Saturday, February 22, 2025
Santa Monica Pier, Los Angeles, California
Hosted by Aidy Bryant

BEST FEATURE

“Anora” • NEON
Sean Baker | Director
Sean Baker, Alex Coco, Samantha Quan | Producers

“I Saw the TV Glow” • A24
Jane Schoenbrun | Director
Sam Intili, Sarah Winshall, Emma Stone, Dave McCary, Ali Herting | Producers

“NICKEL BOYS” • Orion | Amazon MGM Studios
RaMell Ross | Director
Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, David Levine, Joslyn Barnes | Producers

“Sing Sing” • A24
Greg Kwedar | Director
Monique Walton, Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar | Producers

“the substance” • MUBI
Coralie Fargeat | Director
Coralie Fargeat, Eric Fellner, Tim Bevan | Producers

BEST FIRST FEATURE

“Dìdi” • Focus Features
Sean Wang | Director
Carlos López Estrada, Josh Peters, Valerie Bush, Sean Wang | Producers

“IN THE SUMMERS” • Music Box Films
Alessandra Lacorazza Samudio | Director
Alexander Dinelaris, Rob Quadrino, Nando Vila, Lynette Coll, Sergio Lira, Daniel Tantalean, Cynthia Fernandez De La Cruz, Jan Suter, Janek Ambros, Cristóbal Güell, Stephanie Yankwitt, Slava Vladimirov, Erick Douat | Producers

“Janet Planet” • A24
Annie Baker | Director
Dan Janvey, Derrick Tseng, Annie Baker, Andrew Goldman | Producers

“The Piano Lesson” • Netflix
Malcolm Washington | Director
Todd Black, Denzel Washington | Producers

“PROBLEMISTA” • A24
Julio Torres | Director
Emma Stone, Dave McCary, Ali Herting | Producers

JOHN CASSAVETES AWARD

(Given to the best feature made for under $1,000,000)

“big boys” • Dark Star Pictures
Corey Sherman | Director
Allison Tate, Corey Sherman | Producers

“Ghostlight” • IFC Films
Kelly O’Sullivan, Alex Thompson | Directors
Ian Keiser, Alex Thompson, Pierce Cravens, Eddie Linker, Chelsea Krant | Producers

“girls will be girls” • Juno Films
Shuchi Talati | Director
Richa Chadha, Claire Chassagne, Sanjay Gulati, Shuchi Talati | Producers

“jazzy” • The Film Arcade
Morrisa Maltz | Director
Morrisa Maltz, Lainey Bearkiller Shangreaux, Miranda Bailey, Natalie Whalen, Elliott Whitton, John Way, Vanara Taing, Tommy Heitkamp | Producers

“the people’s joker” • Altered Innocence
Vera Drew | Director
Joey Lyons | Producer

BEST DIRECTOR

ALI ABBASI
“THE APPRENTICE” • Briarcliff Entertainment
Louis Tisné, Daniel Bekerman, Jacob Jarek, Ruth Treacy | Producers

Sean Baker
“Anora” • NEON
Sean Baker, Alex Coco, Samantha Quan | Producers

Brady Corbet
“The Brutalist” • A24
Nick Gordon, D.J. Gugenheim, Andrew Lauren, Trevor Matthews | Producers

Alonso Ruizpalacios
“la cocina” • WILLA
Gerardo Gatica González, Lauren Mann, Ivan Orlic, Ramiro Ruiz | Producers

Jane Schoenbrun
“I Saw the TV Glow” • A24
Sam Intili, Sarah Winshall, Emma Stone, Dave McCary, Ali Herting | Producers

BEST SCREENPLAY

“A Different Man” • A24
WRITTEN BY Aaron Schimberg
Aaron Schimberg | Director
Gabriel Mayers, Vanessa McDonnell, Christine Vachon | Producers

“HERETIC” • A24
WRITTEN BY Scott Beck & Bryan Woods
Scott Beck, Bryan Woods | Directors
Stacey Sher, Scott Beck, Bryan Woods, Julia Glausi, Jeanette Volturno | Producers

“I Saw the TV Glow” • A24
WRITTEN BY Jane Schoenbrun
Jane Schoenbrun | Director
Sam Intili, Sarah Winshall, Emma Stone, Dave McCary, Ali Herting | Producers

