The 37th Film Independent Spirit Awards, honoring the best independent films and television series of 2021, were presented by Film Independent on March 6, 2022. Traditionally held the Saturday before the

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence in ...

, the 2022 date marks a shift in the season, placing the Spirit Awards squarely in the corridor leading into Oscar voting. The nominations were announced on December 14, 2021, by actresses

Beanie Feldstein Elizabeth Greer "Beanie" Feldstein (born June 24, 1993) is an American actress. She first gained recognition for her starring roles in the comedy film '' Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising'' (2016), the comedy-drama film '' Lady Bird'' (2017), and the ...

Regina Hall Regina Lee Hall (born December 12, 1970) is an American actress. She rose to prominence for her role as Brenda Meeks in the comedy horror ''Scary Movie'' film series (2000–2006). Hall received critical acclaim for her role in the film '' Sup ...

, and

Naomi Watts Naomi Ellen Watts (born 28 September 1968) is a British actress. Known for her work predominantly in independent films with dark or tragic themes, she has received various accolades, including nominations for two Academy Awards, a Primetime ...

. Returning to an in-person ceremony this year, the event was televised in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

on IFC and streamed exclusively for subscribers by

AMC+ AMC+ is an American subscription video on demand streaming service owned by AMC Networks that was launched on June 11, 2020. The service is a premium bundle that includes the live feeds and program libraries of the company's television networks ...

. Married couple

Megan Mullally Megan Mullally (born November 12, 1958) is an American actress. She is best known for playing Karen Walker in the NBC sitcom '' Will & Grace'' (1998–2006, 2017–2020), for which she received eight Primetime Emmy Award nominations for Outst ...

and

Nick Offerman Nicholas David Offerman (born June 26, 1970) is an American actor. He became widely known for his role as Ron Swanson in the NBC sitcom '' Parks and Recreation'' (2009–2015), for which he received the Television Critics Association Award fo ...

hosted the ceremony. The grant recipients for the Emerging Filmmakers Awards were announced on February 10, 2022.

Winners and nominees

Film

Films with multiple nominations and awards

Television

Series with multiple nominations and awards

Special awards

John Cassavetes Award The Independent Spirit John Cassavetes Award is presented to the creative team of a film budgeted at less than $1,000,000 by the Film Independent, a non-profit organization dedicated to independent film and independent filmmakers. It is named aft ...

(The award is given to the best feature made for under $500,000; the award is given to the writer, director, and producer) ''

Shiva Baby ''Shiva Baby'' is a 2020 American comedy film written and directed by Emma Seligman, in her feature directorial debut. The film stars Rachel Sennott as Danielle, a directionless young bisexual Jewish woman who attends a with her parents, Joel ...

'' * ''

Cryptozoo ''Cryptozoo'' is a 2021 American adult animated drama film written and directed by Dash Shaw. It features an ensemble cast as Lake Bell, Michael Cera, Angeliki Papoulia, Zoe Kazan, Peter Stormare, Grace Zabriskie, Louisa Krause and Thomas Ja ...

'' * ''

Jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase (horse racing), steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used ...

'' * ''Sweet Thing'' * ''

This Is Not a War Story ''This Is Not a War Story'' is a 2021 American war drama film written by, directed by, edited by and starring Talia Lugacy. Summary A group of ragtag New York veterans create art that dealt with the aftermath of war. Cast *Talia Lugacy as Isabel ...

Robert Altman Award

(The award is given to one film's director, casting director, and ensemble cast) * ''

Mass Mass is an Intrinsic and extrinsic properties, intrinsic property of a physical body, body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the physical quantity, quantity of matter in a body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physi ...

'' –

Fran Kranz Francis Elliott Kranz is an American actor and film director. He is known for his portrayal of Topher Brink in the science fiction drama series ''Dollhouse''. Kranz had prominent roles in the films ''The Cabin in the Woods'' and ''Much Ado About ...

(director), Henry Russell Bergstein (casting director), Allison Estrin (casting director), Kagen Albright,

Reed Birney Reed Birney (born September 11, 1954) is an American actor. Birney is known for his performances on stage and screen often acting on and off Broadway. Birney gained acclaim in 2016 for his role in '' The Humans'' winning the Tony Award for Best ...

, Michelle N. Carter,

Ann Dowd Ann Dowd (born January 30, 1956) is an American actress. She has appeared in numerous films, including '' Green Card'' (1990), ''Lorenzo's Oil'' (1992), ''Philadelphia'' (1993), '' Garden State'' (2004), '' The Manchurian Candidate'' (2004), '' M ...

