Moonlight won 6 awards at Independent Spirit Awards 2017
People.com: This article originally appeared on Entertainment Weekly.
Barry Jenkins’ Moonlight pulled off a clean sweep at the 32nd annual Film Independent Spirit Awards on Saturday, winning six awards including best picture.
The powerful coming-of-age story, which tied Andrea Arnold’s American Honey with six nominations to pace the field heading into Saturday afternoon, also won best director for Jenkins, best editing, best cinematography, and best screenplay for Jenkins and playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney (who has a story credit on the film). In addition, the Moonlight cast was awarded the Robert Altman Award for best acting ensemble.
In the acting categories, Casey Affleck took home best actor honors for Manchester by the Sea, while Isabelle Huppert won best actress for Elle (both are acting nominees in their corresponding categories at the Academy Awards). Other winners on Saturday included Other People star Molly Shannon (best supporting actress) and Hell or High Water actor Ben Foster (best supporting actor).
Robert Eggers’ The Witch won best first screenplay and best first feature. O.J.: Made In America was awarded best documentary.
The Spirit Awards act as a more casual preamble to the Academy Awards, which take place on Sunday night. While Moonlight scored eight nominations from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, including best picture, the film is not expected to dominate at the Oscars like it did on Saturday afternoon in Santa Monica, California, as Damien Chazelle’s La La Land is the front-runner in a number of categories. That film, which landed a record-tying 14 nominations overall, was not among this year’s Spirit Awards nominees on account of its budget being too high for consideration. (The Spirit Awards cap eligibility at around $20 million; La La Land cost a reported $30 million.)
Check out the full list of winners below.
Best Feature : Moonlight
Best Director : Barry Jenkins, Moonlight
Best Male Lead : Casey Affleck, Manchester by the Sea
Best Female Lead : Isabelle Huppert, Elle
Best Supporting Female : Molly Shannon, Other People
Best Supporting Male: Ben Foster, Hell or High Water
Best First Feature : The Witch
Best Documentary : OJ: Made in America
Best Screenplay : Barry Jenkins (story by Tarell Alvin McCraney), Moonlight
Best First Screenplay : Robert Eggers, The Witch
Best Cinematography : James Laxton, Moonlight
Best Editing : Joi McMillon, Nat Sanders, Moonlight
Best International Film : Toni Erdmann
John Cassavetes Award (Best Feature Under $500,000) : Spa Night
Robert Altman Award (Best Ensemble) : Moonlight