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Jacob Elordi, who plays Elvis Presley in Sofia Coppola’s film Priscilla, and Zachary Quinto, who is best known for playing Spock in the J.J. Abrams Star Trek movies, have the lead roles in the true crime serial killer film He Went That Way, which is set to reach select theatres on January 5th, with a VOD release to follow on January 12th. With those dates drawing near, a trailer for the film has arrived online, and you can check it out in the embed above.

He Went That Way marks the feature directorial debut of Jeffrey Darling, who previously worked as a cinematographer on the films The Crossing, Young Einstein, Princess Kate, and The Place at the Coast. Sadly, Darling’s first movie is also his last, as he passed away in March of 2022. The film is set in 1964 and is described as “a wicked spin on the buddy...

Jacob Elordi, who plays Elvis Presley in Sofia Coppola’s upcoming film Priscilla, and Zachary Quinto, who is best known for playing Spock in the J.J. Abrams Star Trek movies, have the lead roles in the true crime serial killer film He Went That Way, and Deadline reports that Vertical has acquired the U.S. distribution rights to the film. The specifics of their release plans have not yet been revealed, but we know that it involves a theatrical release sometime in early 2024. The film had its world premiere at the Tribeca Festival this past June.

He Went That Way marks the feature directorial debut of Jeffrey Darling, who previously worked as a cinematographer on the films The Crossing, Young Einstein, Princess Kate, and The Place at the Coast. Sadly, Darling’s first movie is also his last, as he passed away in March of 2022. The film is set in...

Exclusive: Vertical has snapped up U.S. rights to He Went That Way, a true-life serial killer tale that stars Jacob Elordi (Saltburn), Zachary Quinto (Star Trek franchise), and Patrick J. Adams (Suits). Marking the first and final feature from Australian director and Dp Jeffrey Darling, who passed away in March 2022, the thriller will release exclusively in theaters early next year, having world premiered at the 2023 Tribeca Festival.

Billed as a wicked spin on the buddy road trip pic, the film is set in 1964 and follows 19-year-old serial killer Bobby (Elordi) as he is picked up by a celebrity animal handler, Jim (Quinto), on a desolate stretch of Route 66, with priceless cargo in tow: his chimpanzee, Spanky, an American TV darling. As stress between them rises and their fiery personalities combust, the road only becomes more treacherous the farther they go.

Pic is based on the true story of celebrity animal trainer Dave Pitts,...

About halfway through Jeffrey Darling’s crime thriller, He Went That Way, I had to consistently fight through the anger to remind myself that this genre-mashup is “just a movie.” At this point in the film, 19-year-old serial killer Bobby Falls had just made good on a promise and provided a kind gesture to his latest captive Jim Goodwin. It’s the kind of scene that felt emotionally manipulative; I felt some cheesy speech about how people could change was right around the corner. Thankfully, this never came to pass, but the film’s quality didn't get any better.

Zachary Quinto stars as the celebrity animal handler, Jim Goodwin, who travels across the country to Chicago with his precious cargo, the famous TV chimpanzee Spanky. During his journey, he picks up hitchhiker Bobby Falls (Jacob Elordi), who is on a mission to reunite with his girlfriend in Michigan to prove...

The foundations of He Went That Way would appear to promise a movie with curiosity, tension, volatility and perhaps even the kind of improbable bonding that can grow out of Stockholm syndrome. Putting a celebrity animal trainer, a serial killer and a chimp together in a station wagon headed across Route 66 in the turbulent mid-’60s at the very least suggests something with edge and compelling strangeness. Which makes it disappointing to report that despite the best efforts of co-stars Jacob Elordi and Zachary Quinto, this ineffectual true-crime road trip is entirely lacking in danger.

The film was made by Jeffrey Darling, a respected Australian industry veteran acclaimed for his work as a cinematographer, a music video director (for Crowded House) and, most notably, as a maker of award-winning international commercials for some of the world’s biggest brands. In March 2022, his body was pulled from the ocean by lifeguards...

Principal photography has wrapped on “He Went That Way,” the true crime thriller starring Jacob Elordi (“Euphoria”) and Zachary Quinto (Star Trek franchise).

Mister Smith Entertainment have revealed a first look image and will be showing the first footage to buyers at the upcoming European Film Market in Berlin.

Set in 1964, “He Went That Way” is based on the true crime story of celebrity animal trainer Dave Pitts and his famous TV chimp, Spanky, centerpiece of the traveling entertainment show The Ice Capades in the 1960s, and his fateful three-day encounter with the serial killer Larry Lee Ranes. The film is inspired by Conrad Hilberry’s book “Luke Karamazov” and the real life account from Dave Pitts, the sole survivor of Ranes killing spree, and follows the trio as they set off on a crazy three-day road trip down Route 66 together.

Elordi portrays serial killer Bobby Falls, based on Ranes and Quinto portrays Jim Goodwin,...

“Star Trek” star Zachary Quinto and “Euphoria” actor Jacob Elordi will star together in “He Went That Way,” a road trip crime thriller that’s set in the ’60s and is based on a true story.

Jeffrey Darling, a commercial director, will make his feature film directorial debut, and Mister Smith Entertainment is handling worldwide sales of the film to buyers at the Cannes Film Market.

