Spirit Awards give indie films the spotlight
Woody Harrelson and Ben Foster star in “The Messenger,” written by alumnus Alessandro Camon and nominated for both a Spirit Award and an Oscar. The Spirit Awards will air Friday at 8 p.m.
By Anna Musky-Goldwyn
March 3, 2010 9:54 p.m.
In addition to the Oscars, there is another award show that continues to change the face of the movie industry, the Spirit Awards.
Highlighting independent films for years, the show, celebrating its 25th anniversary, exhibits an array of genres and celebrates the collaborative artistic visions of various filmmakers.
Seen as more of a low-key event than some of the larger award shows, the Spirit Awards will take place Friday at 8 p.m. in downtown Los Angeles and will be broadcast on the Independent Film Channel.
“This season should inspire a community of artists,” said Barbara Boyle, chair of the UCLA Department of Film, Television and Digital Media and former president of Film Independent, the organization that created the Spirit Awards.
Boyle stressed the awards as a way to create a larger audience for independent film. Recently almost all of the independent branches of studios have closed down for economic reasons. This has put a huge dent in the advancement of indie movies.
However, with many of the Spirit Award nominees also appearing on the Oscar ballots, it is difficult to argue that these films and their filmmakers are not getting as much attention as their mainstream counterparts.
One such person is Italian-born Alessandro Camon, a UCLA alumnus who is nominated for both a Spirit Award and an Oscar for his screenplay for the movie “The Messenger.”
“(The Spirit Award nomination) drags attention to the movie, which is the ultimate goal,” Camon said.
Independent films have been garnering more and more of this desired attention over the past couple of decades.
“Everybody knows now that filmmakers can come out of nowhere,” he said.
Another filmmaker whose career has blossomed is cinematographer Adriano Goldman.
Nominated for a Spirit Award for his work on “Sin Nombre,” Goldman said that for him, awards act as a celebration of good movies, not a competition.
“I’m really proud because I think that “˜Sin Nombre’ is a good movie,” Goldman said.
Camon agreed that the Spirit Awards stand out in their recognition of extraordinary movies driven by a different frame of mind than the big-budget blockbusters.
“They give the ability to pursue an unadulterated vision,” Camon said.
Independent films such as “The Messenger” and “Sin Nombre” have contributed to the changes in the face of the movie industry. They show that films do not need a large budget to be a creative and critical success.
“Sundance and the Spirit Awards are the two most important ceremonies for the independent side of the industry,” Goldman said.
He also noted the growing chances of up-and-coming filmmakers to get discovered by producers who specialize in independent projects.
The Spirit Awards continue to act as a symbol for the significance of independent film in the artistic community.
“These movies are made with a more singular, filmmaking-driven vision. They take bigger risks,” Camon said. “The Spirit Awards celebrate these kinds of films.”
Film students who are interested in a more individual vision and have prospects of independent filmmaking are finding a growing niche for their interests because of events like the Spirit Awards.
“I want the awards to act as an inspiration for our students,” Boyle said.
