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Existential black comedy Birdman led the Independent Spirit Awards nominees on Tuesday as thriller Nightcrawler, coming-of-age chronicle Boyhood and civil rights drama Selma followed with five nods each. Birdman which follows the journey of a washed-up actor as he embarks on a theater comeback. The film scored a Best Actor nod for Michael Keaton, Best Supporting Actor and Actress for Edward Norton and Emma Stone respectively, and Best Director for Alejandro G. Inarritu.
Fox Searchlight’s Birdman joined four other contenders, IFC Films’ Boyhood, Paramount Pictures’ Selma and Sony Pictures Classics ‘ Whiplash and Love Is Strange for the coveted top prize for Best Feature. Jazz drumming drama Whiplash which won the top honor at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year and has garnered awards buzz, landed four nominations, including Best Director for Damien Chazelle and Best Supporting Actor for J.K. Simmons. The Independent Spirit Awards held at a casual luncheon on California’s Santa Monica beach the day before Hollywood’s glitzy Oscars ceremony on February 21, bestows awards on the best achievements in independent films. The award recipients are often an indicator of Academy Award winners with slavery drama 12 Years a Slave bagging the top honors at both the Spirit Awards and Oscars, this year. Keaton will be up against Nightcrawler star Jake Gyllenhaal, singer-actor Andre Benjamin from Jimi: All Is by My Side, John Lithgow from Love Is Strange and Selma actor David Oyelowo. In the Best Actress race, The Immigrant star Marion Cotillard will face Julianne Moore from Still Alice, comedian Jenny Slate from Obvious Child. The other contenders include Tilda Swinton who starred in Only Lovers Left Alive and Rinko Kikuchi for Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter.
The Best Documentary nominees include Laura Poitras’ Edward Snowden film Citizenfour, the Congo environmental film Virunga and Stray Dog, the American heartland narrative. Some of the other nominees include 20,000 Days on Earth, about singer Nick Cave and The Salt of the Earth, about photographer Sebastiao Salgado. Directors of Sweden’s Force Majeure, Poland’s Ida, Russian film Leviathan, Canada’s Mommy, Philippines’ Norte, the End of History and Under the Skin from the United Kingdom will be competing forthe Best International Film. Foxcatcher, which has earned Oscar buzz for its stars Steve Carell, Channing Tatum, Mark Ruffalo, director Bennett Miller along with Paul Thomas Anderson’s Inherent Vice were not eligible for individual nominations said award organizers.
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