Independent_Spirit_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 after actor/screenwriter/director John Cassavetes, a pioneer of American independent film. The award is given to the directors, writers and producers of a film.[1]
Quick Facts John Cassavetes Award, Awarded for ...
| John Cassavetes Award | |
|---|---|
| Awarded for | Best creative team of a film budgeted at less than $500,000 |
| Presented by | Independent Spirit Awards |
| First awarded | The Blair Witch Project (1999) |
| Currently held by | The Cathedral – Ricky D'Ambrose & Graham Swon (2022) |
| Website | spiritawards |
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Created for the 15th Independent Spirit Awards, it was originally called the Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature (Under $500,000). After that, the rules changed so that any feature film budgeted under $500,000 could be eligible (regardless of how many films the director has made), hence the new name. The first recipient of the award was the horror film The Blair Witch Project. In 2023, the rules changed to include any feature film budgeted under $1,000,000.[2]
1990s
More information Year, Film ...
| Year | Film | Director(s) | Writer(s) | Producer(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | The Blair Witch Project | Daniel Myrick, Eduardo Sanchez | Gregg Hale, Robin Cowie | |
| La Ciudad | David Riker | David Riker, Paul S. Mezey | ||
| Compensation | Zeinabu irene Davis | Marc Arthur Chery | Marc Arthur Chery, Zeinabu Irene Davis | |
| Judy Berlin | Eric Mendelsohn | Rocco Caruso | ||
| Treasure Island | Scott King | Adrienne Gruben | ||
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2000s
More information Year, Film ...
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2010s
More information Year, Film ...
| Year | Film | Director(s) | Writer(s) | Producer(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Daddy Longlegs | Ben Safdie and Joshua Safdie | Casey Neistat, Tom Scott | |
| The Exploding Girl | Bradley Rust Gray | Karin Chien, Ben Howe, So Yong Kim | ||
| Lbs. | Matthew Bonifacio | Matthew Bonifacio, Carmine Famiglietti | ||
| Lovers of Hate | Bryan Poyser | Megan Gilbride | ||
| Obselidia | Diane Bell | Chris Byrne, Matthew Medlin | ||
| 2011 | Pariah | Dee Rees | Nekisa Cooper | |
| Bellflower | Evan Glodell | Vincent Grashaw, Evan Glodell | ||
| Circumstance | Maryam Keshavarz | Karin Chien, Maryam Keshavarz, Melissa Lee | ||
| The Dynamiter | Matthew Gordon | Brad Ingelsby | Kevin Abrams, Matthew Gordon, Merrilee Holt, Art Jones, Mike Jones, Nate Tuck, Amile Wilson | |
| Hello Lonesome | Adam Reid | |||
| 2012 | Middle of Nowhere | Ava DuVernay[5] | Paul Garnes, Howard Barish, Ava DuVernay | |
| Breakfast with Curtis | Laura Colella | |||
| Mosquita y Mari | Aurora Guerrero | Chad Burris | ||
| The Color Wheel | Alex Ross Perry | Alex Ross Perry, Carlen Altman | Alex Ross Perry | |
| Starlet | Sean Baker | Chris Bergoch, Sean Baker | Blake Ashman-Kipervaser, Kevin Chinoy, Patrick Cunningham, Chris Maybach, Francesca Silvestri | |
| 2013 | This Is Martin Bonner | Chad Hartigan | Cherie Saulter | |
| Computer Chess | Andrew Bujalski | Houston King, Alex Lipschultz | ||
| Crystal Fairy & the Magical Cactus | Sebastián Silva | Juan de Dios Larraín, Pablo Larraín | ||
| Museum Hours | Jem Cohen | Paolo Calamita, Gabriele Kranzelbinder | ||
