The 41st Film Independent Spirit Awards nominations were revealed Wednesday in what is a very indie, natch, selection, with a Best Feature nominees list including Janus Films’ Peter Hujar’s Day, IFC’s The Plague, A24’s Sorry, Baby, Netflix’s Train Dreams and Roadside Attractions’ Twinless.
Four of the five movies made their world premieres earlier this year at the Sundance Film Festival. Charlie Polinger’s The Plague world premiered at Cannes. Republic Pictures’ Twinless, in fact, was one of the opening-day films at Sundance, while Netflix acquired Train Dreams in the high-teen millions. The latter movie, which stars Joel Edgerton as an early 20th century railroad worker and logger, is currently playing on the streamer.
Netflix, which is in the mix to buy Warner Bros Discovery, came up big at the Spirit noms this morning with a massive 18 nominations, double last year’s nine. A24, which led with 19 noms a year ago, scored the second-most noms this year with 10.
Peter Hujar’s Day had the most film noms at five, followed by Train Dreams, Blue Sun Place, One of Them Days, Mubi’s Lurker and Sorry, Baby with four apiece.
Best Director nominees included Train Dreams’ Clint Bentley, If I Had Legs I’d Kick You‘s Mary Bronstein, Lucky Lu‘s Lloyd Lee Choi, Peter Hujar’s Day‘s Ira Sachs, and Sorry, Baby‘s Eva Victor.
Film Independent only considers productions that cost under $30 million. Hence, movies such as New Line’s Weapons ($38M production cost) that are gaining traction during this awards season can’t be considered; ditto for titles such as A24’s Dwayne Johnson $50M The Smashing Machine, A24’s Josh Safdie $60M-plus production Marty Supreme, Focus Features’ $50M Bugonia, and Roadside Attractions/LD/Lionsgate’s Sundance pickup Kiss of the Spider Woman.
Last year’s Best Feature nom crop included two buzzy, apparent awards titles at the time: the Cannes-winning Anora and The Substance. Anora won Best Feature, Best Director for Sean Baker and Best Performer for Mikey Madison, a streak that would spill into the movie’s five Oscar wins — including for Best Picture, Director and Actress. That was a big deal because in post-Covid times, the Spirits haven’t been a bellwether for Oscars. Years ago when the Spirits were held on the day before Oscars, it was common to see winners from one show wind up at the next. For the titles announced here this morning, this is arguably their first big mention in this year’s awards season, though Train Dreams was nominated at The Gothams for Best Feature and Best Adapted Screenplay. Ditto for Sorry, Baby.
The Spirits also said this morning that Lionsgate’s The Long Walk, the feature take of Stephen King’s novel, will receive the Robert Altman Award for cast ensemble,and casting director.
The Spirit Awards are changing up its venue, setting its February 15, 2026 ceremony at the Hollywood Palladium after years at the beach in Santa Monica. The ceremony will be streamed live on the Film Independent and IMDb YouTube channels, and across other social platforms.
Here’s today’s full list of nominees:
BEST FEATURE (Award given to the producer)
Peter Hujar’s Day
Producers: Jonah Disend, Jordan Drake
The Plague
Producers: Derek Dauchy, Joel Edgerton, Roy Lee, Lucy McKendrick, Steven Schneider, Lizzie Shapiro
Sorry, Baby
Producers: Mark Ceryak, Barry Jenkins, Adele Romanski
Train Dreams
Producers: Michael Heimler, Will Janowitz, Marissa McMahon, Ashley Schlaifer, Teddy Schwarzman
Twinless
Producers: David Permut, James Sweeney
BEST FIRST FEATURE (Award given to director and producer)
Blue Sun Palace
Director: Constance Tsang
Producers: Sally Sujin Oh, Eli Raskin, Tony Yang
Dust Bunny
Director/Producer: Bryan Fuller
Producers: Basil Iwanyk, Erica Lee
East of Wall
Director/Producer: Kate Beecroft
Producers: Shannon Moss, Melanie Ramsayer, Lila Yacoub
Lurker
Director: Alex Russell
Producers: Galen Core, Archie Madekwe, Marc Marrie, Charlie McDowell, Francesco Melzi D’Eril, Duncan Montgomery, Alex Orlovsky, Olmo Schnabel, Jack Selby
One of Them Days
Director: Lawrence Lamont
Producers: Deniese Davis, Poppy Hanks, James Lopez, Issa Rae, Sara Rastogi