“MY OLD ASS” • Amazon MGM Studios
WRITTEN BY Megan Park
Megan Park | Director
Tom Ackerley, Margot Robbie, Josey McNamara, Steven Rales | Producers

“A Real Pain” • Searchlight Pictures
WRITTEN BY Jesse Eisenberg
Jesse Eisenberg | Director
Ewa Puszczyńska, Jennifer Semler, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, Ali Herting, Dave McCary | Producers

BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY

“Dìdi” • Focus Features
WRITTEN BY SEAN WANG
Sean Wang | Director
Carlos López Estrada, Josh Peters, Valerie Bush, Sean Wang | Producers

“THE FEELING THAT THE TIME FOR DOING SOMETHING HAS PASSED” • Magnolia Pictures
WRITTEN BY JOANNA ARNOW
Joanna Arnow | Director
Graham Swon, Pierce Varous | Producers

“GOOD ONE” • Focus Features
WRITTEN BY INDIA DONALDSON
India Donaldson | Director
Diana Irvine, Graham Mason, Wilson Cameron, India Donaldson | Producers

“Janet Planet” • A24
WRITTEN BY ANNIE BAKER
Annie Baker | Director
Dan Janvey, Derrick Tseng, Annie Baker, Andrew Goldman | Producers

“PROBLEMISTA” • A24
WRITTEN BY JULIO TORRES
Julio Torres | Director
Emma Stone, Dave McCary, Ali Herting | Producers

BEST LEAD PERFORMANCE

AMY ADAMS
“NIGHTBITCH” • Searchlight Pictures
Marielle Heller | Director
Amy Adams, Anne Carey, Megan Ellison, Marielle Heller, Sue Naegle, Stacy O’Neil, Christina Oh, Adam Paulsen, Sammy Scher | Producers

RYAN DESTINY
“The Fire Inside” • Amazon MGM Studios
Rachel Morrison | Director
Elishia Holmes, Barry Jenkins | Producers

Colman Domingo
“SING SING” • A24
Greg Kwedar | Director
Monique Walton, Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar | Producers

Keith Kupferer
“Ghostlight” • IFC Films
Kelly O’Sullivan, Alex Thompson | Directors
Ian Keiser, Alex Thompson, Pierce Cravens, Eddie Linker, Chelsea Krant | Producers

Mikey Madison
“Anora” • NEON
Sean Baker | Director
Sean Baker, Alex Coco, Samantha Quan | Producers

Demi Moore
“the substance” • MUBI
Coralie Fargeat | Director
Coralie Fargeat, Eric Fellner, Tim Bevan | Producers

Hunter Schafer
“CUCKOO” • NEON
Tilman Singer | Director
Ken Kao, Josh Rosenbaum, Markus Halberschmidt, Maria Tsiga, Thor Bradwell, Ben Rimmer | Producers

Justice Smith
“I Saw the TV Glow” • A24
Jane Schoenbrun | Director
Sam Intili, Sarah Winshall, Emma Stone, Dave McCary, Ali Herting | Producers

June Squibb
“Thelma” • Magnolia Pictures
Josh Margolin | Director
Zoë Worth, Chris Kaye, Nicholas Weinstock, Benjamin Simpson, Karl Spoerri, Viviana Vezzani | Producers

SEBASTIAN STAN
“THE APPRENTICE” • Briarcliff Entertainment
Ali Abbasi | Director
Louis Tisné, Daniel Bekerman, Jacob Jarek, Ruth Treacy | Producers

BEST SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE

Yura Borisov
“Anora” • NEON
Sean Baker | Director
Sean Baker, Alex Coco, Samantha Quan | Producers

Joan Chen
“Dìdi” • Focus Features
Sean Wang | Director
Carlos López Estrada, Josh Peters, Valerie Bush, Sean Wang | Producers

Kieran Culkin
“A Real Pain” • Searchlight Pictures
Jesse Eisenberg | Director
Ewa Puszczyńska, Jennifer Semler, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, Ali Herting, Dave McCary | Producers

Danielle Deadwyler
“The Piano Lesson” • Netflix
Malcolm Washington | Director
Todd Black, Denzel Washington | Producers

CAROL KANE
“BETWEEN THE TEMPLES” • Sony Pictures Classics
Nathan Silver | Director
Tim Headington, Theresa Steele Page, Nate Kamiya, Adam Kersh, Taylor Hess | Producers

Karren Karagulian
“Anora” • NEON
Sean Baker | Director
Sean Baker, Alex Coco, Samantha Quan | Producers

