Does Money Rid a Film of Its Independent Spirit?

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What constitutes an independent spirit nowadays? 

Just days after this year’s Film Independent Spirit Awards (which, in the past, operated like IndieWire’s very own Super Bowl), a question lingers: what are award shows that are meant to honor independent films actually in service of? And, if a winter awards show doesn’t present itself as a bellwether for the Oscars, does it even count?

While I write that as a joke, I do think that part of the reason why this year’s Indie Spirits telecast fell flat was due to some unfortunate no-shows. Film Independent, which organizes the ceremony, has long maintained a budget cap on the entrants in the film categories (the maximum is less than what it costs to cast Robert Downey Jr. in your film).

While that does not mean there’s been a dearth of genuine movie stars who have been nominated over the years, as many will happily take a pay cut if they’re convinced an independent film will earn them acclaim and/or awards recognition, the way Film Independent has compensated for the shallower pool of talent that would draw attention to the ceremony is by adding television categories to the show — without any budget cap.

In practice, this adds big names like Ethan Hawke, Seth Rogen, Michelle Williams, and Noah Wyle to a ceremony already spotlighting stars like Rose Byrne, Joel Edgerton, Tessa Thompson, and Kirsten Dunst in the film categories. But while the film stars I mentioned all came to the awards show, the TV stars skipped.

Netflix limited series “Adolescence” ended up being the big TV winner of the night, yet of its three Emmy-winning actors — Stephen Graham, Owen Cooper, and Erin Doherty — only the latter was present to accept her award for Best Supporting Performance in a New Scripted Series.

The Gotham Awards, which share a similar ethos of trying to spotlight independent film, might have had the better approach to attracting star power, by getting rid of its budget cap. Both it and the Film Independent Spirit Awards have worked as bookends to awards season, with the Gothams taking place in early December and the Indie Spirits having long taken place the day before the Oscars (that has since changed post-pandemic).

For a short period of time, the Gotham Awards were also giving out film and TV awards on the same night, but the Gotham Institute has since spun out its TV categories into their own awards show that falls more in line with the Emmys cycle.

Jacob Elordi, Guillermo del Toro and Oscar Isaac at the 35th Annual Gotham Film Awards held at Cipriani Wall Street on December 01, 2025 in New York, New YorkJohn Nacion

For added star power, the Gothams give out a handful of honorary awards to films like “Frankenstein,” “Song Sung Blue,” and “Sinners” that would either fall out of line with what the budget cap once was, or just outside of voters’ tastes. Because they are guaranteed those wins, the stars of those films, which are all viable awards players in the greater scheme of things, still show up to the event to accept, meaning the Gotham Awards get to boast that the likes of Jacob Elordi, Kate Hudson, and Michael B. Jordan all attended their celebration.

If you look at what was nominated for the Gotham Awards last year, the lack of budget cap didn’t exactly change what got nominated, as Indie Spirit winners like “Train Dreams,” “Sorry, Baby,” and “Lurker” were all nominated for Best Feature at the end-of-the-year awards show. But the winner at the Gotham Awards was “One Battle After Another,” which is famously the most expensive film director Paul Thomas Anderson has ever made.

In an earlier edition of IndieWire’s The Lead Up, I quoted “Sinners” star Jordan as I wrote about how the ideal Best Picture Oscar winner is a “commercial film with an independent heart.” It’s not like the Gotham Awards got rid of the budget cap and started nominating IP plays like “Wicked” or “Avatar” in its main categories. “One Battle After Another” was certainly made with an independent spirit.

It is a fascinating predicament: in order to continue existing, these awards shows that are geared toward independent film are trying to become more commercial, yet this is during a time in which commercial films are becoming more indie in their sensibilities.

While opening the door to Independent Spirit Award for Best Film winner “Train Dreams” being nominated against Best Picture frontrunner “One Battle After Another,” or giving a blockbuster like “Sinners” an honorary award is probably not the ultimate answer for how to make sure the Film Independent Spirit Awards liven up next year, an increase on the budget cap (which, this year, could allow for films like “Marty Supreme,” “Hamnet,” or “Bugonia” to become eligible) does seem like a solution that would encourage better attendance at future shows —without endangering its independent-mindedness.

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