JOHN CASSAVETES AWARD – Given to the best feature made for under $1,000,000. (Award given to the writer, director and producer)
The Baltimorons
Director/Writer/Producer: Jay Duplass
Writer/Producer: Michael Strassner
Producers: David Bonnett Jr., Drew Langer
Boys Go to Jupiter
Director/Writer: Julian Glander
Eephus
Director/Writer/Producer: Carson Lund
Writer/Producer: Michael Basta
Writer: Nate Fisher
Producers: David Entin, Tyler Taormina
Esta Isla (This Island)
Directors/Writers/Producers: Cristian Carretero, Lorraine Jones Molina
Writer: Kisha Tikina Burgos
Familiar Touch
Director/Writer/Producer: Sarah Friedland
Producers: Alexandra Byer, Matthew Thurm
BEST DIRECTOR
Clint Bentley
Train Dreams
Mary Bronstein
If I Had Legs I’d Kick You
Lloyd Lee Choi
Lucky Lu
Ira Sachs
Peter Hujar’s Day
Eva Victor
Sorry, Baby
BEST SCREENPLAY
Michael Angelo Covino, Kyle Marvin
Splitsville
Angus MacLachlan
A Little Prayer
James Sweeney
Twinless
Christian Swegal
Sovereign
Eva Victor
Sorry, Baby
BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY
Andrew DeYoung
Friendship
Elena Oxman
Outerlands
Alex Russell
Lurker
Syreeta Singleton
One of Them Days
Constance Tsang
Blue Sun Palace
BEST LEAD PERFORMANCE
Everett Blunck
The Plague
Rose Byrne
If I Had Legs I’d Kick You
Kathleen Chalfant
Familiar Touch
Chang Chen
Lucky Lu
Joel Edgerton
Train Dreams
Dylan O’Brien
Twinless
Keke Palmer
One of Them Days
Théodore Pellerin
Lurker
Tessa Thompson
Hedda
Ben Whishaw
Peter Hujar’s Day
BEST SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE
Naomi Ackie
Sorry, Baby
Zoey Deutch
Nouvelle Vague
Kirsten Dunst
Roofman
Rebecca Hall
Peter Hujar’s Day
Nina Hoss
Hedda
Jane Levy
A Little Prayer
Archie Madekwe
Lurker
Kali Reis
Rebuilding
Jacob Tremblay
Sovereign
Haipeng Xu
Blue Sun Palace
BEST BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE
Liz Larsen
The Baltimorons
Misha Osherovich
She’s the He
Kayo Martin
The Plague
SZA
One of Them Days
Tabatha Zimiga
East of Wall
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Alex Ashe
Peter Hujar’s Day
Norm Li
Blue Sun Palace
David J. Thompson
Warfare
Adolpho Veloso
Train Dreams
Nicole Hirsch Whitaker
Dust Bunny
BEST EDITING
Ben Leonberg
Good Boy
Carson Lund
Eephus
Fin Oates
Warfare
Sara Shaw
Splitsville
Sofía Subercaseaux
The Testament of Ann Lee
ROBERT ALTMAN AWARD (Award given to one film’s director, casting director and ensemble cast)
The Long Walk
Director: Francis Lawrence
Casting Director: Rich Delia
Ensemble Cast: Judy Greer, Mark Hamill, Cooper Hoffman, David Jonsson, Tut Nyuot, Joshua Odjick, Charlie Plummer, Ben Wang, Garrett Wareing
BEST DOCUMENTARY (Award given to the director and producer)
Come See Me in the Good Light
Director/Producer: Ryan White
Producers: Jessica Hargrave, Tig Notaro, Stef Willen
Endless Cookie
Director: Peter Scriver
Director/Producer: Seth Scriver
Producers: Dan Bekerman, Alex Ordanis, Jason Ryle, Chris Yurkovich
My Undesirable Friends: Part I – Last Air in Moscow
Director/Producer: Julia Loktev
The Perfect Neighbor
Director/Producer: Geeta Gandbhir
Producers: Sam Bisbee, Nikon Kwantu, Alisa Payne
The Tale of Silyan
Director/Producer: Tamara Kotevska
Producers: Jean Dakar, Anna Hashmi, Jordanco Petkovski
BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM (Award given to the director)
All That’s Left of You
Palestine, Jordan, Germany, Cyprus
Director: Cherien Dabis
On Becoming a Guinea Fowl
Zambia, UK, Ireland
Director: Rungano Nyoni
A Poet
Colombia
Director: Simón Mesa Soto
The Secret Agent
Brazil
Director: Kleber Mendonça Filho
Sirāt
Spain
Director: Oliver Laxe
PRODUCERS AWARD – The Producers Award, now in its 29th year, honors an emerging producer who, despite highly limited resources, demonstrates the creativity, tenacity and vision required to produce quality independent films. This award includes a $25,000 unrestricted grant.
Emma Hannaway
Luca Intili
Tony Yang
SOMEONE TO WATCH AWARD – The Someone to Watch Award, now in its 32nd year, recognizes a talented filmmaker of singular vision who has not yet received appropriate recognition. This award includes a $25,000 unrestricted grant.