Set in 1964, “He Went That Way” is based on the true story of a strange road trip that involves a serial killer, an animal handler and a TV chimpanzee star named Zippy. The film is inspired by how animal trainer Dave Pitts and the famous TV chimp Spanky, who was the centerpiece of The Ice Capades in the ’60s, had a fateful three-day encounter with serial killer Larry Lee Ranes. Quinto will play the animal trainer, and Elordi will take on the role of the serial killer.

Exclusive: The Kissing Booth and Euphoria star Jacob Elordi will star with Star Trek and American Horror Story star Zachary Quinto in the road-trip crime thriller He Went That Way, which Mister Smith Entertainment is launching ahead of the virtual Cannes market.

Set in 1964, the movie is based on the strange but true crime story of celebrity animal trainer Dave Pitts and his famous TV chimp, Spanky, centerpiece of the traveling extravaganza The Ice Capades, and his fateful three-day encounter with the serial killer Larry Lee Ranes.

Quinto will portray Jim Goodwin, based on Pitts. Elordi will play serial killer Bobby Falls, based on Ranes.

The story is inspired by Conrad Hilberry’s book Luke Karamazov and the real-life account from Pitts, the sole survivor of Ranes’ killing spree. Commercials director Jeffrey Darling will make his feature debut from a script by Evan M. Wiener (Monogamy).

The producing team includes...

Wide Open Spaces: Grau’s Arid English Language Debut Misses the Mark

For his long awaited follow-up to his handsomely unsettling 2010 debut We Are What We Are (since remade in English by Jim Mickle), Mexican filmmaker Jorge Michel Grau turns to the American indie scene for Big Sky. But this desert set survival story trailing one teenager’s attempts to overcome the dastardly adults in pursuit of her is as equally ludicrous as another foreign filmmaker’s recent foray into English, French filmmaker Jean-Baptiste Leonetti’s nonsensical Beyond the Reach. Ill-advised and incongruously shaped at every turn, this technically proficient exercise’s greatest faults could easily be assigned solely to Evan M. Wiener’s woefully underwhelming and inconsistent screenplay. But then that would be too easy since beyond the plumes of beautiful desert landscapes, there’s little else of consequence in this simulated genre performance.

Agoraphobic teen Hazel (Bella Thorne...

Like many sophomore features, Jorge Michel Grau's Big Sky suffers a bit by comparison with what came before. That's especially so because Grau debuted with the immensely impressive Somos lo que hay (We Are What We Are), an atmospheric character drama about a Mexican family of cannibals dealing with the death of a beloved parent. In the five years since then, Grau has kept busy directing for television as well as making short films for anthologies such as The ABCs of Death and Mexico Barbaro. Now Grau applies his skills as a director to an English-language script written by Evan M. Wiener. After a brief, foreboding tease, Big Sky introduces insolent teen Hazel (Bella Thorne) and her mother Dee (Kyra Sedgwick). Hazel suffers from a...

[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...

Big Sky

Director: Jorge Michel Grau

Writer: Evan M. Wiener

Producers: Matthew Salloway, Christina Papagjika

U.S. Distributor: Rights Available

Cast: Bella Thorne, Kyra Sedgwick, Frank Grillo

Mexican director Jorge Michel Grau’s excellent 2010 debut, We Are What We Are already received the English language treatment with Jim Mickle’s 2013 version, so perhaps it’s no surprise to see Grau already helming his own English language debut with this dramatic thriller. While Kyra Sedgwick still pops up in interesting vehicles, we’re hoping this isn’t of similar quality as her union with Danish filmmaker Ole Bornedal in The Possession (2012). Frank Grillo is a consistently underrated element and we’ve been damn curious to see what Grau’s been going to show us next.

Gist: A teen traveling with her mother to a treatment center for her agoraphobia has to fight for their lives against a gunman who attacks them.

Manis Film announced that production started on Big Sky, the English-language debut of Mexican helmer Jorge Michel Grau (the original We Are What We Are). The film will star Bella Thorne (upcoming The Familymoon with Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore, and Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day with Steve Carell and Jennifer Garner), Kyra Sedgwick (Emmy and Golden Globe winner for The Closer; The Possession; upcoming films Kill Your Darlings and Reach Me), Frank Grillo (The Grey; End of Watch; Zero Dark Thirty; upcoming Captain America: The Winter Soldier), and Aaron Tveit (Les Miserables; Howl; USA's Graceland). Principal photography commenced this week in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Here's what producer Randy Manis had to say about the production.

"Big Sky is a suspenseful and thrilling story that will have audiences on the edge of their seats as our troubled characters tumble further into peril. We are very...

Bella Thorne ("Shake It Up!") and Kyra Sedgwick ("The Closer") have signed on for the lead roles in Jorge Michel Grau's thriller "Big Sky".

The pair play a mother and daughter on their way to a desert facility to help the teen deal with her paralysing agoraphobia.

They soon find themselves attacked by gunmen, with the teen having to fight her own demons for the duo to survive.

Frank Grillo and Aaron Tveit also star. Randy Manis, Matthew Salloway and Christina Papagjika are producing.

Evan M. Wiener penned the script, and filming begins this week in Albuquerque.

