The 2019-2020 movie awards season is underway with the 2019 Gotham Award nominations, which were announced on October 24. These awards are presented by the Independent Filmmaker Project (IFP) and honor the best indie achievements of the year as decided by small committees of film journalists and festival programmers. Their nominees for Best Feature are “The Farewell,” “Hustlers,” “Marriage Story,” “Uncut Gems” and “Waves.” Scroll down to see the complete list of contenders.
IFP executive director Jeffrey Sharp said in a statement, “We congratulate the 2019 IFP Gotham Award nominees and are excited to recognize these artists on December 2nd here in New York, a city known for its great tradition of independent storytelling. This year has been filled with brilliant performances and dynamic work across film and television and we look forward to celebrating these achievements together.”
The winners will be presented during a December 2 ceremony at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City. And in addition to the competitive races the awards will also pay tribute to actors Laura Dern and Sam Rockwell, filmmaker Ava DuVernay, and producer Glen Basner.
But will these awards preview the Oscars? Not usually. Because the winners, like the nominees, are chosen by small juries with a handful of members each, tastes change from category to category and from year to year, opening the door for results like last year’s Best Feature victory for acclaimed indie underdog “The Rider” over higher-profile Oscar contenders “The Favourite,” “First Reformed” and “If Beale Street Could Talk.”
That said, the top prize has also gone to Oscar Best Picture champs “Birdman,” “Spotlight” and “Moonlight” in recent years, and acting prizes went to eventual academy faves Matthew McConaughey (“Dallas Buyers Club”), Julianne Moore (“Still Alice”) and Casey Affleck (“Manchester by the Sea”). So while winning here doesn’t guarantee you an Oscar berth, it definitely doesn’t hurt. See the full list of nominees below, and join the discussion on this and more with your fellow movie fans in our forums.
Best Feature
“The Farewell”
Lulu Wang, director; Daniele Melia, Marc Turtletaub, Peter Saraf, Andrew Miano, Chris Weitz, Jane Zheng, Lulu Wang, Anita Gou, producers (A24)
“Hustlers”
Lorene Scafaria, director; Jessica Elbaum, Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas, Jennifer Lopez, Benny Medina, Will Ferrell, Adam McKay, producers (STXfilms)
“Marriage Story”
Noah Baumbach, director; Noah Baumbach, David Heyman, producers (Netflix)
“Uncut Gems”
Josh Safdie, Benny Safdie, directors; Scott Rudin, Eli Bush, Sebastian Bear McClard, producers (A24)
“Waves”
Trey Edward Shults, director; James Wilson, Kevin Turen, Trey Edward Shults, producers (A24)
Best Documentary
“American Factory”
Steven Bognar, Julia Reichert, directors; Steven Bognar, Julia Reichert, Jeff Reichert, Julie Parker Benello, producers (Netflix)
“Apollo 11”
Todd Douglas Miller, director; Todd Douglas Miller, Thomas Baxley Petersen, Evan Krauss, producers (NEON and CNN Films)
“The Edge of Democracy”
Petra Costa, director; Petra Costa, Tiago Pavan, Joanna Natasegara, Shane Boris, producers (Netflix)
“Midnight Traveler”
Hassan Fazili, director; Emelie Mahdavian, Su Kim, producers (Oscilloscope Laboratories)
“One Child Nation”
Nanfu Wang, Jialing Zhang, directors; Nanfu Wang, Jialing Zhang, Christoph Jörg, Julie Goldman, Christopher Clements, Carolyn Hepburn, producers (Amazon Studios)
Bingham Ray Breakthrough Director Award
Laure De Clermont-Tonnerre for “The Mustang” (Focus Features)
Kent Jones for “Diane” (IFC Films)
Joe Talbot for “The Last Black Man in San Francisco” (A24)
Olivia Wilde for “Booksmart” (United Artists Releasing)
Phillip Youmans for “Burning Cane” (ARRAY Releasing)
Best Screenplay
“The Farewell,” Lulu Wang (A24)
“High Flying Bird,” Tarell Alvin McCraney (Netflix)
“The Last Black Man in San Francisco,” Jimmie Fails, Joe Talbot, Rob Richert (A24)
“Marriage Story,” Noah Baumbach (Netflix)
“Midsommar,” Ari Aster (A24)
Best Actor
Willem Dafoe in “The Lighthouse” (A24)
Adam Driver in “Marriage Story” (Netflix)
Aldis Hodge in “Clemency” (NEON)
André Holland in “High Flying Bird” (Netflix)
Adam Sandler in “Uncut Gems” (A24)
Best Actress
Awkwafina in “The Farewell” (A24)
Elisabeth Moss in “Her Smell” (Gunpowder & Sky)
Mary Kay Place in “Diane” (IFC Films)
Florence Pugh in “Midsommar” (A24)