Kani Kusruti
“All We Imagine as Light” • Sideshow | Janus Films
Payal Kapadia | Director
Julien Graff, Thomas Hakim | Producers

Brigette Lundy-Paine
“I Saw the TV Glow” • A24
Jane Schoenbrun | Director
Sam Intili, Sarah Winshall, Emma Stone, Dave McCary, Ali Herting | Producers

Clarence Maclin
“SING SING” • A24
Greg Kwedar | Director
Monique Walton, Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar | Producers

Adam Pearson
“A Different Man” • A24
Aaron Schimberg | Director
Gabriel Mayers, Vanessa McDonnell, Christine Vachon | Producers

BEST BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE

ISAAC KRASNER
“big boys” • Dark Star Pictures
Corey Sherman | Director
Allison Tate, Corey Sherman | Producers

Katy O’Brian
“Love Lies Bleeding” • A24
Rose Glass | Director
Andrea Cornwell, Oliver Kassman | Producers

Mason Alexander Park
“NATIONAL ANTHEM” • LD Entertainment
Luke Gilford | Director
Mickey Liddell, Pete Shilaimon, Kevin Garland, Gina Marcheschi, Jasmine Daghighian | Producers

René Pérez Joglar
“IN THE SUMMERS” • Music Box Films
Alessandra Lacorazza Samudio | Director
Alexander Dinelaris, Rob Quadrino, Nando Vila, Lynette Coll, Sergio Lira, Daniel Tantalean, Cynthia Fernandez De La Cruz, Jan Suter, Janek Ambros, Cristóbal Güell, Stephanie Yankwitt, Slava Vladimirov, Erick Douat | Producers

Maisy Stella
“MY OLD ASS” • Amazon MGM Studios
Megan Park | Director
Tom Ackerley, Margot Robbie, Josey McNamara, Steven Rales | Producers

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

“The Fire Inside” • Amazon MGM Studios
cinematography BY Rina Yang
Rachel Morrison | Director
Elishia Holmes, Barry Jenkins | Producers

“Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell” • Kino Lorber
cinematography BY Dinh Duy Hung
Thien An Pham | Director
Jeremy Chua, Tran Van Thi | Producers

“Janet Planet” • A24
cinematography BY Maria von Hausswolff
Annie Baker | Director
Dan Janvey, Derrick Tseng, Annie Baker, Andrew Goldman | Producers

“la cocina” • WILLA
cinematography BY Juan Pablo Ramírez
Alonso Ruizpalacios | Director
Gerardo Gatica González, Lauren Mann, Ivan Orlic, Ramiro Ruiz | Producers

“NICKEL BOYS” • Orion | Amazon MGM Studios
cinematography BY Jomo Fray
RaMell Ross | Director
Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, David Levine, Joslyn Barnes | Producers

BEST EDITING

“THE APPRENTICE” • Briarcliff Entertainment
EDITING BY Olivier Bugge Coutté, & Olivia Neergaard-Holm
Ali Abbasi | Director
Louis Tisné, Daniel Bekerman, Jacob Jarek, Ruth Treacy | Producers

“Dìdi” • Focus Features
EDITING BY Arielle Zakowski
Sean Wang | Director
Carlos López Estrada, Josh Peters, Valerie Bush, Sean Wang | Producers

“jazzy” • The Film Arcade
EDITING BY Laura Colwell & Vanara Taing
Morrisa Maltz | Director
Morrisa Maltz, Lainey Bearkiller Shangreaux, Miranda Bailey, Natalie Whalen, Elliott Whitton, John Way, Vanara Taing, Tommy Heitkamp | Producers

“NIGHTBITCH” • Searchlight Pictures
EDITING BY Anne McCabe
Marielle Heller | Director
Amy Adams, Anne Carey, Megan Ellison, Marielle Heller, Sue Naegle, Stacy O’Neil, Christina Oh, Adam Paulsen, Sammy Scher | Producers

“September 5” • Paramount Pictures
EDITING BY Hansjörg Weissbrich
Tim Fehlbaum | Director
Sean Penn, Philipp Trauer, Thomas Wöbke, John Ira Palmer, John Wildermuth | Producers

BEST DOCUMENTARY

“GAUCHO GAUCHO” • Beautiful Stories Productions
Michael Dweck, Gregory Kershaw | Directors
Michael Dweck, Gregory Kershaw, Cameron O’Reilly, Christos V. Konstantakopoulos, Matthew Perniciaro | Producers

