Call Me by Your Name leads the nominations for the 2018 Film Independent Spirit Awards with eight nods including Best Director and Best Feature. 

Other nominees for Best Feature include The Florida Project, Get Out, Lady Bird and The Rider.  Director Ava DuVernay (Selma, 13th, A Wrinkle in Time) was also announced as this year’s Honorary Chair. Past Honorary Chairs include David Oyelowo, Jessica Chastain, Kerry Washington, Ang Lee and Martin Scorsese.

“This year’s nominations reflect the range and vitality of artist-driven, independent film,” said Film Independent President Josh Welsh. “Diversity, innovation and uniqueness of vision are the hallmarks of the Film Independent Spirit Awards, and the films this year powerfully embody all those qualities.”

“We are so happy to have Ava DuVernay as our Spirit Awards Honorary Chair,” added Welsh, “Ava is a remarkable filmmaker – a writer, director and producer we have celebrated at the Spirit Awards and the LA Film Festival. More than that, she is a leader and a powerful voice for change, in the industry and beyond.”

Mudbound was selected to receive the Robert Altman Award, which is bestowed upon one film’s director, casting director and ensemble cast. The Altman Award was created in 2008 in honor of legendary director Robert Altman who was known for creating extraordinary ensemble casts.

Winners, who are selected by Film Independent Members, will be announced at the Spirit Awards on Saturday, March 3, 2018. The awards ceremony co-hosted by Nick Kroll and John Mulaney will be held on the beach in Santa Monica, just north of the Santa Monica Pier. The show will broadcast live exclusively on IFC at 2:00 pm PT/ 5:00 pm ET.

Winners of the Spirit Awards Filmmaker Grants will be announced at the Film Independent Spirit Awards Filmmaker Grants and Nominee Brunch on Saturday, January 6, 2018, at BOA Steakhouse in West Hollywood.

2018 FILM INDEPENDENT SPIRIT AWARD NOMINATIONS

BEST FEATURE

Call Me by Your Name
Producers: Peter Spears, Luca Guadagnino, Emilie Georges, Rodrigo Teixeira, Marco Morabito, James Ivory, Howard Rosenman

The Florida Project
Producers: Sean Baker, Chris Bergoch, Kevin Chinoy, Andrew Duncan, Alex Saks, Francesca Silvestri, Shih-Ching Tsou

Get Out
Producers: Jason Blum, Edward H. Hamm Jr., Sean McKittrick, Jordan Peele

Lady Bird
Producers: Eli Bush, Evelyn O’Neill, Scott Rudin

The Rider
Producers: Mollye Asher, Bert Hamelinck, Sacha Ben Harroche, Chloé Zhao

BEST FIRST FEATURE

Columbus
Director: Kogonada
Producers: Danielle Renfrew Behrens, Aaron Boyd, Giulia Caruso, Ki Jin Kim, Andrew Miano, Chris Weitz

Ingrid Goes West
Director: Matt Spicer
Producers: Jared Ian Goldman, Adam Mirels, Robert Mirels, Aubrey Plaza, Tim White, Trevor White

Menashe
Director/Producer: Joshua Z. Weinstein
Producers: Yoni Brook, Traci Carlson, Daniel Finkelman, Alex Lipschultz

Oh Lucy!
Director/Producer: Atsuko Hirayanagi
Producers: Jessica Elbaum, Yukie Kito, Han West

Patti Cake$
Director: Geremy Jasper
Producers: Chris Columbus, Michael Gottwald, Dan Janvey, Daniela Taplin Lundberg, Noah Stahl, Rodrigo Teixeira

JOHN CASSAVETES AWARD

Given to the best feature made for under $500,000. (Award given to the writer, director and producer. Executive Producers are not awarded.)

Dayveon
Writer/Director/Producer: Amman Abbasi
Writer: Steven Reneau
Producers: Lachion Buckingham, Alexander Uhlmann

A Ghost Story
Writer/Director: David Lowery
Producers: Adam Donaghey, Toby Halbrooks, James M. Johnston

Life and nothing more
Writer/Director: Antonio Méndez Esparza
Producers: Amadeo Hernández Bueno, Alvaro Portanet Hernández, Pedro Hernández Santos

Most Beautiful Island
Writer/Director/Producer: Ana Asensio
Producers: Larry Fessenden, Noah Greenberg, Chadd Harbold, Jenn Wexler

