Spirit Award
Nominees Announced

Film Independent announced the nominees for the 2008 Spirit Awards on Tuesday. Up for Best Feature are The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, I'm Not There, Juno, A Mighty Heart, and Paranoid Park. The group also announced finalists for the IFC/Acura Someone to Watch award, the Truer Than Fiction award, and the Producers award.

The first-ever Robert Altman award will be given this year to the director, casting director, and ensemble cast of Todd Haynes's I'm Not There, a biopic of legendary musician Bob Dylan.

The 2008 Film Independent's Spirit Awards ceremony will air uncut February 23 on IFC. An edited rebroadcast of the ceremony will air later that evening on AMC.

The nominees are:

BEST FEATURE (Award given to the producers)

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly -- Producers: Kathleen Kennedy, Jon Kilik

I'm Not There -- Producers: Christine Vachon, John Sloss, John Goldwyn, James D. Stern

Juno -- Producers: Lianne Halfon, John Malkovich, Mason Novick, Russell Smith

A Mighty Heart -- Producers: Dede Gardner, Andrew Eaton, Brad Pitt

Paranoid Park -- Producers: Neil Kopp, David Cress

BEST DIRECTOR

Todd Haynes -- I'm Not There

Tamara Jenkins -- The Savages

Jason Reitman --Juno

Julian Schnabel --The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

Gus Van Sant --Paranoid Park

BEST FIRST FEATURE (Award given to the director and producer[s])

2 Days in Paris -- Director: Julie Delpy; Producers: Julie Delpy, Christophe Mazodier, Thierry Potok

Great World of Sound -- Director: Craig Zobel; Producers: Melissa Palmer, David Gordon Green, Richard Wright, Craig Zobel

The Lookout -- Director: Scott Frank; Producers: Roger Birnbaum, Gary Barber, Laurence Mark, Walter Parkes

Rocket Science -- Director: Jeffrey Blitz; Producers: Effie T. Brown, Sean Welch

Vanaja -- Director: Rajnesh Domalpalli; Producer: Latha R. Domalapalli

JOHN CASSAVETES AWARD(Given to the best feature made for under $500,000; award given to the writer[s], director, and producer[s])

August Evening -- Writer/Director: Chris Eska; Producers: Connie Hill, Jason Wehling

Owl and the Sparrow -- Writer/Director: Stephane Gauger; Producers: Nguyen Van Quan, Doan Nhat Nam, Stephane Gauger

The Pool -- Director: Chris Smith; Producer: Kate Noble; Writers: Chris Smith & Randy Russell

Quiet City -- Director: Aaron Katz; Producers: Brendan McFadden, Ben Stambler; Writers: Aaron Katz, Erin Fisher, Cris Lankenau

Shotgun Stories -- Writer/Director: Jeff Nichols; Producers: David Gordon Green, Lisa Muskat, Jeff Nichols

BEST SCREENPLAY

Ronald Harwood -- The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

Tamara Jenkins -- The Savages

Fred Parnes & Andrew Wagner -- Starting Out in the Evening

Adrienne Shelly -- Waitress

Mike White -- Year of the Dog

BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY

Jeffrey Blitz -- Rocket Science

Zoe Cassavetes -- Broken English

Diablo Cody -- Juno

Kelly Masterson -- Before the Devil Knows You're Dead

John Orloff -- A Mighty Heart

BEST FEMALE LEAD

Angelina Jolie -- A Mighty Heart

Sienna Miller -- Interview

Ellen Page -- Juno

Parker Posey -- Broken English

Tang Wei -- Lust, Caution

BEST MALE LEAD

Pedro Castaneda -- August Evening

Don Cheadle -- Talk to Me

Philip Seymour Hoffman -- The Savages

Frank Langella -- Starting Out in the Evening

Tony Leung -- Lust, Caution

BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE

Cate Blanchett -- I'm Not There

Anna Kendrick -- Rocket Science

Jennifer Jason Leigh -- Margot at the Wedding

Tamara Podemski -- Four Sheets to the Wind

Marisa Tomei -- Before the Devil Knows You're Dead

BEST SUPPORTING MALE

Chiwetel Ejiofor -- Talk to Me

Marcus Carl Franklin -- I'm Not There

Kene Holliday -- Great World of Sound

Irrfan Khan -- The Namesake

Steve Zahn -- Rescue Dawn

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Mott Hupfel -- The Savages

Janusz Kaminski -- The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

Milton Kam -- Vanaja

Mihai Malaimare Jr. -- Youth Without Youth

Rodrigo Prieto -- Lust, Caution

BEST DOCUMENTARY (Award given to the director[s])

Crazy Love -- Director: Dan Klores

Lake of Fire -- Director: Tony Kaye

Manufactured Landscapes -- Director: Jennifer Baichwal

The Monastery -- Director: Pernille Rose Gronkjaer

The Prisoner or: How I Planned to Kill Tony Blair -- Directors: Petra Epperlein & Michael Tucker

BEST FOREIGN FILM (Award given to the director[s])

4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days -- Director: Cristian Mungiu (Romania)

The Band's Visit -- Director: Eran Kolirin (Israel)

Lady Chatterley -- Director: Pascale Ferran (France)

Once -- Director: John Carney (Ireland)

Persepolis -- Directors: Vincent Paronnaud & Marjane Satrapi (France)

ROBERT ALTMAN AWARD (Given to one film's director, casting director, and ensemble cast)

I'm Not There

Director: Todd Haynes

Casting Director: Laura Rosenthal

Ensemble Cast: Cate Blanchett, Christian Bale, Richard Gere, Heath Ledger, Ben Whishaw, Marcus Carl Franklin, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Bruce Greenwood

(The Advocate)