spirit nods

Source: Neon / A24

‘Anora’, ‘I Saw The TV Glow’

Sean Baker’s Anora and Jane Schoenbrun’s I Saw The TV Glow lead the 2025 Independent Spirit Award nominations with six apiece.

Both films were nominated in best feature, director, lead performance, supporting performance and the producers award with I Saw The TV Glow also picking up a screenplay nomination.

While Anora has been considered a strong awards contender across the branches since winning the Palme d’Or at Cannes Film Festival earlier this year, I Saw The TV Glow has had more success in the independent sphere. The film premiered at Sundance and has since played Berlinale Panorama, San Sebastian, and SXSW. The horror film follows two teenagers who become enthralled by a mysterious late-night TV show and counts Emma Stone among its producers. 

The two films will be competing in best feature against Nickel Boys, Sing Sing and The Substance. Meanwhile, Sean Wang’s Didi landed four nominations including best first feature and best first screenplay.

Despite the election shadow and distribution struggles in the US, The Apprentice, which was released by Briarcliff Entertainment, is up for three awards: best directing, editing and lead performance for Sebastian Stan.

For distributors, A24 landed the most nominations once again with 19 to its name while Netflix scored nine.

The Robert Altman award, given to a film with an ensemble cast, will be bestowed upon Azazel Jacobs’ His Three Daughters which counts Natasha Lyonne, Elisabeth Olsen and Carrie Coon among its cast. 

On the TV side, Shogun leads the nominations with five, followed by Baby Reindeer and English Teacher with four apiece.

The winners will be announced at a ceremony in Santa Monica on February 22, 2025. 

Earlier this week the Gothams and the New York Film Critics Circle ceremonies took place, with double wins for Nickel Boys director RaMell Ross, No Other Land in documentary and All We Imagine As Light in best international feature.

Film Categories

Best feature

  • Anora
  • I Saw The TV Glow
  • Nickel Boys
  • Sing Sing
  • The Substance

Best first feature

  • Didi
  • In The Summers
  • Janet Planet
  • The Piano Lesson 
  • Problemista 

John Cassavetes Award (best feature made for under $500,000)

  • Big Boys
  • Girls Will Be Girls 
  • Ghostlight
  • Jazzy
  • The People’s Joker

Best director

  • Ali Abbasi, The Apprentice
  • Sean Baker, Anora
  • Brady Corbet, The Brutalist
  • Alonso Ruizpalacios, La Cocina
  • Jane Schoenbrun, I Saw The TV Glow

Best screenplay

  • A Different Man
  • Heretic
  • I Saw The TV Glow
  • My Old Ass
  • A Real Pain

Best first screenplay

  • Didi
  • The Felling
  • Good One
  • Janet Planet
  • Problemista

Best cinematography

  • La Cocina
  • The Fire Inside
  • Nickel Boys
  • Janet Planet 
  • Inside The Yellow Cocoon Shell

Best editing

  • The Apprentice
  • Didi
  • September 5
  • Nightbitch 
  • Jazzy

Best lead performance 

  • Amy Adams, Nightbitch
  • Ryan Destiny, The Fire Inside
  • Colman Domingo, Sing Sing
  • Keith Kupferer, Ghostlight
  • Mikey Madison, Anora
  • Demi Moore, The Substance
  • Hunter Schafer, Cuckoo
  • Justice Smith, I Saw The TV Glow
  • June Squibb, Thelma
  • Sebastian Stan, The Apprentice

Best supporting performance

  • Yura Borisov, Anora
  • Joan Chen, Didi
  • Kiera Culkin, A Real Pain
  • Danielle Deadwyler, The Piano Lesson
  • Carol Kane, Between The Temples
  • Karren Karagulian, Anora
  • Kani Kusruti, Girls Will Be Girls
  • Brigette Lundy-Paine, I Saw The TV Glow
  • Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin, Sing Sing
  • Adam Pearson, A Different Man

Best breakthrough performance

  • Isaac Krasner, Big Boys
  • Katy O’Brian, Love Lies Bleeding
  • Mason Alexander Park, National Anthem
  • René Pérez Joglar, In The Summers 
  • Maisy Stella, My Old Ass

Robert Altman Award 

  • His Three Daughters

Best documentary

  • Gaucho Gaucho
  • Hummingbirds 
  • No Other Land
  • Patrice: The Movie
  • Soundtrack To A Coup D’Etat 

Best international film

  • All We Imagine As Light
  • Black Dog
  • Flow
  • Green Border
  • Hard Truths

Producers award

  • Alex Coco
  • Sarah Winshall
  • Zoe Worth

Someone to watch award

  • Nicholas Colia, Griffin In Summer
  • Sarah Friedland, Familiar Touch
  • Pham Thien An, Inside The Yellow Cocoon Shell

Truer Than Fiction Award

Topics