved independent cinema and excited to begin what is sure to be a momentous awards season.”

The nominees for the 21st Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards are:

Best Feature

Beginners

Mike Mills, director; Leslie Urdang, Dean Vanech, Miranda de Pencier, Jay Van Hoy, Lars Knudsen, producers (Focus Features)

The Descendants

Alexander Payne, director; Jim Burke, Alexander Payne, Jim Taylor, producers (Fox Searchlight Pictures)

Meek’s Cutoff

Kelly Reichardt, director; Neil Kopp, Anish Savjani, Elizabeth Cuthrell, David Urrutia, producers (Oscilloscope Laboratories)

Take Shelter

Jeff Nichols, director; Tyler Davidson, Sophia Lin, producers (Sony Pictures Classics)

The Tree of Life

Terrence Malick, director; Sarah Green, Bill Pohlad, Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner, Grant Hill, producers (Fox Searchlight Pictures)

Best Documentary

Better This World

Katie Galloway and Kelly Duane de la Vega, directors; Katie Galloway, Kelly Duane de la Vega, Mike Nicholson, producers (Loteria Films, Picturebox, Motto Pictures and Passion Pictures; ITVS in association with American Documentary | POV)

Bill Cunningham New York

Richard Press, director; Philip Gefter, producer (Zeitgeist Films)

Hell and Back Again

Danfung Dennis, director; Mike Lerner, Martin Herring, producers (Docurama Films)

The Interrupters

Steve James, director; Alex Kotlowitz, Steve James, producers (The Cinema Guild)

The Woodmans

C. Scott Willis, director; Neil Barrett, Jeff Werner, C. Scott Willis, producers (Lorber Films; Kino Lorber, Inc.)

Best Ensemble Performance

Beginners

Ewan McGregor, Christopher Plummer, Mélanie Laurent, Goran Visnjic, Kai Lennox, Mary Page Keller, Keegan Boos (Focus Features)

The Descendants

George Clooney, Shailene Woodley, Beau Bridges, Robert Forster, Judy Greer, Matthew Lillard, Nick Krause, Amara Miller, Mary Birdsong, Rob Huebel (Fox Searchlight Pictures)

Margin Call

Kevin Spacey, Paul Bettany, Jeremy Irons, Zachary Quinto, Penn Badgley, Simon Baker, Mary McDonnell, Demi Moore, Stanley Tucci, Aasif Mandvi (Roadside Attractions)

Martha Marcy May Marlene

Elizabeth Olsen, Christopher Abbott, Brady Corbet, Hugh Dancy, Maria Dizzia, Julia Garner, John Hawkes, Louisa Krause, Sarah Paulson (Fox Searchlight Pictures)

Take Shelter

Michael Shannon, Jessica Chastain, Tova Stewart, Shea Whigham, Katy Mixon, Kathy Baker, Ray McKinnon, Lisagay Hamilton, Robert Longstreet (Sony Pictures Classics)

Breakthrough Director

Mike Cahill for Another Earth (Fox Searchlight Pictures)

Sean Durkin for Martha Marcy May Marlene (Fox Searchlight Pictures)

Vera Farmiga for Higher Ground (Sony Pictures Classics)

Evan Glodell for Bellflower (Oscilloscope Laboratories)

Dee Rees for Pariah (Focus Features)

Breakthrough Actor

Felicity Jones in Like Crazy (Paramount Vantage)

Elizabeth Olsen in Martha Marcy May Marlene (Fox Searchlight Pictures)

Harmony Santana in Gun Hill Road (Motion Film Group)

Shailene Woodley in The Descendants (Fox Searchlight Pictures)

Jacob Wysocki in Terri (ATO Pictures)

Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You

Codependent Lesbian Space Alien Seeks Same

Madeleine Olnek, director; Laura Terruso, Madeleine Olnek, producers

Green

Sophia Takal, director; Lawrence Michael Levine, producer

The Redemption of General Butt Naked

Eric Strauss, Daniele Anastasion, directors and producers

Scenes of a Crime

Blue Hadaegh & Grover Babcock, directors and producers

Without

Mark Jackson, director; Mark Jackson, Jessica Dimmock, Michael Requa, Jaime Keeling, producers

New this year, IFP is proud present the inaugural euphoria Calvin Klein Spotlight on Women Filmmakers ‘Live the Dream’ grant, a $25,000 cash award for an alumnus of IFP’s Independent Filmmaker Labs. This grant aims to further the careers of emerging women directors by supporting the completion, distribution and audience engagement strategies of their first feature film.

The nominees are:

Jenny Deller, director, FUTURE WEATHER

Lucy Mulloy, director, UNA NOCHE

Rola Nashef, director, DETROIT UNLEADED

The 2nd Annual Gotham Independent Film Audience Award will be voted on again by the independent film community, 230,000 film fans worldwide.  To be eligible, a U.S. film must have won an audience award at one of the top 50 U.S. or Canadian film festivals from November 2010 through October 2011.  Voting begins today at http://gotham.ifp.org/audience_award. The nominees will be announced November 7th and the winner will be revealed at the Gotham Awards ceremony.

The recipient of the Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You award is determined by the editors of Filmmaker Magazine, a publication of IFP, and a curator from The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA). All of these nominees will also be screened for the public at MoMA from November 18–21.