Source: Deadline...

Chicago – With so many unfaithful weiners crowding the daily news cycle, I suppose it’s as appropriate a time as any for a film like Dana Adam Shapiro’s “Monogamy.” As in the over-publicized Anthony Weiner case, the infidelity in Shapiro’s film never actually takes place. Instead of physical contact, the affair takes place entirely within the obsessive mind of a sexually frustrated voyeur.

Unfortunately, the voyeur is played by Chris Messina, a good actor who seems oddly incapable of garnering audience empathy. Every time his face shows up on the screen, I’m suddenly filled with the intense desire to punch it. Perhaps my reaction is simply due to the fact that Messina has delivered multiple memorable portrayals of oafish, self-absorbed masculinity. He played the allegedly lovable boyfriend in “Julie & Julia,” who devoured his wife’s carefully prepared dishes with all the etiquette of a slovenly swine.

DVD...

By Christopher Stipp

The Archives, Right Here

Check out my other column, This Week In Trailers, at SlashFilm.com and follow me on Twitter under the name: Stipp

Monogamy - DVD Review

Color me surprised at how much I liked this film.

At first glance you could see a movie about a photographer who takes clandestine pictures of clients who pay to be shot in the wild, an odd subset of humans who need to see what it’s like to be shown in their natural territory, as something Hitchcock would cook up when one of the clients takes it up a notch and gets a little freaky deekey, having a penchant for voyeurism.

Purposely antagonizing the guy, the sexualized client and photog share in a relationship that isn’t so much physical as it is cerebral. As, you see, the guy is getting married to Rashida Jones, a woman...

Reviewed by Chris Allsop

(March 2011)

Directed by: Dana Adam Shapiro

Written by: Dana Adam Shapiro and Evan M. Wiener

Starring: Chris Messina, Rashida Jones, Meitel Dohan, Ivan Martin, Neal Huff and Sarah Burns

Relationships are fascinating in their eternal variety, and the mysteries of what makes one couple work and another misfire remain ever compelling. It’s why filmmakers have long plundered this fertile territory for celluloid purposes, and the latest in this thematic tradition is Dana Adam Shapiro’s “Monogamy” — a dramatic/comedic look at the cold-feet phenomenon with a modern twist.

Theo (Chris Messina) and Nat (Rashida Jones) are a hip thirtysomething couple engaged to be married. Paying the bills through wedding photography, Theo sets up a sideline to kick-start the creative juices: He is hired by clients to clandestinely snap voyeuristic photos of them. When a female exhibitionist repeatedly hires Theo to document her public trysts, his...

Reviewed by Chris Allsop

(March 2011)

Directed by: Dana Adam Shapiro

Written by: Dana Adam Shapiro and Evan M. Wiener

Starring: Chris Messina, Rashida Jones, Meitel Dohan, Ivan Martin, Neal Huff and Sarah Burns

Relationships are fascinating in their eternal variety, and the mysteries of what makes one couple work and another misfire remain ever compelling. It’s why filmmakers have long plundered this fertile territory for celluloid purposes, and the latest in this thematic tradition is Dana Adam Shapiro’s “Monogamy” — a dramatic/comedic look at the cold-feet phenomenon with a modern twist.

Theo (Chris Messina) and Nat (Rashida Jones) are a hip thirtysomething couple engaged to be married. Paying the bills through wedding photography, Theo sets up a sideline to kick-start the creative juices: He is hired by clients to clandestinely snap voyeuristic photos of them. When a female exhibitionist repeatedly hires Theo to document her public trysts, his...

Ballet drama "Black Swan" triumphed at the 2011 Film Independent Spirit Awards and won for Best Feature, Best Director for Darren Aronofsky, Best Female Lead for Natalie Portman, and Best Cinematography for Matthew Libatique.

Oscar nominee Natalie Portman added this victory to her impressive collection of awards she took home this season, including a Golden Globe, BAFTA and SAG Award for Best Actress. Best Supporting Female went to Dale Dickey for "Winter's Bone."

15 Facts about Natalie Portman!

With all the "Black Swan" hoopla, am I the only one who thinks that the film, while well-made, is not deserving of all these hyper-crazed adulations? Portman was good, but I prefer Annette Bening's understated performance in "The Kids Are All Right." Or heck, Jennifer Lawrence's "Winter's Bone" performance could easily outdance Portman's delusional ballerina portrayal any day.

And "Winter's Bone," celebrating its true independent spirit, was virtually snubbed at last night's Independent Spirit Awards. Sure, the excellent supporting cast was honored with Dale Dickey winning Best Supporting Female and John Hawkes for Best Supporting Male, but the engaging and deeply haunting Debra Granik movie (with the most nominations totaling to seven nods) lost out to...you guessed it, Darren Aronofsky's "Black Swan." (Check out my "Winter's Bone" movie review right here)

And yes, I do admire Aronofsky, I thought "The Wrestler" was one of his personal...

