2021 Film Independent Spirit Awards
Updated March 18th, 2021
1. Chloé Zhao - Nomadland
A woman in her sixties after losing everything in the Great Recession embarks on a journey through the American West, living as a van-dwelling modern-day nomad.
2. Emerald Fennell - Promising Young Woman
A young woman haunted by a tragedy in her past takes revenge on the predatory men unlucky enough to cross her path.
3. Lee Isaac Chung - Minari
It’s the 1980s, and David, a seven-year-old Korean American boy, is faced with new surroundings and a different way of life when his father, Jacob, moves their family from the West Coast to rural Arkansas. His mother, Monica, is aghast that they live in a mobile home in the middle of nowhere, and naughty little David and his sister are bored and aimless. When his equally mischievous grandmother arrives from Korea to live with them, her unfamiliar ways arouse David’s curiosity. Meanwhile, Jacob, hell-bent on creating a farm on untapped soil, throws their finances, his marriage, and the stability of the family into jeopardy.
4. Eliza Hittman - Never Rarely sometimes Always
A pair of teenage girls in rural Pennsylvania travel to New York City to seek out medical help after an unintended pregnancy.
5. Kelly Reichardt - First Cow
A skilled cook has traveled west and joined a group of fur trappers in Oregon, though he only finds true connection with a Chinese immigrant also seeking his fortune. Soon the two collaborate on a successful business.