“HUMMINGBIRDS” • Extra Terrestrial Films
Silvia Del Carmen Castaños, Estefanía “Beba” Contreras | Directors
Jillian Schlesinger, Miguel Drake-McLaughlin, Leslie Benavides, Ana Rodriguez-Falcó, Diane Ng, Rivkah Beth Medow | Producers

“No Other Land” • Antipode Films
Yuval Abraham, Basel Adra, Hamdan Ballal, Rachel Szor | Directors
Fabien Greenberg, Bård Kjøge Rønning | Producers

“PATRICE: THE MOVIE” • Antipode Films
Ted Passon | Director
Kyla Harris, Innbo Shim, Emily Spivack | Producers

“Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat” • Kino Lorber
Johan Grimonprez | Director
Daan Milius, Rémi Grellety | Producers

BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM

“All We Imagine as Light” • Sideshow | Janus Films
Payal Kapadia | Director
Julien Graff, Thomas Hakim | Producers

“BLACK DOG” • The Seventh Art Pictures
Hu Guan | Director
Jing Liang, Wenjiu Zhu | Producers

“FLOW” • Sideshow | Janus Films
Gints Zilbalodis | Director
Matīss Kaža, Gints Zilbalodis, Ron Dyens, Gregory Zalcman | Producers

“Green Border” • Kino Lorber
Agnieszka Holland | Director
Fred Bernstein, Agnieszka Holland, Marcin Wierzchoslawski | Producers

“Hard Truths” • Bleecker Street
Mike Leigh | Director
Georgina Lowe | Producers

TELEVISION

BEST NEW SCRIPTED SERIES

“BABY REINDEER” • Netflix
Richard Gadd | Creator/Executive Producer
Wim De Greef, Petra Fried, Matt Jarvis, Ed Macdonald | Executive Producers

“DIARRA FROM DETROIT” • BET+
Diarra Kilpatrick | Creator/Executive Produce
Kenya Barris, Miles Orion Feldsott, Darren Goldberg | Executive Producers
Ester Lou, Mark Ganek | Co-Executive Producers

“ENGLISH TEACHER” • FX
Brian Jordan Alvarez | Creator/Executive Producer
Paul Simms, Jonathan Krisel, Dave King | Executive Producers
Kathryn Dean, Jake Bender, Zach Dunn | Co-Executive Producers

“FANTASMAS” • HBO Max
Julio Torres | Creator/Executive Producer
Emma Stone, Dave McCary, Olivia Gerke, Alex Bach, Daniel Powell | Executive Producers
Ali Herting | Co-Executive Producers

“Shōgun” • FX
Rachel Kondo, Justin Marks | Creators/Executive Producers
Edward L. McDonnell, Michael De Luca, Michaela Clavell | Executive Producers
Shannon Goss, Andrew Macdonald, Allon Reich | Co-Executive Producers

BEST NEW NON-SCRIPTED OR DOCUMENTARY SERIES

“Erased: WW2’s Heroes of Color” • National Geographic
Idris Elba, Johanna Woolford Gibbon, Jamilla Dumbuya, Jos Cushing, Khaled Gad, Matt Robins, Chris Muckle, Sean David Johnson, Simon Raikes | Executive Producers
Annabel Hobley | Co-Executive Producers

“Hollywood Black” • MGM+
Shayla Harris, Dave Sirulnick, Stacey Reiss, Jon Kamen, Justin Simien, Kyle Laursen, Forest Whitaker, Nina Yang Bongiovi, Jeffrey Schwarz, Amy Goodman Kass, Michael Wright, Jill Burkhart | Executive Producers
David C. Brown, Laurens Grant | Co-Executive Producers

“PHOTOGRAPHER” • National Geographic
Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, Jimmy Chin, Pagan Harleman, Betsy Forhan | Executive Producers
Anna Barnes, Brent Kunkle | Co-Executive Producers

“Ren Faire” • HBO Max
Ronald Bronstein, Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie, Eli Bush, Dani Bernfeld, Lance Oppenheim, David Gauvey Herbert, Nancy Abraham, Lisa Heller, Sara Rodriguez | Executive Producers
Abigail Rowe, Christian Vasquez, Max Allman | Co-Executive Producers

