The Chicago Indie Critics honored the best of both worlds, awarding “CODA” their Best Independent Film Award (budgets under $20 million), while awarding “The Power of the Dog” their Best Studio Film Award (budgets over $20 million). Jane Campion also won a pair of awards for Best Director and Adapted Screenplay for her work on “The Power of the Dog.”
BEST INDEPENDENT FILM
(budgets under $20 million)
“CODA”
Directed by Sian Heder
Produced by Fabrice Gianfermi, Philippe Rousselet, Jerôme Seydoux, and Patrick Wachsberger
Apple Original Films
NOMINEES
| “Nine Days” (Sony Pictures Classics) |
| “Pig” (Neon) |
| “Spencer” (Neon) |
| “Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)” (Searchlight Pictures) |
BEST STUDIO FILM
(budgets over $20 million)
“The Power of the Dog”
Directed by Jane Campion
Produced by Emile Sherman, Iain Canning, Roger Frappier, Jane Campion, and Tanya Seghatchianan
Netflix
NOMINEES
| “The Harder They Fall” (Netflix) |
| “Licorice Pizza” (MGM) |
| “Spider-Man: No Way Home” (Columbia Pictures) |
| “tick, tick…Boom!” (Netflix) |
BEST DIRECTOR
Jane Campion
“The Power of the Dog”
Produced by Emile Sherman, Iain Canning, Roger Frappier, Jane Campion, and Tanya Seghatchianan
Netflix
NOMINEES
| Paul Thomas Anderson — “Licorice Pizza” (MGM) |
| Kenneth Branagh — “Belfast” (Focus Features) |
| Pablo Larrain — “Spencer” (Neon) |
| Edson Oda — “Nine Days” (Sony Pictures Classics) |
BEST ACTOR
Andrew Garfield
“tick, tick…Boom!”
Directed by Lin-Manuel Miranda
Netflix
NOMINEES
| Nicolas Cage — “Pig” (Neon) |
| Benedict Cumberbatch — “The Power of the Dog” (Netflix) |
| Will Smith — “King Richard” (Warner Bros. Pictures) |
| Denzel Washington — “The Tragedy of Macbeth” (A24) |
BEST ACTRESS
Tessa Thompson
“Passing”
Directed by Rebecca Hall
Netflix
NOMINEES
| Jessica Chastain — “The Eyes of Tammy Faye” (Searchlight Pictures) |
| Olivia Colman — “The Lost Daughter” (Netflix) |
| Alana Haim — “Licorice Pizza” (MGM) |
| Emilia Jones — “CODA” (Apple Original Films) |
| Kristen Stewart — “Spencer” (Neon) |
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Jeffrey Wright
“The French Dispatch”
Directed by Wes Anderson
Searchlight Pictures
NOMINEES
| Ben Affleck — “The Last Duel” (20th Century Studios) |
| Colman Domingo — “Zola” (A24) |
| Mike Faist — “West Side Story” (20th Century Studios) |
| Troy Kotsur — “CODA” (Apple Original Films) |
| Kodi Smit-McPhee — “The Power of the Dog” (Netflix) |
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Ruth Negga
“Passing”
Directed by Rebecca Hall
Netflix
NOMINEES
| Ariana DeBose — “West Side Story” (20th Century Studios) |
| Kirsten Dunst — “The Power of the Dog” (Netflix) |
| Aunjanue Ellis — “King Richard” (Warner Bros. Pictures) |
| Marlee Matlin — “CODA” (Apple Original Films) |
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
“Parallel Mothers”
Directed by Pedro Almodóvar
Sony Pictures Classics
NOMINEES
| “Benedetta” (IFC Films) |
| “Drive My Car” (Janus Films) |
| “Flee” (Neon) |
| “A Hero” (Amazon Studios) |
BEST DOCUMENTARY
“Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)”
Directed by Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson
Searchlight Pictures
NOMINEES
| “Flee” (Neon) |
| “The Rescue” (Greenwich Entertainment) |
| “Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain” (Focus Features) |
| “The Sparks Brothers” (Focus Features) |
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
“Pig”
Written by Michael Sarnoski
Neon
NOMINEES
| “The French Dispatch” — Wes Anderson (Searchlight Pictures) |
| “A Hero” — Asghar Farhadi (Amazon Studios) |
