Film Independent’s Indie Spirit Awards remain one of my personal favourite awards shows of the season. It’s not only an accessible organization to join, made up of genuine indie film lovers, but it’s also the rare awards show is dedicated exclusively to independent American cinema. While the budget cap is still higher than what I’d consider a independent feature, with some mid-budget studio films like The Long Walk, One of Them Days, and Roofman getting some representation here, I still think this year’s lineup does an admirable job spotlighting true independent filmmaking. Several nominees are films many viewers may not have even heard of otherwise, now gaining well-deserved recognition thanks to the Spirit Awards.
Best Feature is made up almost entirely of Sundance premieres this year, with one notable exception: The Plague, which debuted in Cannes’ Un Certain Regard section. The film is having a standout week, first earning several unexpected Critics Choice shortlist mentions, and now picking up three Spirit Award nominations, including Best Lead Performance for Everett Blunck and Best Breakthrough Performance for Kayo Martin. Peter Hujar’s Day surprisingly lead the pack, with 5 nominations including Best Director for Ira Sachs, Best Lead Performance for Ben Whishaw, Best Supporting Performance for Rebecca Hall and Best Cinematography. Ira Sachs is a huge branch favourite, as this is his fourth film to get nominated in the Best Feature category after Keep the Lights On (2012), Love Is Strange (2014), and Passages (2023). He’s never won the top prize, so considering how well Peter Hujar’s Day did with nominations, this could be his year. That film seems to have really resonated with the New York crowd after screening at NYFF, but I don’t think it has the broad appeal to compete with the other films in this category.
Best Feature looks like a two-horse race. Train Dreams has quickly emerged as a major awards contender over the past few weeks, and it’s starting to feel more and more plausible as a potential Best Picture nominee at the Oscars. The film aligns perfectly with the type of intimate, character-driven work that often thrives at the Spirit Awards, and directors Clint Bentley and Greg Kwedar have a strong track record here. Sing Sing and Jockey both performed well in past years. This could be the moment for Film Independent voters to formally recognize them as two of the defining indie filmmakers of the decade. But Sorry, Baby is a real threat. Even without Oscar buzz, Eva Victor’s debut was the undeniable breakout of Sundance and is inevitably going to land on countless year-end lists from major outlets. It’s a sharply written, confidently directed film from an emerging voice, and it clearly has a passionate base of support. There’s also Twinless, another buzzy Sundance title, though its September theatrical release, right in the middle of the festival trifecta, led to it getting somewhat lost in the shuffle, and its campaign seems to be more focused on Dylan O’Brian in Best Actor.
If I Had Legs I’d Kick You was a surprising omission from the Best Feature category, where it had felt like an absolute lock. Still, the film managed to secure key nominations for Mary Bronstein in Best Director and Rose Byrne in Best Lead Performance, both of which have a good chance to win. Lucky Lu also landed the director/lead performance combo for Lloyd Lee Choi and Chang Chen. The film premiered quietly in a Cannes sidebar and has largely flown under the radar since, to the point where many awards-watchers may not even know it exists. It’s encouraging to see Film Independent highlight these underseen titles that tell meaningful, character-driven stories.
Lurker was widely expected to perform well, especially after sneaking into the Gotham Awards’ Best Feature lineup. While it missed both Feature and Best Director here, it still earned four nominations: Theodore Pellerin for Best Lead Performance, Archie Madekwe for Best Supporting Performance, as well as Best First Feature and Best First Screenplay. Blue Sun Palace also picked up four nominations: Best Supporting Performance for Haipeng Xu, Best First Feature, Best First Screenplay, and Best Cinematography. The film premiered in Cannes Critics’ Week and later screened at TIFF.
While Film Independent did a much stronger job than the Gothams at spotlighting true independent filmmaking, a few of this year’s inclusions still raise eyebrows, even if they technically fall under the budget cap. One of Them Days scored nominations for SZA in Best Breakthrough Performance and Keke Palmer in Best Lead Performance, along with nods for Best First Screenplay and Best First Feature. Paramount’s Roofman also showed up with a Best Supporting Actress nomination for Kirsten Dunst, though Channing Tatum was left off the list. And The Long Walk, a major wide release adapted from a well-known Stephen King novel, will be receiving the Robert Altman Award for Best Ensemble.
However, setting aside those mid-budget studio outliers, the Indie Spirits still did an admirable job of championing true independent gems across the ballot, films that likely won’t be recognized by most major awards bodies. Rebuilding, Familiar Touch, Eephus, Sovereign, East of Wall, and The Baltimorons all stand out as smaller, under-the-radar titles that managed to break through with nominations, reaffirming the Indie Spirits’ goal of spotlighting small, but creative and original films that might otherwise be overlooked.
Here’s the full list of all the film nominees at the Indie Spirits:
BEST FEATURE
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
- A Little Prayer – Angus MacLachlan
- Sorry, Baby – Eva Victor
- Sovereign – Christian Swegal
- Splitsville – Michael Angelo Covino, Kyle Marvin
- Twinless – James Sweeney
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 DOCUMENTARY
- Come & See Me In the Good Light
- Endless Cookie
- My Undesirable Friend: Part 1
- The Perfect Neighbour
- The Tale of Silyan
BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE
- All That’s Left of You
- On Becoming a Guinea Fowl
- A Poet
- The Secret Agent
- Sirat
BEST FIRST FEATURE
- Blue Sun Palace
- Dust Bunny
- East of Wall
- Lurker
- One Of Them Days
BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY
- Blue Sun Palace – Constance Tsang
- Friendship – Andrew DeYoung
- Lurker – Alex Russell
- One Of Them Days – Syreeta Singleton
- Outerlands – Elena Oxman
BEST BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE
- Liz Larsen – The Baltimorons
- Kayo Martin – The Plague
- Misha Osherovich – She’s the He
- SZA – One of Them Days
- Tabitha Zimiga – East of Wall
JOHN CASSAVETES AWARD – Given to the best feature made for under $1,000,000. (Award given to the writer, director and producer)
- The Baltimorons
- Boys Go to Jupiter
- Eephus
- Esta Isla
- Familiar Touch
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
- Peter Hujar’s Day
- Blue Sun Palace
- Warfare
- Train Dreams
- Dust Bunny
BEST EDITING
- Good Boy
- Eephus
- Warfare
- Splitsville
- The Testament of Ann Lee
Stay tuned to keithlovesmovies for the latest Awards Season news and analysis, leading up to the 98th Academy Awards on March 15th, 2026.
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