Independent Spirit Nominations

Last week the Independent Spirit nominations were announced. Two very good films, Half Nelson and Little Miss Sunshine, got numerous nominations. And A Prairie Home Companion, Robert Altman's last film, got a few nods. But there were some very obscure films that also received nominations. This makes for a most interesting contest.

The Spirit awards will be broadcast live on the IFC channel on Saturday, February 24, 2007 at 5 pm EST.

Best Feature:
"American Gun""The Dead Girl""Half Nelson""Little Miss Sunshine""Pan's Labyrinth"

Best Director:
Robert Altman, "A Prairie Home Companion"Jonathan Dayton, Valerie Faris, "Little Miss Sunshine"Ryan Fleck, "Half Nelson"Karen Moncrieff, "The Dead Girl"Steven Soderbergh, "Bubble"

Best First Feature:
"Day Night Day Night""Man Push Cart""The Motel""Sweet Land""Wristcutters: A Love Story"

Best Documentary:
"A Lion in the House""My Country, My Country""The Road to Guantanamo""The Trials of Darryl Hunt""You're Gonna Miss Me"

Best Foreign Film:
"12:08 East of Bucharest""The Blossoming of Maximo Oliveros""Chronicle of an Escape""Days of Glory""The Lives of Others"

Best Female Lead:
Shareeka Epps, "Half Nelson"Catherine O'Hara, "For Your Consideration"Elizabeth Reaser, "Sweet Land"Michelle Williams, "Land of Plenty"Robin Wright Penn, "Sorry, Haters"

Best Male Lead:
Aaron Eckhart, "Thank You For Smoking"Ryan Gosling, "Half Nelson"Edward Norton, "The Painted Veil"Ahmad Razvi, "Man Push Cart"Forest Whitaker, "American Gun"

Best Supporting Female:
Melonie Diaz, "A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints"Marcia Gay Harden, "American Gun"Mary Beth Hurt, "The Dead Girl"Frances McDormand, "Friends With Money"Amber Tamblyn, "Stephanie Daley"

Best Supporting Male:
Alan Arkin, "Little Miss Sunshine"Raymond J. Barry, "Steel City"Daniel Craig, "Infamous"Paul Dano, "Little Miss Sunshine"Channing Tatum, "A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints"

Best Screenplay:
Neil Burger, "The Illusionist"Nicole Holofcener, "Friends with Money"Ron Nyswaner, "The Painted Veil"Jason Reitman, "Thank You For Smoking"Jeff Stanzler, "Sorry, Haters"

Best First Screenplay:
Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, "Half Nelson"Michael Arndt, "Little Miss Sunshine"Goran Dukic, "Wristcutters: A Love Story"Dito Montiel, "A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints"Gabrielle Zevin, "Conversations with Other Women"

Best Cinematography:
Arin Crumley, "Four Eyed Monsters"Anthony Dod Mantle, "Brothers of the Head"Guillermo Navarro, "Pan's Labyrinth"Aaron Platt, "Wild Tigers I Have Known"Michael Simmonds, "Man Push Cart"

Someone to Watch Award:
So Yong Kim, "In Between Days"Julia Loktev, "Day Night Day Night"Richard Wong, "Colma: The Musical"

John Cassavetes Award:
"Chalk""Four Eyed Monsters""Old Joy""Quinceañera""Twelve and Holding"

Truer Than Fiction Award:
AJ Schnack, "Kurt Cobain: About a Son"Adele Horne, "The Tailenders"Eric Daniel Metzgar, "The Chances of the World Changing"

Producers Award:
Julie Lynn, "Nine Lives," "10 Items or Less"Alex Orlovsky and Jamie Patricof, "Half Nelson," "Point&Shoot"Howard Gertler and Tim Perell, "Shortbus," "Pizza"

Special Distinction:
David Lynch, Laura Dern, "Inland Empire"