Jason Isaacs Jason Isaacs (born 6 June 1963) is an English actor. He is best known for his portrayal of D.J. in ''Event Horizon'' (1997), Ronald Quincy in ''Armageddon'' (1998), Colonel William Tavington in '' The Patriot'' (2000), Michael D. Steele in '' ...

Martha Plimpton Martha Plimpton (born November 16, 1970) is an American actress and member of the Carradine family. She started her career as a teen actress in film before transitioning to adult roles on stage and screen. She has received several awards includ ...

, and

Breeda Wool Breeda Wool is an American actress, writer and producer. She is best known for her roles as Lou Linklatter in the Audience crime drama series '' Mr. Mercedes'' (2017–2019) and Faith Duluth in the Lifetime/Hulu drama series ''UnREAL'' (2015� ...

Emerging Filmmakers Awards

Producers Award

The award 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. * Lizzie Shapiro – ''

'' ** Brad Becker-Parton – '' Italian Studies'' ** Pin-Chun Liu – ''

Test Pattern A test card, also known as a test pattern or start-up/closedown test, is a television test signal, typically broadcast at times when the transmitter is active but no program is being broadcast (often at sign-on and sign-off). Used since the ear ...

Someone to Watch Award The Someone to Watch Award is an emerging filmmaker award presented by Film Independent Spirit Awards that recognizes a talented filmmaker of singular vision who has not yet received appropriate recognition. History The award includes a $25,000 un ...

The award recognizes talented filmmakers of singular vision who have not yet received appropriate recognition. The award includes a $25,000 unrestricted grant. * Alex Camilleri – ''

Luzzu A ''luzzu'' (; ) is a traditional fishing boat from the Maltese islands. This type of boat developed in the early 20th century, although it is very similar to much older traditional Maltese boats such as the '' ferilla''. They are usually painte ...

'' ** Gillian Wallace Horvat – ''I Blame Society'' **

Michael Sarnoski Michael Sarnoski is an American filmmaker, who wrote and directed the films ''Pig'' (2021) and '' A Quiet Place: Day One'' (2024). For ''Pig'', he received numerous awards and nominations. His next film is '' The Death of Robin Hood'', with a re ...

– ''

Pig The pig (''Sus domesticus''), also called swine (: swine) or hog, is an omnivorous, domesticated, even-toed, hoofed mammal. It is named the domestic pig when distinguishing it from other members of the genus '' Sus''. Some authorities cons ...

Truer than Fiction Award

The award 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. *

Jessica Beshir Jessica Beshir (born 1988) is a Mexican documentary filmmaker. After directing several documentary shorts, she made her feature film debut with ''Faya Dayi'' (2021) which she won several awards for. Biography Jessica Beshir was born in 1988 in ...

– ''

Faya Dayi ''Faya Dayi'' is a 2021 American-Ethiopian documentary film, directed, written, starring and produced by Jessica Beshir. It explores the rituals of khat, a psychoactive plant that plays an important role in Ethiopia's economy and culture. The fi ...

'' **

Debbie Lum Deborah Lum is an American documentary filmmaker based in San Francisco. Her projects frequently explore subject matters within the Asian and Asian American community. She has had a long working relationship with ITVS. Career Lum worked for se ...

– ''

Try Harder! ''Try Harder!'' is a 2021 American documentary film, directed and produced by Debbie Lum. It follows students at Lowell High School as they apply and hope for admission to the college of their dreams. It had its world premiere at the Sundance ...

'' **

Angelo Madsen Minax Angelo Madsen Minax (born 1983) is an American filmmaker and interdisciplinary artist. Life and career Angelo Madsen Minax was born in Petoskey, Michigan in the US in 1983. He studied art at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and at Nor ...

– ''North by Current''

References

External links

* {{IS Awards Chron 2021 film awards 2021 television awards Independent Spirit Awards 2022 awards in the United States

Winners and nominees

Film

Films with multiple nominations and awards

Television

Series with multiple nominations and awards

Special awards

John Cassavetes Award The Independent Spirit John Cassavetes Award is presented to the creative team of a film budgeted at less than $1,000,000 by the Film Independent, a non-profit organization dedicated to independent film and independent filmmakers. It is named aft ...

Robert Altman Award

Emerging Filmmakers Awards

Producers Award

Someone to Watch Award The Someone to Watch Award is an emerging filmmaker award presented by Film Independent Spirit Awards that recognizes a talented filmmaker of singular vision who has not yet received appropriate recognition. History The award includes a $25,000 un ...

Truer than Fiction Award

See also

References

External links