Well, every year the Independent Spirit Awards are handed out the night before the Oscars, and every year, it seems that they are honouring a completely different set of films, despite having a number of overlapping nominees. At this point, it almost seems like you don't want to win a Spirit Award because if you do, it means you won't end up winning the Oscar. Assuming history repeats itself, James Franco's chances of winning Best Actor for 127 Hours just got a little worse (not that he really had a shot in the first place), and Natalie Portman might not be the lock that everyone thinks she is. Black Swan also ended up taking home Best Feature, Best Director, and Best Cinematography, while John Hawkes and Dale Dickey took home Supporting Actor and Actress awards for Winter's Bone. The Kids Are All Right ended up getting Best Screenplay, while Exit Through the Gift Shop...

The debate rages on as to whether the doomed Nina really did dance a "perfect" performance of "Swan Lake" in "Black Swan."

But the Independent Spirit Awards have certainly acknowledged that the movie itself came pretty close to perfection.

"Black Swan" swept the Spirit Awards with wins for Best Feature, Best Female Lead, Best Director and Best Cinematography. Darren Aronofsky's operatic tale of fear, loathing and madness at the New York City Ballet won in every category for which it was nominated.

While Natalie Portman may have beaten Jennifer Lawrence in the Best Female Lead category, "Winter's Bone" did take home awards for the performances of two of its supporting players, Dale Dickey and Jack Hawkes.

Meanwhile, the co-host of this year's Oscars, James Franco, won for his lead performance in "127 Hours." The newly PG-13-rated "The King's Speech" won Best Foreign Film and "Exit Through the Gift Shop" won Best Documentary,...

I went 10/13 with my predictions of the Indie Spirits today -- my misfires came in the Best Picture and Best Actress categories thinking that Winter's Bone had the edge over Black Swan. Not that Winter's Bone didn't have a good night (it won in the Best Supporting categories - I thought that Bill Murray had the edge over John Hawkes is where I flubbed as well) but it was indeed a Black Swan event -- with additional wins for Directing (Darren Aronofsky) and Cinematography (Matthew Libatique). You can find the winners in bold below. Best Feature 127 Hours Black Swan Greenberg The Kids Are All Right Winter's Bone Best Director Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan Danny Boyle, 127 Hours Lisa Cholodenko, The Kids Are All Right Debra Granik, Winter's Bone John Cameron Mitchell, Rabbit Hole Best Screenplay Stuart Blumberg, Lisa Cholodenko, The Kids Are All Right Debra Granik, Anne Rosellini, Winter's Bone Nicole Holofcener,...

Tune in to IFC tonight at 10:00 p.m. Et/Pt to catch all the action at the 2011 Film Independent Spirit Awards, with actor and comedian Joel McHale hosting.

Highlights include: Joel getting caught in a 127 Hours situation with only Dale Dickey, “Banksy” and John Waters to help him out; See how this year’s best feature nominees stack up against porn and the big studios; Catch the Spirit Awards’ version of a dead people montage; and more! The show was produced by Film Independent in association with Dick Clark productions, Inc.

The Spirit Awards was the first event to exclusively honor independent film, and over the past 26 years, has become the premier awards show for the independent film community, celebrating films made by filmmakers who embody independence and originality.

The following is a complete list of the winners:

Winners List

Best Feature: 'Black Swan'

Best Director: Darren Aronofsky,...

The 2011 Independent Spirit Awards were handed out a few hours ago and Black Swan won in all four categories it was nominated in including Best Picture, Best Director (Darren Aronofsky), Best Actress (Natalie Portman) and Best Cinematography (Matthew Libatique). Winter's Bone earned the most nominations at seven and dominated the supporting categories with wins for both Dale Dickey and John Hawkes, of the two only Hawkes earned an Oscar nomination, but he'll be facing off against both Christian Bale and Geoffrey Rush tomorrow night so I'm not counting on two awards in two days, though his performance in that film is one to remember.

Elsewhere, James Franco won Best Actor for 127 Hours, though he wasn't facing the stiffest of competition when it comes to most talked about performances of the year as he is the only one of the five nominees to also be nominated for an Oscar. Exit Through the Gift Shop...

By Sean O’Connell

Hollywoodnews.com: The day before the annual Academy Awards ceremony belongs to the Spirit Awards, when Hollywood’s independent film community – which currently reflects the Oscar community thanks to double-dipping films like “Black Swan,” “Winter’s Bone” and “The Kids Are All Right” – takes to the sands in Santa Monica for what host Joel McHale calls “the coolest awards show, because it’s casual, in a tent on a beach, and people are drinking, and vomiting.”

Let’s hope there isn’t as much throw up as McHale predicts. We wouldn’t want 2011 Spirit Awards nominees Annette Bening, Nicole Kidman, Natalie Portman, James Franco, Ben Stiller or John C. Reilly slipping in someone else’s vomit on the way to the stage.

All kidding aside, the Spirit Awards are a laid-back affair, a lighter appetizer to the glamorous Oscars. The ceremony will be televised in IFC beginning at 10 p.

We're just about a day away from the Spirit Awards (airing on some channel whose name escapes me at 10 pm eastern and pacific). If you're watching the show and want to hear more about the individual nominees and the year and indie film in general, you should surf over to IFC.com's 2011 Spirit Awards Watch & Chat which I'll be hosting with my friend and film critic supreme James Rocchi. James and I will be debating this year's crop of Spirit Award nominees, who got overlooked and overpraised, and commenting on the show as well. Plus, we'll fighting to see who can predict more of the winners, a fight I am almost sure to lose because I am legendarily terrible at this sort of thing. Our chat runs the same time as the Spirit Awards 10pm - 1am eastern (no pacific, sorry, otherwise we'd have to talk for 6 hours straight).