| Pit Stop | Yen Tan | Yen Tan, David Lowery | Jonathan Duffy, James M. Johnston, Eric Steele, Kelly Williams | |
| 2014 | Land Ho! | Aaron Katz, Martha Stephens | Christina Jennings, Mynette Louie, Sara Murphy | |
| Blue Ruin | Jeremy Saulnier | Richard Peete, Vincent Savino, Anish Savjani | ||
| It Felt Like Love | Eliza Hittman | Shrihari Sathe, Laura Wagner, Eliza Hittman | ||
| Man from Reno | Dave Boyle | Dave Boyle, Joel Clark, Michael Lerman | Ko Mori | |
| Test | Chris Mason Johnson | Chris Martin | ||
| 2015 | Krisha | Trey Edward Shults | Trey Edward Shults, Justin R. Chan, Chase Joliet, and Wilson Smith | |
| Advantageous | Jennifer Phang | Jennifer Phang, Jacqueline Kim | Robert Chang, Ken Jeong, Moon Molson, Theresa Navarro, Jennifer Phang, Jacqueline Kim | |
| Christmas, Again | Charles Poekel | |||
| Heaven Knows What | Benny Safdie and Josh Safdie | Ronald Bronstein, Josh Safdie | Oscar Boyson, Sebastian Bear McClard | |
| Out of My Hand | Takeshi Fukunaga | Donari Braxton, Takeshi Fukunaga | Donari Braxton, Mike Fox | |
| 2016 | Spa Night | Andrew Ahn | David Ariniello, Giulia Caruso, Ki Jin Kim, Kelly Thomas | |
| Free in Deed | Jake Mahaffy | Mike Bowes, Mike S. Ryan, Brent Stiefel | ||
| Hunter Gatherer | Josh Locy | Michael Covino, April Lamb, Sara Murphy, Isaiah Smallman | ||
| Lovesong | So Yong Kim | Bradley Rust Gray, So Yong Kim | David Hansen, Bradley Rust Gray, Alex Lipschultz, Johnny Mac | |
| Nakom | Kelly Daniela Norris, T. W. Pittman | Kelly Daniela Norris, Isaac Adakudugu | Giovanni Ximėnez, Kelly Daniela Norris, T. W. Pittman, Isaac Adakudugu | |
| 2017 | Life and Nothing More | Antonio Méndez Esparza | Amadeo Hernández Bueno, Alvaro Portanet Hernández, Pedro Hernández Santos[6] | |
| Dayveon | Amman Abbasi | Steven Reneau, Amman Abbasi | Lachion Buckingham, Alexander Uhlmann, Amman Abbasi | |
| A Ghost Story | David Lowery | Adam Donaghey, Toby Halbrooks, James M. Johnston | ||
| Most Beautiful Island | Ana Asensio | Ana Asensio, Larry Fessenden, Noah Greenberg, Chadd Harbold, Jenn Wexler | ||
| The Transfiguration | Michael O'Shea | Susan Leber | ||
| 2018 | En el séptimo día[7] | Jim McKay | Alex Bach, Jim McKay, Lindsey Cordero, Caroline Kaplan, Michael Stipe | |
| A Bread Factory | Patrick Wang | Daryl Freimark, Patrick Wang, Matt Miller | ||
| Never Goin' Back | Augustine Frizzell | Liz Cardenas, Toby Halbrooks, James M. Johnston | ||
| Sócrates | Alex Moratto | Alex Moratto, Thayná Mantesso | Ramin Bahrani, Alex Moratto, Jefferson Paulino, Tammy Weiss | |
| Thunder Road | Jim Cummings | Natalie Metzger, Zack Parker, Benjamin Weissner | ||
| 2019 | Give Me Liberty[8] | Kirill Mikhanovsky | Alice Austen, Kirill Mikhanovsky | Val Abel, Wally Hall, Kirill Mikhanovsky, Alice Austen, Michael Manasseri, George Rush, Sergey Shtern |
| Burning Cane | Phillip Youmans | Phillip Youmans, Ojo Akinlana, Jakob Johnson, Karen Kaia Livers, Mose Mayer, Wendell Pierce, Isaac Webb, Cassandra Youmans | ||
| Colewell | Tom Quinn | Tom Quinn, Joshua Blum, Alexandra Byer, Craig Shilowich, Matthew Thurm | ||
| Premature | Rashaad Ernesto Green | Rashaad Ernesto Green, Zora Howard | Darren Dean, Joy Ganes, Rashaad Ernesto Green | |
| Wild Nights with Emily | Madeleine Olnek | Madeleine Olnek, Anna Margarita Albelo, Casper Andreas, Max Rifkind-Barron | ||
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2020s
More information Year, Film ...