| “Licorice Pizza” — Paul Thomas Anderson (Neon) |
| “Nine Days” — Edson Oda (Sony Pictures Classics) |
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
“The Power of the Dog”
Written by Jane Campion
Based on “The Power of the Dog” by Thomas Savage
Netflix
NOMINEES
| “CODA” — Sian Heder (Apple Original Films) |
| “Drive By Car” — Ryusuke Hamaguchi and Takamasa Oe (Janus Films) |
| “Passing” — Rebecca Hall (Netflix) |
| “The Tragedy of Macbeth” — Joel Coen (A24) |
BEST ANIMATED FILM
“The Mitchells vs. the Machines”
Directed by Michael Rianda
Produced by Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, and Kurt Albrecht
Netflix
NOMINEES
| “Encanto” (Walt Disney Pictures) |
| “Flee” (Neon) |
| “Luca” (Pixar Animation) |
| “Raya and the Last Dragon” (Walt Disney Pictures) |
BEST ENSEMBLE CAST
“The French Dispatch”
Casting Directors: Douglas Aibel and Antoinette Boulat
Cast: Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, Benicio del Toro, Adrien Brody, Tilda Swinton, Léa Seydoux, Frances McDormand, Timothée Chalamet, Jeffrey Wright, Christoph Waltz, Henry Winkler, Edward Norton, Liev Schreiber, Willem Dafoe, Saoirse Ronan, Elisabeth Moss, Jason Schwartzman, Fisher Stevens, and Stephen Park
Searchlight Pictures
NOMINEES
| “Belfast” (Focus Features) |
| “CODA” (Apple Original Films) |
| “The Harder They Fall” (Netflix) |
| “The Power of the Dog” (Netflix) |
| “Spider-Man: No Way Home” (Walt Disney Pictures) |
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
“The Green Knight”
Cinematography by Andrew Droz Palermo
A24
NOMINEES
| “Belfast” — Haris Zambarloukos (Focus Features) |
| “Dune” — Greig Fraser (Warner Bros. Pictures) |
| “The Power of the Dog” — Ari Wegner (Netflix) |
| “The Tragedy of Macbeth” — Bruno Delbonnel (A24) |
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
“Nightmare Alley”
Production Design by Tamara Deverell and Shane Vieau
Searchlight Pictures
NOMINEES
| “Dune” (Warner Bros. Pictures) |
| “The Last Duel” (20th Century Studios) |
| “The Tragedy of Macbeth” (A24) |
| “West Side Story” (20th Century Studios) |
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
“Cruella”
Costume Design by Jenny Beavan
Walt Disney Pictures
NOMINEES
| “Dune” — Jacqueline West and Bob Morgan (Warner Bros. Pictures) |
| “The Green Knight” — Malgosia Turzanska (A24) |
| “Nightmare Alley” — Luis Sequeira (Searchlight Pictures) |
| “West Side Story” — Paul Tazewell (20th Century Studios) |
BEST MAKEUP
“The Eyes of Tammy Faye”
Makeup by Linda Dowds, Stephanie Ingram, and Justin Raleigh
Searchlight Pictures
NOMINEES
| “Cruella” (Walt Disney Pictures) |
| “Dune” (Warner Bros. Pictures) |
| “House Of Gucci” (MGM) |
| “Nightmare Alley” (Searchlight Pictures) |
BEST EDITING
“West Side Story”
Edited by Michael Kahn and Sarah Broshar
20th Century Studios
NOMINEES
| “Dune” — Joe Walker (Warner Bros. Pictures) |
| “The Harder They Fall” — Tom Eagles (Netflix) |
| “Nine Days” — Jeff Betancourt (Neon) |
| “Spider-Man: No Way Home” — Jeffrey Ford and Leigh Folsom Boyd (Columbia Pictures) |
BEST MUSICAL SCORE
“Dune”
Composed by Hans Zimmer
Warner Bros. Pictures
NOMINEES
| “Encanto” — Germaine Franco (Walt Disney Pictures) |
| “The Harder They Fall” — The Bullitts (Netflix) |
| “The Power of the Dog” — Jonny Greenwood (Netflix) |
| “Spencer” — Jonny Greenwood (Neon) |
BEST ORIGINAL SONG
“No Time to Die”
from “No Time to Die”
Music and Lyrics by Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
NOMINEES
| “Be Alive” from “King Richard” (Warner Bros. Pictures) |
| “Guns Go Bang” from “The Harder They Fall” (Netflix) |
