Film Independent, the organization responsible for the Spirit Awards, an award focused on independent film and television production, announced that it has eliminated gender differentiation in its acting awards.
Previously, the categories were divided into four: Best Actor, Actress, Supporting Actor, and Supporting Actress. Now, there will be only two: the best lead performance and the best supporting performance.
This will happen in both film and television competitions, with categories open to any genre.
While the number of trophies declined, the number of nominees remained the same, joining 10 overall contenders in each of the categories, instead of five in the previous four. However, only half of them will take home trophies.
To compensate for the decrease in performance awards, a new category has been added, with a clearly subjective criterion: Best Innovative Performance, which will feature five candidates of any kind.
The Spirit Awards are the latest award to opt for neutral acting categories in an effort to promote greater inclusion. Other awards that have recently eliminated acting genres include the British Independent Film Awards (BIFAs), the Gotham Awards, and the MTV Movie and TV Awards.
“We are thrilled to join other festivals and awards that are already moving to celebrate big, genderless performances,” Film Independent President Josh Welsh said in a statement. “We are also happy to welcome non-binary artists to the Spirit Awards without forcing them to choose to identify themselves as male or female.”
In addition to the category changes, the Independent Spirit Awards also announced a general change to the contest criteria. Now, to be considered independent, an average studio film doesn’t have to cost more than $ 30 million. Up until last year, the cap was $ 22.5 million, but it has been modified to keep up with inflation and rising filming costs.
The budget limit for the John Cassavetes Award, which chooses the best budget film, has also been raised from $ 500,000 to $ 1 million.
The delivery of the next Spirit Awards will take place on March 4, 2023 in Santa Monica, a city in the state of California, USA.
Source: Terra
Camila Luna is a writer at Gossipify, where she covers the latest movies and television series. With a passion for all things entertainment, Camila brings her unique perspective to her writing and offers readers an inside look at the industry. Camila is a graduate from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) with a degree in English and is also a avid movie watcher.
