Idris Elba has celebrated with a James Brown dance move after being named best supporting male at the Film Independent Spirit Awards.
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The Spirit Awards are voted on by members of Film Independent and require that the films be produced in the US for less than $20 million.
The Tom McCarthy directorial takes you back to 2001 when the journalists of The Boston Globe’s Spotlight team began investigating Father John Geoghan, accused of molesting more than 80 boys.
Best Adapted Screenplay went to Charles Randolph and Adam McKay for ‘The Big Short, ‘ marking their first Oscar.
Held Feb. 27 on the beach in Santa Monica, the Spirit Awards celebrated artist-driven films made with an economy of means by filmmakers whose films embodied diversity, innovation and uniqueness of vision.
Netflix film Beasts of No Nation, which is about child soldiers in West Africa and stars a cast of black actors, took two awards.
“There is transgender talent”.
But this year’s Spirit Awards, an annual dressed-down oceanside indie antidote to the Oscars, was most remarkable for its more diverse nominees and winners.
“Carol” who led all nominees with six nods, only walked away with one prize, Best Cinematography, which was awarded to Ed Lachman.
“The Spirit Awards honor the films you’ve been meaning to see”, Nanjiani said.
The night was overshadowed by a simmering race row, addressed head-on by black host Chris Rock, who delivered a series of caustic jokes targeting the Academy’s overwhelmingly white male membership. Its star, Brie Larson, won the award for best actress; it also won the award for best first screenplay.
Film Independent President Josh Welsh hailed the awards for “talent on-screen and talent on-camera look(ing) somewhat like the world we actually live in”.
“Quite honestly, we need studios like this who are going to step up when the other studios won’t”, said McCarthy, with several of the reporters the films is based on in the crowd.
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The awards show made history on Saturday, by honouring the first transgender actress with a major acting gong.
