The 2013 awards season is officially underway as the Gotham Independent Film Awards have announced their selection of the best of the year.  The Gothams are a New York-based film society that honor the best in American independent film as decided upon by its distinguished jury consisting film critics and historians.  They are also the first official stop of the awards tour.  This year, Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave, already a critical favorite and Oscar hopeful, led the field with three nominations, while Sundance Film Festival winner Fruitvale Station earned two nominations, as did the upcoming film from the Coen Brothers, Inside Llewyn Davis. While the Gotham Awards, due to their indie nature, may not always be directly influential to the Academy Awards, past Best Picture nominees like The Kids Are All Right, Black Swan, The Tree of Life, Winter’s Bone, and eventual winner The Hurt Locker have all been acknowledged by the organization.  Last years big winner was Moonrise Kingdom which went on to earn a screenplay Oscar nomination.

The 2013 nominees are:

BEST FEATURE: 

• 12 Years a Slave (directed by Steve McQueen)
• Ain’t Them Bodies Saints (directed by David Lowery)
• Before Midnight (directed by Richard Linklater)
• Inside Llewyn Davis (directed by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen)
• Upstream Color (directed by Shane Carruth)

BEST DOCUMENTARY

• The Art of Killing (directed by Joshua Oppenheimer)
• The Crash Reel (directed by Lucy Walker)
• First Cousin Once Removed (directed by Alan Berliner)
• Let the Fire Burn (directed by Jason Osder)
• Our Nixon (directed by Penny Lane)

BINGHAM RAY BREAKTHROUGH DIRECTOR AWARD

• Ryan Coogler, Fruitvale Station
• Adam Leon, Gimme the Loot
• Alexandre Moors, Blue Caprice
• Stacie Passon, Concussion
• Amy Seimetz, Sun Don’t Shine

BEST ACTOR

• Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years a Slave
• Oscar Isaac, Inside Llewyn Davis
• Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club
• Robert Redford, All is Lost
• Isiah Washington, Blue Caprice

BEST ACTRESS

• Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine
• Scarlett Johansson, Don Jon
• Brie Larson, Short Term 12
• Amy Seimetz, Upstream Color
• Shailene Woodley, The Spectacular Now

BREAKTHROUGH ACTOR

• Dane DeHaan, Kill Your Darlings
• Kathryn Hahn, Afternoon Delight
• Michael B. Jordan, Fruitvale Station
• Lupita N’yong’o, 12 Years a Slave
• Robin Weigert, Concussion

THE EUPHORIA CALVIN KLEIN SPOTLIGHT ON WOMEN FILMMAKERS (This award comes with a $25,000 grant for emerging female filmmakers)

• Afia Nathaniel, Dukhthar
• Gita Pullapilly, Beneath the Harvest Sky
• Deb Shoval, AWOL

This year marks the first year that the Gothams have handed out prizes for Leading Actor and Actress; in the past they have just given prizes for Breakthrough Performer and Ensemble Casts, but the latter category has been retired from this years line-up.

It was previously announced that the 2013 Gotham Awards would hold tributes for filmmaker Richard Linklater (a nominee himself for directing Before Midnight), executive Katherine Oliver and actor Forest Whitaker.  The ceremony will take place in New York on December 2nd.