“Social Studies” • FX
Lauren Greenfield | Creators/Executive Producer
Wallis Annenberg, Regina K. Scully, Andrea van Beuren, Frank Evers, Caryn Capotosto | Executive Producers

BEST LEAD PERFORMANCE IN A NEW SCRIPTED SERIES

Brian Jordan Alvarez
“ENGLISH TEACHER” • FX
Brian Jordan Alvarez | Creator/Executive Producer
Paul Simms, Jonathan Krisel, Dave King | Executive Producers
Kathryn Dean, Jake Bender, Zach Dunn | Co-Executive Producers

Richard Gadd
“BABY REINDEER” • Netflix
Richard Gadd | Creator/Executive Producer
Wim De Greef, Petra Fried, Matt Jarvis, Ed Macdonald | Executive Producers

Lily Gladstone
“Under the Bridge” • Hulu
Quinn Shephard | Creator/Executive Producer
Rebecca Godfrey, Samir Mehta, Liz Tigelaar, Stacey Silverman, Tara Duncan, Riley Keough, Gina Gammell | Executive Producers

Kathryn Hahn
“Agatha All Along” • Disney+
Jac Schaeffer | Creator
Kevin Feige, Brad Winderbaum | Executive Producers

Cristin Milioti
“THE PENGUIN” • HBO Max
Lauren LeFranc | Creator/Executive Producer
Matt Reeves, Dylan Clark, Colin Farrell, Daniel Pipski | Executive Producers

Julianne Moore
“Mary & George” • Starz
D. C. Moore | Creator/Executive Producer
Liza Marshall, Oliver Hermanus, Julianne Moore, Sam Hoyle | Executive Producers

Hiroyuki Sanada
“Shōgun” • FX
Rachel Kondo, Justin Marks | Creators/Executive Producers
Edward L. McDonnell, Michael De Luca, Michaela Clavell | Executive Producers
Shannon Goss, Andrew Macdonald, Allon Reich | Co-Executive Producers

Anna Sawai
“Shōgun” • FX
Rachel Kondo, Justin Marks | Creators/Executive Producers
Edward L. McDonnell, Michael De Luca, Michaela Clavell | Executive Producers
Shannon Goss, Andrew Macdonald, Allon Reich | Co-Executive Producers

Andrew Scott
“RIPLEY” • Netflix
Steven Zaillian | Creator/Executive Producer
Garrett Basch, Clayton Townsend, Guymon Casady, Benjamin Forkner, Sharon Levy, Philipp Keel | Executive Producers

Julio Torres
“FANTASMAS” • HBO Max
Julio Torres | Creator/Executive Producer
Emma Stone, Dave McCary, Olivia Gerke, Alex Bach, Daniel Powell | Executive Producers
Ali Herting | Co-Executive Producers

BEST SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE IN A NEW SCRIPTED SERIES

Tadanobu Asano
“Shōgun” • FX
Rachel Kondo, Justin Marks | Creators/Executive Producers
Edward L. McDonnell, Michael De Luca, Michaela Clavell | Executive Producers
Shannon Goss, Andrew Macdonald, Allon Reich | Co-Executive Producers

Enrico Colantoni
“ENGLISH TEACHER” • FX
Brian Jordan Alvarez | Creator/Executive Producer
Paul Simms, Jonathan Krisel, Dave King | Executive Producers
Kathryn Dean, Jake Bender, Zach Dunn | Co-Executive Producers

Betty Gilpin
“three women” • Starz
Lisa Taddeo | Creator/Executive Producer
Laura Eason | Executive Producer

Chloe Guidry
“Under the Bridge” • Hulu
Quinn Shephard | Creator/Executive Producer
Rebecca Godfrey, Samir Mehta, Liz Tigelaar, Stacey Silverman, Tara Duncan, Riley Keough, Gina Gammell | Executive Producers

Moeka Hoshi
“Shōgun” • FX
Rachel Kondo, Justin Marks | Creators/Executive Producers
Edward L. McDonnell, Michael De Luca, Michaela Clavell | Executive Producers
Shannon Goss, Andrew Macdonald, Allon Reich | Co-Executive Producers

Stephanie Koenig
“ENGLISH TEACHER” • FX
Brian Jordan Alvarez | Creator/Executive Producer
Paul Simms, Jonathan Krisel, Dave King | Executive Producers
Kathryn Dean, Jake Bender, Zach Dunn | Co-Executive Producers

