The 2018 Independent Spirit Award nominations are in. Two of five Best Feature nominees are women-directed: Greta Gerwig’s universally adored “Lady Bird,” a coming-of-age story about a Sacramento-based teen, and Chloé Zhao’s “The Rider,” an award-winning portrait of a cowboy coping with the aftermath of a near-fatal rodeo accident.
Gerwig scored a Best Screenplay nod for “Lady Bird” — making her the only woman in this category — but her name was notably absent from the Best Director nominees. Zhao is the sole female filmmaker included in that category.
Atsuko Hirayanagi’s “Oh Lucy!” received a nod for Best First Feature. The comedy about a lonely office worker is the only woman-directed film up for that award.
Female filmmakers fared well in the Best Documentary category, where three of five films are helmed or co-helmed by women: Lana Wilson’s “The Departure,” Agnés Varda’s “Faces Places,” which she collaborated on with JR, and Ramona S. Diaz’s “Motherland.”
One title we are thrilled to see get some much-deserved attention is Rungano Nyoni’s “I Am Not a Witch,” which is the only film directed by a woman up for the Best International Film award. The drama follows a little girl who is accused of witchcraft by locals in her rural Zambian village.
The Robert Altman Award will go to the “Mudbound” team. Co-written and directed by Dee Rees, the Oscar hopeful is set in post-WWII south and follows two vets as they return home to Mississippi. Strangely the critical darling received no other recognition, and many are — understandably — wondering why it didn’t get more nods.
New this year, the Bonnie Award recognizes a mid-career female director with a $50,000 grant. The inaugural nominees are Zhao, So Yong Kim (“Lovesong”), and Lynn Shelton (“Laggies”).
Check out all of the women up for Independent Spirit Awards below. The event will take place March 3 and be broadcast live exclusively on IFC.
BEST FEATURE
(Award given to the producer. Executive Producers are not awarded.)
Lady Bird
Producers: Eli Bush, Evelyn O’Neill, Scott Rudin
The Rider
Producers: Mollye Asher, Bert Hamelinck, Sacha Ben Harroche, Chloé Zhao
BEST FIRST FEATURE
(Award given to the director and producer)
Oh Lucy!
Director/Producer: Atsuko Hirayanagi
Producers: Jessica Elbaum, Yukie Kito, Han West
JOHN CASSAVETES AWARD — Given to the best feature made for under $500,000. (Award given to the writer, director and producer. Executive Producers are not awarded.)
Most Beautiful Island
Writer/Director/Producer: Ana Asensio
Producers: Larry Fessenden, Noah Greenberg, Chadd Harbold, Jenn Wexler
BEST DIRECTOR
Chloé Zhao
The Rider
BEST SCREENPLAY
Greta Gerwig
Lady Bird
BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY
Emily V. Gordon, Kumail Nanjiani
The Big Sick
Ingrid Jungermann
Women Who Kill
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Hélène Louvart
Beach Rats
BEST EDITING
Tatiana S. Riegel
I, Tonya
BEST FEMALE LEAD
Salma Hayek
Beatriz at Dinner
Frances McDormand
Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri
Margot Robbie
I, Tonya
Saoirse Ronan
Lady Bird
Shinobu Terajima
Oh Lucy!
Regina Williams
Life and nothing more
BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE
Holly Hunter
The Big Sick
Allison Janney
I, Tonya
Laurie Metcalf
Lady Bird
Lois Smith
Marjorie Prime
Taliah Lennice Webster
Good Time
ROBERT ALTMAN AWARD — Given to one film’s director, casting director and ensemble cast
Mudbound
Director: Dee Rees
Casting Directors: Billy Hopkins, Ashley Ingram
Ensemble Cast: Jonathan Banks, Mary J. Blige, Jason Clarke, Garrett Hedlund, Jason Mitchell, Rob Morgan, Carey Mulligan
BEST DOCUMENTARY (Award given to the director and producer)
The Departure
Director/Producer: Lana Wilson
Faces Places
Directors: Agnés Varda, JR
Producer: Rosalie Varda
Motherland
Director/Producer: Ramona S. Diaz
Producer: Rey Cuerdo
BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM (Award given to the director)
I Am Not a Witch
Zambia
Director: Rungano Nyoni
BONNIE AWARD — Bonnie Tiburzi Caputo joined American Airlines in 1973 at age 24, becoming the first female pilot to fly for a major U.S. airline. In her honor, the inaugural Bonnie Award will recognize a mid-career female director with a $50,000 unrestricted grant, sponsored by American Airlines.
So Yong Kim
Lynn Shelton
Chloé Zhao
JEEP TRUER THAN FICTION AWARD — The 23rd annual Truer Than Fiction Award, funded by the Jeep brand, is presented to an emerging director of non-fiction features who has not yet received significant recognition. The award includes a $25,000 unrestricted grant funded by the Jeep brand.
Shevaun Mizrahi
Director of Distant Constellation
PIAGET PRODUCERS AWARD — The 21st annual Producers Award, funded by Piaget, honors emerging producers who, despite highly limited resources, demonstrate the creativity, tenacity and vision required to produce quality, independent films. The award includes a $25,000 unrestricted grant funded by Piaget.
Giulia Caruso (and Ki Jin Kim)
Summer Shelton