Speaking of those predictions,...

Last week I completed my quest to see all 35 of the independent films nominated for this year’s Spirit Awards. This meant weeks upon weeks of trekking to Tribeca through snow drifts, slick ice and high winds, and sitting through some heartbreaking moments, some grotesque sequences, and some deeply pretentious drivel. But I also saw a lot of truly daring and enthralling cinema – much of it on its way to theaters near you this year!

So now that I’ve done the legwork it’s time to vote. Below I break down my thoughts on who will win, and who should win.

—–

Best Foreign Film

The King’s Speech, Mademoiselle Chambon, Kisses, Of Gods and Men, and Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives

Unlike the Oscars, the Spirit Award’s foreign film eligibility is defined by place of origin — not language. So, English-language pictures are not disqualified from this category.

Best DirectorDarren Aronofsky'Black Swan'In many ways, Darren Aronofsky's "Black Swan" is similar to his previous film, "The Wrestler." Both lead characters are dedicated artists struggling with inner demons. To express themselves, they have only their bodies. Their age, injuries, and mental stability threaten to undermine their art.However, in "Black Swan," Aronofsky masterfully adds another layer. He parallels the journey of Nina Sayers (Natalie Portman) with the tale of "Swan Lake," the tragic ballet in which she performs. The astute viewer will notice his use of black and white in the set pieces of almost every scene, alluding to the contrast between the white and black swans. He adds elements of horror, drama, and paranoia, all of which exist in "Swan Lake." He directs the actors in such a way that you aren't ever sure what is fantasy and what is reality. All of these elements add...

Every year, the Spirit Awards celebrate the best in independent film.

The nominees were announced for the 26th Annual Spirits, to be handed out on Saturday, February 26, 2011 at 10pm Et/Pt, live on the Independent Film Channel (IFC).

After winning the top prize at the Gotham Awards, Winter’s Bone leads with seven nominations.

Winter’s Bone was nominated for Best Film, Best Actress, Best Screenplay, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress and Best Cinematography.

The Best Film nominees also include 127 Hours, Greenberg, The Kids Are All Right and Black Swan.

The Kids Are All Right had five nominations while Black Swan, Greenberg and Rabbit Hole each landed four.

127 Hours, Jack Goes Boating and Tiny Furniture found three each.

Rabbit Hole received nominations for its performances from Nicole Kidman and Aaron Eckhart playing grieving parents, as well as a director’s nod for John Cameron Mitchell, best known...

The nominations of 2011 Film Independent Spirit Awards have been announced on Tuesday, November 30 in Los Angeles by Jeremy Renner and Eva Mendes. And some movies which have received Oscar buzz such as "127 Hours" and "Black Swan" are touted for Best Feature at the upcoming Spirit Awards.

For this title, the two movies will fight against "Greenberg", "The Kids Are All Right" and "Winter's Bone". The latest mentioned flick, which is fresh from grabbing two kudos at Gotham Independent Film Awards, has a chance to be a big winner at Spirits Awards since it takes the most nods.

The drama leads Debra Granik to be a contender for Best Director prize. She will face a tight competition with Darren Aronofsky, Danny Boyle in addition to Lisa Cholodenko and John Cameron Mitchell for this title.

The cast including Jennifer Lawrence, Dale Dickey and John Hawkes are additionally up for Best Female Lead,...

Natalie Portman is going to get a stiff competition from Jennifer Lawrence at 2011 Independent Spirit Awards. The nominees for the annual awards dedicated to independent filmmakers have been announced on Tuesday, November 30, and both actresses were unraveled to be among those up for Best Female Lead.

29-year-old Natalie received the nomination for her portrayal of a ballet dancer in "Black Swan", while 20-year-old Jennifer got her nod for her role as a teen on a desperate search to find her missing father in "Winter's Bone". Both of them were nominated along with Annette Bening, Greta Gerwig, Nicole Kidman and Michelle Williams.

In addition to Natalie's acting nom, her psychological thriller "Black Swan" has nabbed three other nods. It is vying for Best Feature along with "Winter's Bone", "127 Hours", "Greenberg" and "The Kids Are All Right". Additionally, it also collected nomination for its director Darren Aronofsky and cinematographer Matthew Libatique.

Jennifer's "Winter's Bone", in the meantime,...

The 2011 Film Independent Spirit Awards nominees have been announced, and there are a lot of great films that are being recognized. Winter's Bone racked up seven nominations after it won Best Feature at the Gotham Awards. Other films on the list include, 127 Hours, Black Swan, Greenberg, and The Kids Are All Right.There's some great competition this year, 127 Hours, Black Swan, and Winter's Bone are three of the best movies I've seen this year, but I think Winter's Bone will take the win on this one.

These nominations are only given to films which were produced for under $20 million. The awards will be handed out on February 26 live on IFC with host Joel McHale.

Check out the nominee list below and let us know what you think! Who would you like to see win?

