22nd Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards Nominations - Update

Today round two of the 3rd Audience Award begins as the five nominees have been selected.

Artifact by Bartholomew Cubbins
Telling harsh truths about the modern music business, Artifact gives intimate access to singer/actor Jared Leto and his band Thirty Seconds to Mars as they battle their label in a brutal lawsuit and record their album This Is War. The film is a true artifact of our times, as its subjects struggle with big questions over art, money and integrity.

Burn by Tom Putnam and Brenna Sanchez
A character-driven, action-packed documentary about Detroit, told through the eyes of the Detroit firefighters, the men and women charged with the thankless task of saving a city that many have written off as dead.

Beasts of the Southern Wild by Benh Zeitlin
In a forgotten but defiant bayou community cut off from the rest of the world by a sprawling levee, a six-year-old girl exists on the brink of orphanhood. Buoyed by her childish optimism and extraordinary imagination, she believes that the natural world is in balance with the universe until a fierce storm changes her reality. Desperate to repair the structure of her world in order to save her ailing father and sinking home, this tiny hero must learn to survive unstoppable catastrophes of epic proportions.

Once in a Lullaby: The PS 22 Chorus Story by Jonathan Kafer
More than a feel good movie about kids and school, Once in a Lullaby: The PS 22 Chorus Documentary, goes to the heart of the purpose of education.The fifth grade PS 22 Chorus from Staten Island is preparing for a performance at the 83rd Annual Academy Awards ceremony. The story is set into motion by PS22 Chorus’ vibrant performances on their viral YouTube videos. Driven by the vision and passion of an unconventional music teacher who encourages students to connect to their own spirit and to perform from the inside out, Once in a Lullaby captures the journey of children whose complex life circumstances need the power of music to elevate and focus them at a time when they are making the transition to their middle school years.

The Invisible War by Kirby Dick
A groundbreaking investigative documentary about one of America's most shameful and best kept secrets: the epidemic of rape within the U.S. military. The film paints a startling picture of the extent of the problem-today, a female soldier in combat zones is more likely to be raped by a fellow soldier than killed by enemy fire. The Department of Defense estimates there were a staggering 19,000 violent sex crimes in the military in 2010. The Invisible War exposes the epidemic, breaking open one of the most under-reported stories of our generation, to the nation and the world.

To read more info and watch trailers for each film plus VOTE -you have until November 18-, go here.

---///---

10/18
The American award season started today with the IFP's Gotham Independent Film nominations announcement that for the first time were twitted live. As seems will take a while for the official site to have the nominations up, decided to share them but will review everything when organizers publish. Post has become final as news are posted here.

There are many expected nominations, especially in the best feature, but there is one outstanding surprise for me: NO best feature nomination for acclaimed Beasts of the Southern Wild! Nevertheless film got 2 nominations, one for director and the other for best actor. I know that these awards always have unusual nominations, but let's hope as some have been predicting (or hoping) that this award season will be interesting, less predictable and yes, less boring.

Is no surprise for me that I'm not familiar with many of the nominated films as I don't particularly enjoy American Indie cinema but in a moment will learn about them as will be posting info and videos  @MOC. Still, I have seen some and yes I have highly like them, especially in the documentary category and well, Wes Anderson's movie was surprisingly very enjoyable! Also there are a couple of films that of course are must be seen for me, like Paul Thomas Anderson and Antonio Méndez Esparza films.

These are the nominations.

Best Feature
Bernie, Richard Linklater
The Loneliest Planet, Julia Loktev
The Master, Paul Thomas Anderson
Middle of Nowhere, Ava DuVernay
Moonrise Kingdom, Wes Anderson

Breakthrough Director
Zal Batmanglij for Sound of My Voice
Brian Cassidy and Melanie Shatzky for Francine
Jason Cortlund and Julia Halperin for Now, Forager
Antonio Méndez Esparza for Aquí y Allá (Here and There)
Benh Zeitlin for Beasts of the Southern Wild

Breakthrough Actor
Mike Birbiglia in Sleepwalk With Me, Mike Birbiglia and Seth Barrish
Emayatzy Corinealdi in Middle of Nowhere, Ava DuVernay
Thure Lindhart in Keep The Lights On, Ira Sachs
Melanie Lynskey in Hello, I Must be Going, Todd Louiso
Quvenzhane Wallis in Beasts of the Southern Wild, Benh Zeitlin

Best Ensemble Performance
Bernie by Richard Linklater
Jack Black, Shirley MacLaine, Matthew McConaughey
Moonrise Kingdom by Wes Anderson
Bruce Willis, Edward Norton, Bill Murray, Frances McDormand, Tilda Swinton, Jared Gilman, Kara Hayward, Jason Schwartzman, Bob Balaban
Safety Not Guaranteed by Colin Trevorrow
Aubrey Plaza, Mark Duplass, Jake Johnson, Karan Soni, Jenica Bergere, Kristen Bell, Jeff Garlin, Mary Lynn Rajskub
Silver Linings Playbook, David O. Russell
Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Robert De Niro, Jacki Weaver, Chris Tucker, Anupam Kher
Your Sister's Sister by Lynn Shelton
Emily Blunt, Rosemarie Dewitt, Mark Duplass

Best Documentary
Detropia, Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady
Marina Abramović: The Artist is Present, Matthew Akers
Room 237, Rodney Ascher
How to Survive a Plague, David France
The Waiting Room, Peter Nicks

Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You
An Over Simplification Of Her Beauty, Terence Nance
Kid-Thing, David Zellner
Red Flag, Alex Karpovsky
Sun Don't Shine, Amy Seimetz
Tiger Tail in Blue, Frank V. Ross

Spotlight on Women Filmmakers "Live the Dream" grant
Leah Meyerhoff for I Believe in Unicorns
Stacie Passon for Concussion
Visra Bischit Vadakan for Karaoke Girl

Voting for round one to select five (5) nominees of the 3rd Audience Award begins today, Thursday, October 18th. The second round will begin on November 5th. So you will have two opportunities to vote for this award. To vote please go here.

The awards ceremony will be held on Monday, November 26th at Cipriani Wall Street, which will have a live feed at IFP official site.  Mike Birbiglia will host the award ceremony.