Alfre Woodard in “Clemency” (NEON)
Breakthrough Actor
Julia Fox in “Uncut Gems” (A24)
Aisling Franciosi in “The Nightingale” (IFC Films)
Chris Galust in “Give Me Liberty” (Music Box Films)
Noah Jupe in “Honey Boy” (Amazon Studios)
Jonathan Majors in “The Last Black Man in San Francisco” (A24)
Taylor Russell in “Waves” (A24)
Breakthrough Series – Long Format (over 40 minutes)
“Chernobyl,” Craig Mazin, creator; Craig Mazin, Carolyn Strauss, Jane Featherstone, executive producers (HBO)
“David Makes Man,” Tarell Alvin McCraney, creator; Mike Kelley, Melissa Loy, Tarell Alvin McCraney, Denitria Harris-Lawrence, Michael B. Jordan, Oprah Winfrey, executive producers (OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network)
“My Brilliant Friend,” Saverio Costanzo, creator; Domenico Procacci, Mario Gianani, Guido De Laurentiis, Elena Recchia, Jennifer Schuur, Paolo Sorrentino, executive producers (HBO)
“Unbelievable,” Susannah Grant, Sarah Timberman, Carl Beverly, Lisa Cholodenko, Ayelet Waldman & Michael Chabon, Katie Couric, Richard Tofel, Neil Barsky, Robyn Semien, Marie, executive producers (Netflix)
“When They See Us,” Ava DuVernay, creator; Jeff Skoll, Jonathan King, Jane Rosenthal, Robert De Niro, Berry Welsh, Oprah Winfrey, Ava DuVernay, executive producers (Netflix)
Breakthrough Series – Short Format (under 40 minutes)
“PEN15,” Maya Erskine, Anna Konkle, Sam Zvibleman, creators; Anna Konkle, Sam Zvibleman, Debbie Liebling, Gabe Liedman, Marc Provissiero, Brooke Pobjoy, Andy Samberg, Jorma Taccone, Akiva Schaffer, Becky Sloviter, Shelley Zimmerman, Brin Lukens, Jordan Levin, executive producers (Hulu)
“Ramy,” Ramy Youssef, Ari Katcher, Ryan Welch, creators; Ramy Youssef, Jerrod Carmichael, Ravi Nandan, Bridget Bedard, Ari Katcher, Ryan Welch, executive producers (Hulu)
“Russian Doll,” Natasha Lyonne, Leslye Headland, Amy Poehler, creators; Natasha Lyonne, Leslye Headland, Amy Poehler, Dave Becky, Tony Hernandez, Lilly Burns, Allison Silverman, executive producers (Netflix)
“Tuca & Bertie,” Lisa Hanawalt, creator; Lisa Hanawalt, Raphael Bob-Waksberg, Noel Bright, Steven A. Cohen, Tiffany Haddish, Ali Wong, executive producers (Netflix)
“Undone,” Kate Purdy, Raphael Bob-Waksberg, creators; Kate Purdy, Raphael Bob-Waksberg, Noel Bright, Steven A. Cohen, Tommy Pallotta, executive producers (Amazon Prime Video)
Nominating Committee for Best Feature, Best Screenplay, and Breakthrough Director:
Justin Chang, Film Critic, Los Angeles Times
Ann Hornaday, Chief Film Critic, The Washington Post
Eric Kohn, Executive Editor & Chief Critic, IndieWire
Joshua Rothkopf, Global Deputy Film Editor, Time Out Media
Alison Willmore, Film Critic, Vulture
Nominating Committee for Best Documentary:
Chris Boeckmann, Director of Programming, True/False Film Fest
Ben Fowlie, Executive Director, Points North Institute; Founder, Camden International Film Festival
Cynthia Fuchs, Contributing Editor, PopMatters; Director Film & Media Studies, George Mason University
Tom Hall, Executive Director, Montclair Film
Caroline Libresco, Curator, Producer, and Strategist
Nominating Committee for Best Actor and Best Actress:
David Ehrlich, Senior Film Critic, Indiewire
David Fear, Senior Editor/Critic, Rolling Stone
Tim Grierson, Senior U.S. Critic, Screen Daily; Chief Film Critic, Paste Magazine
Jessica Kiang, Film Critic, Variety, The Playlist, Sight & Sound
Alissa Wilkinson, Film Critic, Vox
Nominating Committee for Breakthrough Actor:
Kate Erbland, Deputy Editor, Film, IndieWire
Jon Frosch, Reviews Editor, The Hollywood Reporter
Odie Henderson, Reviewer, RogerEbert.com
Tomris Laffly, Film Critic, Time Out New York, RogerEbert.com, Variety
David Sims, Staff Writer, Culture, The Atlantic
Nominating Committee for Breakthrough Series
Judy Berman, TV Critic, TIME
Jen Chaney, TV Critic, Vulture
Daniel Fienberg, Chief Television Critic, The Hollywood Reporter
Caroline Framke, TV Critic, Variety
Alan Sepinwall, Chief TV Critic, Rolling Stone
Brian Tallerico, Editor, RogerEbert.com
Be sure to make your Oscar nominee predictions today so that Hollywood insiders can see how their films and performers are faring in our odds. You can keep changing your predictions as often as you like until just before nominees are announced on January 13. And join in the fun debate over the 2020 Academy Awards taking place right now with Hollywood insiders in our film forums. Read more Gold Derby entertainment news.