Best Feature (Award given to the Producer)

127 Hours

Black Swan

Greenberg

The Kids Are All Right...

Haven't seen a little indie called "Winter's Bone" yet? You might want to go ahead and add it to your Netflix queue... that is, if you're interested in seeing what will likely be a top contender for this year's Best Picture Oscar.

After taking home the prizes for best feature and best ensemble performance at last night's 20th Gotham Independent Film Awards, the film was thrown an even juicier awards-season bone this morning, when it received seven nods -- including best feature -- to dominate the Independent Spirit Awards nominations.

Debra Granik scored two nods for directing and co-writing (with Anne Rosellini) "Bone," while Jennifer Lawrence scored a best lead female nomination for her riveting, star-making turn as a woman searching for her father in backwoods Arkansas. Her "Winter's Bone" costars, John Hawkes and Dale Dickey, nabbed nominations for best supporting male and female, respectively. And Michael McDonough earned the film's seventh nod,...

The nominees for the 2011 Independent Spirit Awards were announced this morning from Los Angeles, once again honouring the year's best independent films shot on shoestring budgets (specifically under $20 million). Leading the pack was Debra Granik's Winter's Bone, which picked up seven nods including Best Feature, Best Director, and Best Male and Female Leads. Considering that the film also just won Best Feature at The Gotham Awards [1] this week, could it be gaining momentum as a possible Oscar contender? Other films with multiple nominations include Lisa Cholodenko's The Kids Are All Right, John Cameron Mitchell's Rabbit Hole, and Darren Aronofsky's Black Swan. It was also pretty cool to see The Last Exorcism picking up a few mentions, although Never Let Me Go seems to have been snubbed, getting just one nomination for Best Cinematography. Ouch. We won't find out who wins until Saturday, February 26th, 2011, with a...

Every year after the Gotham Awards choose their winners, the nominees for the Independent Spirit Awards are announced. Leading with nominations this year is Danny Boyle’s 127 Hours, Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan and Debra Granik’s Winter’s Bone. All three may make my best of the year list and each and every year I wholeheartedly agree with their picks. It is by far my favorite awards show and while I sometimes disagree with the winners I am always excited to see the smaller productions receive recognition for their amazing work.

The nominations are only given to films which were produced for under $20 million and the awards will be handed out on February 26 live on IFC.

Missing in action:

Where is Gareth Edwards’ Monsters? It was his first feature and he produced it for under ten grand.

Honestly Rabbit Hole deserves the nomination for best picture more than The Kids Are Alright.

This morning, Eva Mendes and Jeremy Renner presented the 2011 Film Independent Spirit Award nominations and last night's Gotham Awards big winner, Winter's Bone was this morning's leading nominee with a total of seven nominations including Best Feature, Best Director (Debra Granik), Best Screenplay (Debra Granik and Anne Rosellini), Best Female Lead (Jennifer Lawrence), Best Supporting Female (Dale Dickey), Best Supporting Male (John Hawkes) and Best Cinematography (Michael McDonough).

Coming in second on the nomination list was The Kids are All Right with five, followed by Black Swan, Greenberg and Rabbit Hole, all with four. The only nominee for Best Feature not to have at least four nominations was Danny Boyle's 127 Hours, which earned three noms.

A few things of note when quickly glancing through the list, Winter's Bone is not only making a hard push for a Best Picture nomination, which now appears to be a certainty just as...

I'm so glad that "Winter's Bone" has been receiving all the accolades. I love this film when it was shown in limited release last summer. The backwoods drama won big at the Gothams Awards winning Best Feature and Best Ensemble, and now, it dominated the Independent Spirit Awards with seven nominations including Best Feature, Director for Debra Granik, Screenplay for Granik and Anne Rosellini, Female Lead for Jennifer Lawrence, Supporting Female for Dale Dickey, Supporting Male for John Hawkes, and Cinematography for Michael McDonough. ("Winter's Bone" Movie Review)

"Winter's Bone" will compete against "127 Hours," "Black Swan," "Greenberg" and "The Kids Are All Right" for best picture.

Related Links:

"127 Hours" interviews with James Franco, Danny Boyle, and Simon Beaufoy

"Greenberg" Movie Review and Interviews with Ben Stiller, Greta Gerwig, and Rhys Ifans

"The Kids Are All Right" Movie Review and Interviews with Julianne Moore, Mark Ruffalo, Mia Wasikowska, Josh Hutcherson, and...

After Winter's Bone won Best Feature at the first award ceremony of the season [1] Monday, it kept its momentum up Tuesday by getting seven nominations at the Film Independent Spirit Awards [2]. That's more nominations than any other film on the list, beating out fellow Best Feature nominees 127 Hours, Black Swan, Greenberg, and The Kids Are All Right. These nominations are only given to films which were produced for under $20 million, so other big award contenders like Inception, The Social Network and Toy Story 3 don't qualify. The awards will be handed out on February 26 live on IFC with host Joel McHale. Check out the full list of nominations after the jump. Here are all the nominees. Best Feature (Award given to the Producer) 127 Hours Black Swan Greenberg The Kids Are All Right Winter’s Bone Best Director Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan Danny Boyle, 127 Hours Lisa Cholodenko, The Kids Are All Right Debra Granik,...