Tatti Ribeiro
Director of Valentina
Neo Sora
Director of Happyend
Annapurna Sriram
Director of Fucktoys
TRUER THAN FICTION AWARD – The Truer Than Fiction Award, now in its 31st year, is presented to an emerging director of non-fiction features who has not yet received significant recognition. This award includes a $25,000 unrestricted grant.
Tony Benna
Director of André is an Idiot
Rajee Samarasinghe
Director of Your Touch Makes Others Invisible
Brittany Shyne
Director of Seeds
BEST NEW NON-SCRIPTED OR DOCUMENTARY SERIES (Award given to the Creator, Executive Producer and Co-Executive Producer)
Citizen Nation
Creator: Bret Sigler
Executive Producers: Christopher Buck, Kyra Darnton
Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time
Executive Producers: Jonathan Chinn, Simon Chinn, Ryan Coogler, Myles Estey, Ted Skillman, Zinzi Coogler, Sev Ohanian, Peter Nicks, Kalia King, Carolyn Payne, Sean David Johnson
Co-Executive Producer: Kelli Buchanan
Pee-wee as Himself
Executive Producers: Matt Wolf, Emma Tillinger Koskoff, Ronald Bronstein, Eli Bush, Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie, Paul Reubens, Candace Tomarken, Kyle Martin, Nancy Abraham, Lisa Heller, Sara Rodriguez
Seen & Heard: The History of Black Television
Executive Producers: Issa Rae, Montrel McKay, John Maggio, Rachel Dretzin, John Ealer, Jonathan Berry, Dave Becky, Nancy Abraham, Lisa Heller, Sara Rodriguez
Co-Executive Producers: Esther Dere, Zachary Herrmann
Vow of Silence: The Assassination of Annie Mae
Executive Producers: Ezra Edelman, Caroline Waterlow, Amy Kaufman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Riva Marker
Co-Executive Producer: Mark Becker
BEST NEW SCRIPTED SERIES (Award given to the Creator, Executive Producer and Co-Executive Producer)
Adolescence
Creators/Executive Producers: Jack Thorne, Stephen Graham
Executive Producers: Philip Barantini, Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Nina Wolarsky, Hannah Walters, Mark Herbert, Emily Feller
Co-Executive Producers: Carina Sposato, Niall Shamma, Peter Balm
Common Side Effects
Creators/Executive Producers: Joe Bennett, Steve Hely
Executive Producers: Mike Judge, Greg Daniels, Dustin Davis, James Merrill, Sean Buckelew, Benjy Brooke, Kelly Crews, Suzanna Makkos
Co-Executive Producer: Dave King
Forever
Creator/Executive Producer: Mara Brock Akil
Executive Producers: Regina King, Susie Fitzgerald, Shana C. Waterman, Reina King, Anthony Hemingway, Judy Blume, Erika Harrison, Sara E. White
Co-Executive Producer: Jerron Horton
Mr Loverman
Executive Producers: Lennie James, Hong Khaou, Jo McClellan, Faye Ward, Hannah Farrell, Hannah Price
North of North
Creators/Executive Producers: Stacey Aglok MacDonald, Alethea Arnaquq-Baril
Executive Producers: Garry Campbell, Anya Adams, Susan Coyne, Miranda de Pencier
Co-Executive Producers: Teresa M. Ho, Michael Goldbach, Kathryn Borel Jr., JP Larocque
BEST LEAD PERFORMANCE IN A NEW SCRIPTED SERIES
Sydney Chandler
Alien: Earth
Stephen Graham
Adolescence
Ethan Hawke
The Lowdown
Lennie James
Mr Loverman
Anna Lambe
North of North
Lola Petticrew
Say Nothing
Seth Rogen
The Studio
Lovie Simone
Forever
Michelle Williams
Dying for Sex
Noah Wyle
The Pitt
BEST SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE IN A NEW SCRIPTED SERIES
Ariyon Bakare
Mr Loverman
Babou Ceesay
Alien: Earth
Sharon D. Clarke
Mr Loverman
Taylor Dearden
The Pitt
Erin Doherty
Adolescence
Stephen McKinley Henderson
A Man on the Inside
Poorna Jagannathan
Deli Boys
Xosha Roquemore
Forever
Jenny Slate
Dying for Sex
Ben Whishaw
Black Doves
BEST BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE IN A NEW SCRIPTED SERIES
Asif Ali
Deli Boys
Wally Baram
Overcompensating
Owen Cooper
Adolescence
Michael Cooper Jr.
Forever
Ernest Kingsley Junior
Washington Black
BEST ENSEMBLE CAST IN A NEW SCRIPTED SERIES
Chief of War
Ensemble Cast: Charlie Brumbly, Luciane Buchanan, Cliff Curtis, Brandon Finn, Moses Goods, Te Ao o Hinepehinga, Benjamin Hoetjes, Siua Ikale’o, Keala Kahuanui-Paleka, Mainei Kinimaka, Kaina Makua, Jason Momoa, Temuera Morrison, Te Kohe Tuhaka, James Udom