The Transfiguration
Writer/Director: Michael O’Shea
Producer: Susan Leber

BEST DIRECTOR

Sean Baker
The Florida Project

Jonas Carpignano
A Ciambra

Luca Guadagnino
Call Me by Your Name

Jordan Peele
Get Out

Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie
Good Time

Chloé Zhao
The Rider

BEST SCREENPLAY

Greta Gerwig
Lady Bird

Azazel Jacobs
The Lovers

Martin McDonagh
Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri

Jordan Peele
Get Out

Mike White
Beatriz at Dinner

BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY

Kris Avedisian
Story By: Kyle Espeleta, Jesse Wakeman
Donald Cried

Emily V. Gordon, Kumail Nanjiani
The Big Sick

Ingrid Jungermann
Women Who Kill

Kogonada
Columbus

David Branson Smith, Matt Spicer
Ingrid Goes West

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Thimios Bakatakis
The Killing of a Sacred Deer

Elisha Christian
Columbus

Hélène Louvart
Beach Rats

Sayombhu Mukdeeprom
Call Me by Your Name

Joshua James Richards
The Rider

BEST EDITING

Ronald Bronstein, Benny Safdie
Good Time

Walter Fasano
Call Me by Your Name

Alex O’Flinn
The Rider

Gregory Plotkin
Get Out

Tatiana S. Riegel
I, Tonya

BEST FEMALE LEAD

Salma Hayek
Beatriz at Dinner

Frances McDormand
Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri

Margot Robbie
I, Tonya

Saoirse Ronan
Lady Bird

Shinobu Terajima
Oh Lucy!

Regina Williams
Life and nothing more

BEST MALE LEAD

Timothée Chalamet
Call Me by Your Name

Harris Dickinson
Beach Rats

James Franco
The Disaster Artist

Daniel Kaluuya
Get Out

Robert Pattinson
Good Time

BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE

Holly Hunter
The Big Sick

Allison Janney
I, Tonya

Laurie Metcalf
Lady Bird

Lois Smith
Marjorie Prime

Taliah Lennice Webster
Good Time

BEST SUPPORTING MALE

Nnamdi Asomugha
Crown Heights

Armie Hammer
Call Me by Your Name

Barry Keoghan
The Killing of a Sacred Deer

Sam Rockwell
Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri

Benny Safdie
Good Time

ROBERT ALTMAN AWARD

Given to one film’s director, casting director and ensemble cast

Mudbound
Director: Dee Rees
Casting Directors: Billy Hopkins, Ashley Ingram
Ensemble Cast: Jonathan Banks, Mary J. Blige, Jason Clarke, Garrett Hedlund, Jason Mitchell, Rob Morgan, Carey Mulligan

BEST DOCUMENTARY

The Departure
Director/Producer: Lana Wilson

Faces Places
Directors: Agnés Varda, JR
Producer: Rosalie Varda

Last Men in Aleppo
Director: Feras Fayyad
Producers: Kareem Abeed, Søeren Steen Jespersen, Stefan Kloos

Motherland
Director/Producer: Ramona S. Diaz
Producer: Rey Cuerdo

Quest
Director: Jonathan Olshefski
Producer: Sabrina Schmidt Gordon

BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM

BPM (Beats Per Minute)
France
Director: Robin Campillo

A Fantastic Woman
Chile
Director: Sebastián Lelio

I Am Not a Witch
Zambia
Director: Rungano Nyoni

Lady Macbeth
U.K.
Director: William Oldroyd

Loveless
Russia
Director: Andrey Zvyagintsev

BONNIE AWARD

Bonnie Tiburzi Caputo joined American Airlines in 1973 at age 24, becoming the first female pilot to fly for a major U.S. airline. In her honor, the inaugural Bonnie Award will recognize a mid-career female director with a $50,000 unrestricted grant, sponsored by American Airlines.

So Yong Kim
Lynn Shelton
Chloé Zhao

JEEP TRUER THAN FICTION AWARD

The 23rd annual Truer Than Fiction Award, funded by the Jeep brand, is presented to an emerging director of non-fiction features who has not yet received significant recognition. The award includes a $25,000 unrestricted grant funded by the Jeep brand.

Shevaun Mizrahi
Director of Distant Constellation

Jonathan Olshefski
Director of Quest

Jeff Unay
Director of The Cage Fighter

KIEHL’S SOMEONE TO WATCH AWARD

The 24th annual Someone to Watch Award, funded by Kiehl’s Since 1851, recognizes a talented filmmaker of singular vision who has not yet received appropriate recognition. The award includes a $25,000 unrestricted grant funded by Kiehl’s Since 1851.

Amman Abbasi
Director of Dayveon

Justin Chon
Director of Gook

Kevin Phillips
Director of Super Dark Times

PIAGET PRODUCERS AWARD

The 21st annual Producers Award, funded by Piaget, honors emerging producers who, despite highly limited resources, demonstrate the creativity, tenacity and vision required to produce quality, independent films. The award includes a $25,000 unrestricted grant funded by Piaget.

Giulia Caruso & Ki Jin Kim
Ben LeClair
Summer Shelton