The Spirit Awards, which celebrate the best in independent film, are handed out each year the night before the Oscars and are generally ignored by most. This year, they'll be hosted by Joel McHale, which means they'll still be largely ignored except for the McHale bits we all watch on YouTube the next day.

The nominations have been announced. They're pretty much what you'd expect, which is to say: If it's an indie film you've heard of in 2010, it's probably been nominated.

Best Film

127 Hours

Black Swan

Greenberg

The Kids Are All Right

Winter's Bone

Best Director

Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan

Danny Boyle, 127 Hours

Lisa Cholodenko, The Kids Are All Right

Debra Granik, Winter's Bone

John Cameron Mitchell, Rabbit Hole

Best Screenplay

Stuart Blumberg, Lisa Cholodenko, The Kids Are All Right

Debra Granik, Anne Rosellini, Winter's Bone

Nicole Holofcener, Please Give

David Lindsay-Abaire, Rabbit Hole

Todd Solondz, Life During Wartime...

The announcements came at 11am Est (watch below). The full list of nominees follows underneath the video player (of note, Tanya Hamilton was nominated for Best First Feature for her directorial debut, Night Catches us, and Samuel L. Jackson in the Best Supporting Male category, for his performance in Mother and Child):

The list of nominations:

Best Feature (Award given to the Producer)

127 Hours

Black Swan

Greenberg

The Kids Are All Right

Winter’s Bone

Best Director

Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan

Danny Boyle, 127 Hours

Lisa Cholodenko, The Kids Are All Right

Debra Granik, Winter’s Bone

John Cameron Mitchell, Rabbit Hole

Best First Feature (Award given to the director and producer)

Everything Strange and New

Get Low

The Last Exorcism

Night Catches Us

Tiny Furniture

John Cassavetes Award

(Given to the best feature made for under $500,000; award given to the writer, director, and producer)

Daddy Longlegs

The Exploding Girl

Lbs.

Debra Granik's Winter's Bone tops the Indie Spirit Awards noms list with 7 (Best Feature, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Female Lead, Best Supporting Female Lead, Best Supporting Male Lead and Best Cinematography), Lisa Cholodenko's The Kids Are All Right places second with five nominations (Best Feature, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Female Lead, Best Supporting Male Lead). Four noms went to Black Swan (Best Feature, Best Director, Best Female Lead, Best Cinematography), Greenberg (Best Feature, Best Female Lead, Best Male Lead and Best Cinematography) and Rabbit Hole (Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Female Lead and Best Male Lead). Collecting three votes each we have Lena Dunham's Tiny Furniture nabbing the Best First Feature, Best First Screenplay and her Dp Jodie Lee Lipes nabbing Best Cinematography while Danny Boyle gets a Best Feature, Director and James Franco Best Male Lead nod for 127 Hours. Worth noting is the Best...

The nominations for the 2011 Film Independent Spirit Awards have been announced. Here’s a quick breakdown of some interesting facts about the nominees. After winning the top prize at the Gotham Awards last night, Winter’s Bone leads the pack with seven nominations. And if you need more proof that the Best Actress race this year is crazy, it was the only category with a six nominees.

It’s also a good year for women filmmakers as Lisa Cholodenok (The Kids Are All Right) and Debra Granik (Winter’s Bone) pick up nominations for Best Film, Best Director, and Best Screenplay. Nicole Holofcener also picked up a Best Screenplay nomination along with the Robert Altman Award for Please Give. Hit the jump for a full list of the nominees. The Film Independent Spirit Awards will be held on Saturday, February 26, 2011 at 10pm Et/Pt on IFC.

Best Film

127 Hours Black Swan...

As award season draws nearer, theaters will be flooded with prestige-seeking dramas, stars will tout their recent turns as arrogant survivalists, stuttering monarchs, or grieving mothers, and audiences will clamor to catch up, seeking those films deemed the very best of 2010.

Are you ready? Because it has begun.

This morning in Hollywood, Eva Mendes and Jeremy Renner announced the nominees for the Spirit Awards, which honors the best of independent cinema. Lots of love was shown to Debra Granik’s Winter’s Bone, and Lisa Cholodenko’s The Kids Are All Right, which snagged seven and five nominations respectively, while Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan earned four nods, as did Noah Baumbach’s Greenberg and John Cameron Mitchell’s Rabbit Hole.

Below is the full list of honorees, courtesy of IFC, which will air the awards ceremony on February 26th at 10Pm.

Best Feature

127 Hours

Black Swan

Greenberg

The Kids Are All Right...

Indie hits Winter's Bone and The Kids Are All Right dominated the Film Independent Spirit Award nominees this morning, as Winter’s Bone earned a phenomenal seven nominations and Kids scored five. Both films were named in the Best Feature category, which also includes 127 Hours, Black Swan, and Greenberg. The upcoming drama Rabbit Hole also did very well, earning four nods, including acting citations for Nicole Kidman and Aaron Eckhart.

Particularly because these nominees were chosen by a small group of industry professionals, there were a few surprising omissions. Though Kids stars Annette Bening and Mark Ruffalo received nods,...