| “Just Look Up” from “Don’t Look Up” (Netflix) |
| “So May We Start” from “Annette” (Amazon Studios) |
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
“Spider-Man: No Way Home”
Visual Effects by Kelly Port, Chris Waegner, Scott Edelstein, and Dan Sudicknhaal, Osnat Handelsman Keren, Talia Kleinhendler, and Charles Dorfman
Columbia Pictures + Marvel Studios
NOMINEES
| “Dune” (Warner Bros. Pictures) |
| “Free Guy” (20th Century Studios) |
| “The Matrix Resurrections” (Warner Bros. Pictures) |
| “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” (Walt Disney Pictures) |
BEST STUNTS
“Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings”
Stunt Coordination by Andy Cheng
Walt Disney Pictures
NOMINEES
| “Black Widow” (Walt Disney Pictures) |
| “Dune” (Warner Bros. Pictures) |
| “The Matrix Resurrections” (Warner Bros. Pictures) |
| “No Time To Die” (MGM) |
| “Spider-Man: No Way Home” (Columbia Pictures) |
TRAILBLAZER AWARD
Honors the work of an artist who truly pushes the boundaries of the medium in terms of form and content
Lin-Manuel Miranda
Filmmaker
NOMINEES
| Paul Thomas Anderson, filmmaker |
| Rebecca Hall, filmmaker |
| Ryusuke Hamaguchi, filmmaker |
| Sian Heder, filmmaker |
IMPACT AWARD
Given to a person whose work has had a positive impact on society or the Chicagoland film community
Ryan Oestreich
General Manager
Music Box Theater
NOMINEES
| Rebecca Fons, Director of Programming — Gene Siskel Film Center |
| Rebecca Hall, filmmaker |
| Steven Spielberg, filmmaker |
| Jill Wheeler, Director of Publicity and Promotions – Allied Global Marketing |
QUICK LIST
Best Independent Film: “CODA”
Best Studio Film: “The Power of the Dog”
Best Director: Jane Campion — “The Power of the Dog”
Best Actor: Andrew Garfield — “tick, tock…Boom!”
Best Actress: Tessa Thompson — “Passing”
Best Supporting Actor: Jeffrey Wright — “The French Dispatch”
Best Supporting Actress: Ruth Negga — “Passing”
Best Foreign Language Film: “Parallel Mothers”
Best Documentary: “Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)”
Best Original Screenplay: “Pig” — Michael Sarnoski
Best Adapted Screenplay: “The Power of the Dog” — Jane Campion
Best Animated Film: “The Mitchells vs. the Machines”
Best Ensemble Cast: “The French Dispatch”
Best Cinematography: “The Green Knight” — Andrew Droz Palermo
Best Production Design: “Nightmare Alley”
Best Costume Design: “Cruella”— Jenny Beavan
Best Makeup: “The Eyes of Tammy Faye”
Best Editing: “West Side Story” — Michael Kahn and Sarah Broshar
Best Musical Score: “Dune” — Hans Zimmer
Best Original Song: “No Time to Die” from “No Time to Die”
Best Visual Effects: “Spider-Man: No Way Home”
Best Stunts: “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings”
Trailblazer Award: Lin-Manuel Miranda
Impact Award: Ryan Oestreich
Chicago Indie Critics
Chicago Indie Critics (CIC) is a creative and engaging non-for-profit organization composed of unique, dedicated, and diversified film critics. Our members are wide-ranging in experiences, backgrounds, tastes, diversities, and target audiences across both print and online platforms and publications. We have organized to share our personal assessments, commentaries, passions, and creativity in the vigilant effort to highlight the greatness and diversity found in both independent and mainstream films. While we originate in the Chicagoland area, the efforts of Chicago Indie Critics are to share, celebrate, and promote the rich artistic medium of film to audiences, fans, and eager minds across the nation and world as an exemplary and upstanding pillar of intelligent print and broadcast journalism.