| Year | Film | Director(s) | Writer(s) | Producer(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Residue[9] | Merawi Gerima | ||
| The Killing of Two Lovers | Robert Machoian | Robert Machoian, Scott Christopherson, Clayne Crawford | ||
| La Leyenda Negra | Patricia Vidal Delgado | Alicia Herder, Marcel Perez | ||
| Lingua Franca | Isabel Sandoval | Isabel Sandoval, Darlene Catly Malimas, Jhett Tolentino, Carlo Velayo, Dax Stringer | ||
| Saint Frances | Alex Thompson | Kelly O'Sullivan | Alex Thompson, James Choi, Pierce Cravens, Ian Keiser, Eddie Linker, Raphael Nash, Roger Welp | |
| 2021 [10] | Shiva Baby[11] | Emma Seligman | Emma Seligman, Kieran Altmann, Katie Schiller, Lizzie Shapiro | |
| Cryptozoo | Dash Shaw | Tyler Davidson, Kyle Martin, Jane Samborski, Bill Way | ||
| Jockey | Clint Bentley | Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar | Clint Bentley, Nancy Schafer, Greg Kwedar | |
| Sweet Thing | Alexandre Rockwell | Louis Anania, Haley Anderson, Kenan Baysal | ||
| This Is Not a War Story | Talia Lugacy | Noah Lang, Julian West Margarita Albelo, Talia Lugacy, Casper Andreas, Max Rifkind-Barron | ||
| 2022 [12] | The Cathedral | Ricky D'Ambrose | Graham Swon | |
| The African Desperate | Martine Syms | Martine Syms, Rocket Caleshu | Martine Syms, Rocket Caleshu, Vic Brooks | |
| Holy Emy | Araceli Lemos | Araceli Lemos, Giulia Caruso | Giulia Caruso, Mathieu Bompoint, Ki Jin Kim, Konstantinos Vassilaros | |
| A Love Song | Max Walker-Silverman | Max Walker-Silverman, Jesse Hope, Dan Janvey | ||
| Something in the Dirt | Justin Benson, Aaron Moorhead | Justin Benson | Justin Benson, Aaron Moorhead, David Lawson Jr. | |
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- Sean Baker - 3 (no wins)
- So Yong Kim - 3 (no wins)
- Bradley Rust Gray - 3 (no wins)
- George Rush - 2 (two wins)
- Laura Wagner - 2 (one win)
- Jim McKay - 2 (one win)
- Aaron Katz - 2 (one win)
- Gary Winick - 2 (one win)
- Giulia Caruso - 2 (one win)
- Ki Jin Kim - 2 (one win)
- Jay Van Hoy - 2 (no wins)
- Lars Knudsen - 2 (no wins)
- Karin Chien - 2 (no wins)
- Ben Howe - 2 (no wins)
- Darren Dean - 2 (no wins)
- Josh Safdie, Benny Safdie - 2 (one win)
- "37 Years of Nominees and Winners" (PDF). FilmIndependent. Retrieved December 30, 2022.
- "FILM INDEPENDENT MOVES TO GENDER-NEUTRAL ACTING CATEGORIES AND INCREASED BUDGET CAPS FOR THE 2023 SPIRIT AWARDS". FilmIndependent. Retrieved February 22, 2023.
- Patten, Dominic; D'Alessandro, Anthony; Topel, Fred (March 6, 2022). "Film Independent Spirit Awards: 'The Lost Daughter' Takes Home Best Feature As Netflix Reigns With Six Wins". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved March 6, 2022.
- Lattanzio, Ryan (November 22, 2022). "'Everything Everywhere,' 'TÁR' Lead Independent Spirit Award Nominations: See the Full List". IndieWire. Retrieved November 22, 2022.