The Gotham Awards gave their top prize to Debra Granik's Ozark noir "Winter's Bone" last night, and today the film leads the Spirit Award pack with seven nominations. Eva Mendes and Jeremy Renner presented the full list of nominees in West Hollywood this morning, with Lisa Cholodenko's "The Kids Are All Right" pulling in five nominations, and "Black Swan," "Greenberg" and "Rabbit Hole" nabbing four each.

The Spirit Awards, an annual celebration of the best in indie film, will take place Saturday, February 26th and will be hosted by Joel McHale this year. IFC will be broadcasting the event that night at 10pm. You can find out more about the awards and how the nominations and voting process work here.

The nominees:

Best Feature

127 Hours

Black Swan

Greenberg

The Kids Are All Right

Winter's Bone

Best Director

Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan

Danny Boyle, 127 Hours

Lisa Cholodenko, The Kids Are All Right

Debra Granik,...

Eva Mendes and Jeremy Renner announced the nominees for the 2011 Film Independent Spirit Awards this morning (November 30, 2010) at The London West Hollywood Hotel. The Gotham Awards gave their top prize to Debra Granik’s Ozark noir “Winter’s Bone” last night, and today the film leads the Spirit Award pack with seven nominations. Lisa Cholodenko’s “The Kids Are All Right” saw five nominations, and “Black Swan,” “Greenberg” and “Rabbit Hole” grabbed four each. One thing to note: There are six best actress nominees this year, as there are usually only five in each category.

Here’s the list of nominees:

Best Feature

127 Hours

Black Swan

Greenberg

The Kids Are All Right

Winter’s Bone

Best Director

Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan

Danny Boyle, 127 Hours

Lisa Cholodenko, The Kids Are All Right

Debra Granik, Winter’s Bone

John Cameron Mitchell, Rabbit Hole

Best Screenplay

Stuart Blumberg, Lisa Cholodenko, The Kids Are All Right

Debra Granik,...

Dana Adam Shapiro blasted onto the scene with Murderball, a Sundance doc about fear-less wheelchair warriors consumed by a modified full-contact sport of rugby. His first narrative feature film Monogamy, which just got picked up by Oscilloscope Laboratories, is described as a cautionary tale about sex, photography, and fear of marriage. I found this clip on the filmmaker's site that sees actress Rashida Jones totally nail it - love her character's response. Here's the synopsis on the film which Oscilloscope will peg with a 2011 date - and below is a Youtube clip of premiere night at the Tribeca Film Festival which may contain some spoilers. Co-written by Shapiro and Evan M. Wiener, anxious about his impending marriage to Nat (Jones) and thoroughly bored with his day job as a wedding photographer, Theo (Chris Messina) establishes a hobby: he's hired by clients to clandestinely snap voyeuristic photos of them as they go about their days.

Dana Adam Shapiro is a bit of a slut -- artistically speaking, that is. An Oscar-nominated documentarian for "Murderball" and an acclaimed novelist ("The Every Boy"), in addition to forays into animation, music and still photography following a stint as an editor at Spin magazine, Shapiro had already achieved plenty before taking home the prize for Best New York Film at this year's Tribeca Film Festival for his narrative debut. "Monogamy" centers on Theo (Chris Messina), a soon-to-be married photographer with a side career as a "photostalker" for hire. He's employed by strangers to snap them when they are unaware of the camera, leading to an arousing encounter with one of his clients (Meital Dohan) in a public park, a mystery surrounding who she is and whether he could commit to a lifetime with his fiancée (Rashida Jones).

With the kicky, voyeuristic tension of DePalma's "Blow Out" and the artistic thrills of Antonioni's "Blow-Up,...

Director Dana Adam Shapiro Photo by Larry Busacca/Getty Images for Tribeca Film Festival As part of his introduction of Monogamy, director Dana Adam Shapiro told an expectant audience, "We shot this movie all over downtown New York and in Brooklyn, and watching it with this home crowd so far has just been amazing." Little did he know how prophetic his words were; later that night, Monogamy took home first prize in the 2010 Best New York Narrative Competition. Shapiro, who was nominated for an Oscar for his documentary Murderball in 2005, wrote this drama with Evan M. Wiener, and the result is a beautifully shot, emotionally raw look at the struggle for intimacy framed by one man's growing obsession with another woman. Wedding photographer Theo (Chris Messina) has a side business called Gumshoot, where people hire him to take unposed, voyeuristic photos of them at agreed times or places. His business...

Director Dana Adam Shapiro Photo by Larry Busacca/Getty Images for Tribeca Film Festival As part of his introduction of Monogamy, director Dana Adam Shapiro told an expectant audience, "We shot this movie all over downtown New York and in Brooklyn, and watching it with this home crowd so far has just been amazing." Little did he know how prophetic his words were; later that night, Monogamy took home first prize in the 2010 Best New York Narrative Competition. Shapiro, who was nominated for an Oscar for his documentary Murderball in 2005, wrote this drama with Evan M. Wiener, and the result is a beautifully shot, emotionally raw look at the struggle for intimacy framed by one man's growing obsession with another woman. Wedding photographer Theo (Chris Messina) has a side business called Gumshoot, where people hire him to take unposed, voyeuristic photos of them at agreed times or places. His business...