The night before the stars come out for the Oscars is annually the night when the stars come out and practice their acceptance speeches at the Indie Spirit Awards. Last night, the awards show for "smaller" art house films put on an event packed with the kind of diversity the Oscars only aspire to. But not only that, there were a ton of surprises that spoke directly to that diversity, beginning with the acting categories where Abraham Attah, the young lead of Beasts of No Nation, won Best Actor for his striking performance, and Idris Elba won Best Supporting Actor for his work on the same film.
In another nod to the awards' progressive thinking, transgender star Mya Taylor won Best Supporting Actress for Sean Baker's kinetic L.A. comedy, Tangerine. Meanwhile, Tom McCarthy's Spotlight took home three of the top awards, Best Picture, Best Director and Best Screenplay, while Brie Larson won Best Actress for Room. She and Spotlight are expected to factor heavily in tonight's Oscars, as well.
Full list of winners below!
Best Feature: Spotlight
Best Director: Tom McCarthy, Spotlight
Best Female Lead: Brie Larson, Room
Best Male Lead: Abraham Attah, Beasts of No Nation
Best Supporting Female: Mya Taylor, Tangerine
Best Supporting Male: Idris Elba, Beasts of No Nation
Best Cinematography: Ed Lachman, Carol
Best International Film: Son of Saul
Best Screenplay: Tom McCarthy and Josh Singer, Spotlight
Best Documentary: The Look of Silence
Best Editing: Tom McArdle, Spotlight
Best First Feature: Marielle Heller, The Diary of a Teenage Girl
Best First Screenplay: Emma Donoghue, Room
John Cassavetes Award: Krisha
Robert Altman Award: Spotlight