Patti LuPone
“Agatha All Along” • Disney+
Jac Schaeffer | Creator
Kevin Feige, Brad Winderbaum | Executive Producers

Nava Mau
“BABY REINDEER” • Netflix
Richard Gadd | Creator/Executive Producer
Wim De Greef, Petra Fried, Matt Jarvis, Ed Macdonald | Executive Producers

Ruth Negga
“Presumed Innocent” • Apple TV+
David E. Kelley | Creator/Executive Producer
Jake Gyllenhaal, J.J. Abrams | Executive Producers

BRIAN TEE
“EXPATS” • Prime Video
Lulu Wang | Creator
Daniele Melia, Nicole Kidman, Per Saari, Alice Bell, Theresa Park, Stan Wlodkowski | Executive Producers

BEST BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE IN A NEW SCRIPTED SERIES

Jessica Gunning
“BABY REINDEER” • Netflix
Richard Gadd | Creator/Executive Producer
Wim De Greef, Petra Fried, Matt Jarvis, Ed Macdonald | Executive Producers

Diarra Kilpatrick
“DIARRA FROM DETROIT” • BET+
Diarra Kilpatrick | Creator/Executive Produce
Kenya Barris, Miles Orion Feldsott, Darren Goldberg | Executive Producers
Ester Lou, Mark Ganek | Co-Executive Producers

Joe Locke
“Agatha All Along” • Disney+
Jac Schaeffer | Creator
Kevin Feige, Brad Winderbaum | Executive Producers

Megan Stott
“PENELOPE” • Netflix
Mark Duplass, Mel Eslyn | Creators
Jay Duplass, Shuli Harel | Executive Producers

Hoa Xuande
“The Sympathizer” • HBO
Park Chan-wook, Don McKellar | Creators
Jisun Back, Amanda Burrell, Park Chan-wook, Robert Downey Jr., Niv Fichman, Kim Ly, Don McKellar, Viet Thanh Nguyen, Mark Richard, Ron Schmidt, Susan Downey | Executive Producers

SPECIAL HONORS

PRODUCERS AWARD
presented by Bulleit Frontier Whiskey

(The Producers Award honors emerging producers who, despite highly limited resources, demonstrate the creativity, tenacity and vision required to produce quality independent films.)

Alex Coco
Recently produced Sean Baker’s Palme d’Or-winning film Anora. His previous work includes producing multiple Cannes premieres such as Red Rocket (2021) and The Sweet East (2023), as well as Pet Shop Days, which debuted at the Venice Film Festival. He also produced Champ (2022) and Power Signal (2023), both Sundance Film Festival selections. Other producing credits include music videos for Childish Gambino’s Lithonia (2024) and Addison Rae’s Diet Pepsi (2024).

Sarah Winshall
A creative producer and the founder of the independent production company Smudge Films. She launched the Los Angeles Festival of Movies in 2024. In 2023, she received the Dear Producer Award, and she was a 2022 Gotham/Cannes Producers Network Fellow. Recent films include I Saw the TV Glow (dir. Jane Schoenbrun) with A24, Good One (dir. India Donaldson), Strawberry Mansion (dirs. Albert Birney and Kentucker Audley), and Give Me Pity! (dir. Amanda Kramer). Previous work has played at Cannes, Sundance, Berlinale, SXSW, New Directors/New Films, CPH:DOX, Outfest, Rotterdam, MoMA, and on the Criterion Channel.

Zoë Worth
A writer, producer and actor. She started out producing theater and low-budget films with The Collectin, a company she founded with actor Alden Ehrenreich while at NYU, including features Running Wild, Shut Up and Drive (Tribeca 2015), and the web series Chloe & Zoë. She most recently produced Thelma, starring June Squibb, and written and directed by Josh Margolin. The film premiered at Sundance 2024 and was released theatrically by Magnolia Pictures and Universal International. Worth recently founded the production company Bandwagon alongside Chris Kaye. She hosts a weekly writers’ group, Rock and Roll Universe, where Thelma was first workshopped.

SOMEONE TO WATCH AWARD

(The Someone to Watch Award recognizes a talented filmmaker of singular vision who has not yet received appropriate recognition.)