The Premier Sponsors of the Gotham Independent Film Awards are Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) and The New York Times, Presenting Sponsor euphoria Calvin Klein and Calvin Klein Collection, Official Sponsors:  Heineken USA; Russian Standard Vodka; charitybuzz;  Mionetto USA; MoMA and Andaz Wall Street.  Additionally, the awards will be promoted nationally in an eight-page special advertising section in The New York Times on November 18th, 2011.

The Nominating Committees for the Gotham Independent Film Awards announced above are as follows:

Nominating Committee for Best Feature and Breakthrough Director:

Scott Foundas, Associate Program Director, Film Society of Lincoln Center; Contributing Editor, Film Comment

Ann Hornaday, Film Critic, The Washington Post

Andrew O’Hehir, Film Critic, Salon.com

Joshua Rothkopf, Senior Film Writer, DVD Editor, Time Out New York

Lisa Schwarzbaum, Film Critic, Entertainment Weekly

Nominating Committee for Best Ensemble Performance  and Breakthrough Actor:

Peter Debruge, Senior Film Critic/Associate Features Editor, Variety

Karen Durbin, Film Critic, Elle Magazine

Dave Karger, Senior Writer, Entertainment Weekly

Eric Kohn, Lead Film Critic, IndieWIRE

Rajendra Roy, The Celeste Bartos Chief Curator of Film, Museum of Modern Art

Nominating Committee for Best Documentary:

Cynthia Fuchs, Film-TV Editor, PopMatters

Sean Farnel, Documentary Consultant

Tom Hall, Director of Programming, Sarasota Film Festival; Programmer, newportFILM

Mike Maggiore, Programmer and Publicist, Film Forum

Rachel Rosen, Artistic Director, San Francisco Film Society

Nominating Committee for Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You:

Joshua Siegel, Associate Curator, Department of Film, Museum of Modern Art; and members of the editorial staff of Filmmaker Magazine: Scott Macaulay (Editor-in-Chief), Jason Guerrasio, Brandon Harris, Ray Pride, Alicia Van Couvering

2011 Gotham Independent Film Awards™ – Alphabetical List of Nominated Films

Another Earth

Breakthrough Director

Beginners

Best Feature

Best Ensemble Performance

Bellflower

Breakthrough Director

Better This World

Best Documentary

Bill Cunningham New York

Best Documentary

Codependent Lesbian Space Alien Seeks Same

Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You

The Descendants

Best Feature

Best Ensemble Performance

Breakthrough Actor

Green

Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You

Gun Hill Road

Breakthrough Actor

Hell and Back Again

Best Documentary

Higher Ground

Breakthrough Director

The Interrupters

Best Documentary

Like Crazy

Breakthrough Actor

Margin Call

Best Ensemble Performance

Martha Marcy May Marlene

Best Ensemble Performance

Breakthrough Director

Breakthrough Actor

Meek’s Cutoff

Best Feature

Pariah

Breakthrough Director

The Redemption of General Butt Naked

Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You

Scenes of a Crime

Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You

Take Shelter

Best Feature

Best Ensemble Performance

Terri

Breakthrough Actor

The Tree of Life

Best Feature

Without

Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You

The Woodmans

Best Documentary

About Independent Filmmaker Project (IFP)

The Independent Filmmaker Project (IFP) is the nation’s oldest and largest not-for-profit advocacy organization for independent filmmakers. Since its debut at the 1979 New York Film Festival, IFP has supported the production of over 7,000 films and offered resources to more than 20,000 filmmakers, providing an opportunity for many diverse voices to be heard. IFP believes that independent films enrich the universal language of cinema, seeding the global culture with new ideas, kindling awareness, and fostering activism. The organization championed the early work of pioneering independent filmmakers Charles Burnett, Todd Haynes, Mira Nair, Michael Moore, Joel and Ethan Coen, Kevin Smith, and Todd Solondz. IFP continues to play a vital role in launching first films of many of today’s rising stars on the independent scene including Debra Granik (“Down to the Bone”), Miranda July (“Me, You and Everyone We Know”), and Ryan Fleck & Anna Boden (“Half Nelson”).
IFP represents a network of 10,000 filmmakers in New York City and around the world and fosters the development of 350 feature and documentary films each year. Through its workshops, seminars, conferences, mentorships, and Filmmaker Magazine, IFP schools its members in the art, technology, and business of independent filmmaking.  The year-round program includes Independent Film Week, Envision, The Cross-Media Forum, The Gotham Awards, and the Independent Filmmaker Labs. IFP’s programs promote diverse voices in independent film by working to include racial, ethnic, religious, ideological, gender and sexual diversity. IFP, often in collaboration with other cultural institutions, builds audiences by hosting premieres and special screenings.

For more information: www.ifp.org

About the Gotham Independent Film Awards

The Gotham Independent Film Awards, selected by distinguished juries and presented in New York City, the home of independent film, are the first honors of the film awards season. This public showcase honors the filmmaking community, expands the audience for independent films, and supports the work that IFP does behind the scenes throughout the year to bring such films to fruition.

For information on attending: http://gotham.ifp.org

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I was walking down the street and I ran into Bradbury — he directed a play that I was going to do as an actor, so we know each other, but he yelled “hi” — and I’d forgot who he was.

So at my girlfriend Barbara Hershey’s urging — I was with her at that moment — she said, “Talk to him! That guy really wants to talk to you,” and I said “No, fuck him,” and keep walking.

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