The Hurt Locker and Big Fan Lead the Gotham Indie Award Noms

Kathryn Bigelow’s The Hurt Locker (Best Feature, Ensemble, Breakthrough Actor) and Robert Siegel Big Fan (Best Feature, Breakthrough Director and Actor) managed to pick up three mentions each for the 19th Annual Gotham Independent Film Award nominations, but the big winner on November 30th might actually be The Coen Bros. A Serious Man who have noms in the Best Feature and Best Ensemble Perf. categories. Sebastian Silva’s (who we just recently interviewed) picked up  pair of noms for The Maid in the Best Feature and Breakthrough Actor categories. Unfortunately Goodbye Solo only received a Breakthrough Actor nom when it should have doubled up with a Best Feature nom as well, and mysteriously Sophie Barthes received a Best Ensemble nom when she should have warranted a Breakthrough Director nom as well – that Breakthrough Director category has a pair of real turkeys in it, and nowhere in sight is Cary Fukunaga’s Sin Nombre – last time I checked Focus Features was stil a indie label. Here are the noms for all the categories, which I’d like to point to a pair of Sundance entries kudos to Frazer Bradshaw for Everything Strange and New and a great first time leading performance from Ben Foster in The Messenger.

Best Feature
Amreeka – Cherien Dabis
Big Fan – Robert Siegel
The Hurt Locker – Kathryn Bigelow
The Maid – Sebastian Silva
A Serious Man – Joel Coen and Ethan Coen

Best Documentary
Food, Inc. – Robert Kenner
Good Hair – Jeff Stilson
My Neighbor My Killer – Anne Aghion
Paradise – Michael Almereyda
Tyson – James Toback

Best Ensemble Performance
Adventureland
Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart, Martin Starr, Kristen Wiig, Bill Hader, Ryan Reynolds (Miramax Films)
Cold Souls
Paul Giamatti, Dina Korzun, Emily Watson, Katheryn Winnick, David Strathairn (Samuel Goldwyn Films)
The Hurt Locker
Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie, Brian Geraghty, Ralph Fiennes, Guy Pearce, David Morse, Evangeline Lilly (Summit Entertainment)
A Serious Man
Michael Stuhlbarg, Richard Kind, Fred Melamed (Focus Features)
Sugar
Algenis Perez Soto, Rayniel Rufino, Michael Gaston, Andre Holland, Ann Whitney, Richard Bull, Ellary Porterfield, Jaime Tirelli (Sony Pictures Classics)

Breakthrough Director
Cruz Angeles for Don’t Let Me Drown
Frazer Bradshaw for Everything Strange and New
Noah Buschel for The Missing Person (Strand Releasing)
Derick Martini for Lymelife (Screen Media Films)
Robert Siegel for Big Fan (First Independent Pictures)

Breakthrough Actor
Ben Foster in The Messenger (Oscilloscope Laboratories)
Patton Oswalt in Big Fan (First Independent Pictures)
Jeremy Renner in The Hurt Locker (Summit Entertainment)
Catalina Saavedra in The Maid (Elephant Eye Films)
Soulemane Sy Savane in Goodbye Solo (Roadside Attractions)

Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You
Everything Strange and New Frazer Bradshaw, director; Laura Techera Francia, A.D. Liano, producers
Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench Damien Chazelle, director; Jasmine McGlade, producer
October Country Michael Palmieri and Donal Mosher, directors/producers
You Won’t Miss Me Ry Russo-Young, director/producer
Zero Bridge Tariq Tapa, director; Tariq Tapa, Josee Lajoie, Hilal Ahmed Langoo, producers