Nicholas Colia
“Griffin in Summer”
Recently received his MFA from NYU Graduate Film School, where he was the recipient of the Martin Scorsese and Maurice Kanbar Scholarships. His award-winning short films include Alex and the Handyman and Untitled Short Film About White People. His first feature, Griffin in Summer, recently premiered at the Tribeca Festival, where it received awards for Best US Narrative Feature, Best Screenplay, and Special Jury Mention for New Narrative Directing.

Sarah Friedland
“Familiar Touch”
A filmmaker and choreographer working at the intersection of moving images and moving bodies. Her work has screened in spaces such as NYFF, New Directors/New Films, MoMA, and Performa Biennial. Sarah started her career assisting filmmakers including Steve McQueen, Mike S. Ryan and Kelly Reichardt. She was recently a Pina Bausch Fellow for Choreography, a NYSCA/NYFA Fellow in Film, and named to Filmmaker Magazine’s “25 New Faces of Independent Film” in 2023. Her debut feature, Familiar Touch, premiered at the Venice Film Festival, winning the Lion of the Future, Best Director, and Best Actress (Orizzonti Competition).

Pham Thien An
“Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell”
A film director and writer from Vietnam. After graduating in Information Technology, he realized his interest in cinematography and filmmaking by teaching himself how to shoot and edit films. His short films The Mute and Stay Awake, Be Ready have screened at numerous festivals such as Cannes, Clermont-Ferrand, Locarno, Tampere, and Uppsala. In 2023, his debut feature film was screened in Directors’ Fortnight and won Camera D’or in Cannes.

TRUER THAN FICTION AWARD

(The Truer Than Fiction Award is presented to an emerging director of non-fiction features who has not yet received significant recognition.)

Julian Brave NoiseCat, Emily Kassie
“SUGARCANE”
Julian Brave NoiseCat is a writer, filmmaker and student of Salish art and history. His first documentary, Sugarcane, directed alongside Emily Kassie, follows an investigation into abuse and missing children at the Indian residential school NoiseCat’s family was sent to near Williams Lake, British Columbia. The film premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival, where NoiseCat and Kassie won the Directing Award: U.S. Documentary. A member of the Canim Lake Band Tsq’escen and descendant of the Lil’Wat Nation of Mount Currie, he is concurrently finishing his first book, We Survived the Night, which will be published by Alfred A. Knopf.

Emily Kassie is an Emmy- and Peabody-nominated filmmaker and investigative journalist. Kassie shoots, directs and reports stories on geopolitical conflict, humanitarian crises, and people caught in the crossfire. Her work for The New York Times, PBS Frontline, Netflix, and others ranges from drug and weapons trafficking in the Saharan desert to the Taliban’s crackdown on women, garnering multiple Edward R. Murrow, World Press Photo, and National Press Photographers awards. Following the economic exploitation of the refugee crisis, she won the Overseas Press Club and National Magazine awards. Her first documentary on intermarriage in post-genocide Rwanda won the Student Academy Award.

Carla Gutiérrez
“FRIDA”
An Emmy-nominated documentary director/editor. Her directorial debut, Frida, premiered at Sundance 2024, and she edited the Oscar-nominated films RBG and La Corona. Carla is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and American Cinema Editors.

Rachel Elizabeth Seed
“A Photographic Memory”
An LA-based nonfiction storyteller working in film, photography and writing. Her debut feature film A Photographic Memory, which premiered as the Closing Night film at True/False 2024, was called “one of the best docs of the year” by RogerEbert.com and “an ingenious, meta doc” by Variety. Rachel’s work has been supported by the Sundance Institute, Field of Vision, the Jerome Foundation, and Gotham Labs, among others. Formerly a photo editor at New York Magazine, her photography has been exhibited at the International Center of Photography, and she co-founded the Brooklyn Documentary Club, a thriving film collective in NYC.

About the Film Independent

In 1981, Gregory Nava and a small band of directors, writers and producers began gathering regularly to share creative ideas and discuss ways to increase resources for independent filmmakers.

The non-profit, member-driven organization Independent Feature Project (IFP)/West soon emerged from these meetings with the mission to cultivate the careers of independent filmmakers, build larger audiences for independent film and champion diversity in the entertainment industry. National recognition quickly followed when the organization took on production of the Spirit Awards in the late 1980s and the LA Film Festival in 2000. In time, IFP/West became Film Independent — a more accurate banner for the spectrum of services and programs the organization had expanded to include.

Today, Film Independent encompasses a broad community of individuals who appreciate and sustain artist-driven filmmaking.