Film Independent Spirit Awards complete winners' list: 'Adolescence' and 'Train Dreams' win top prizes

Clint Bentley's lyrical Denis Johnson adaptation "Train Dreams " won the top film award at the Film Independent Spirit Awards on Sunday in Los Angeles, while "Adolescence" dominated the television categories. Both were released on Netflix.

Bentley also won best director for the film starring Joel Edgerton, whom he thanked profusely for "being the heartbeat of our film."

"We're so grateful to Netflix," Bentley said. "It's very, very hard these days to film in the United States, but it's worth it and we're proud to be able to pull it off."

Edgerton missed out on the top acting prize, however, which went to Rose Byrne for "If I Had Legs I'd Kick You." The organization switched to gender-neutral acting categories in 2022.

Byrne was one of the few actors nominated for both a Spirit Award and an Oscar, for her performance as a mother on the edge.

"I share this with Mary Bronstein, my writer-director who fought for eight years to get this movie made," Byrne said.

She added that this was a film that could have only been made independently. Her character, she said, is "fierce and ferocious and a middle-aged woman."

"Adolescence" won new scripted series, best actor for Stephen Graham, best supporting actor for Erin Doherty, and the breakthrough prize for Owen Cooper.

The show, which serves as a fundraiser for Film Independent's year-round programs, was held at the Hollywood Palladium for the first time since 1994, as its longtime beachside perch in Santa Monica undergoes renovations. Comedian and "Saturday Night Live" veteran Ego Nwodim hosted the celebration of independent film and television, which was livestreamed on YouTube.

"In the spirit of independent filmmaking, we don't have a permit," Nwodim said in her opening. "If I shout 'cameras down,' you know what to do."

"The Secret Agent" won the international feature prize. The film is also nominated for best picture and best international film at the Oscars.

"I really believe that programming films in the cinemas is more and more a political act," said director Kleber Mendonca Filho.

He dedicated the award to the late actor Udo Kier, who was part of the ensemble of "The Secret Agent."

"The Perfect Neighbor," about a deadly shooting incident in Florida constructed primarily from police bodycam footage, won best documentary. Filmmaker and producer Geeta Gandbhir thanked Netflix for "giving us a global platform." It's also up for the best documentary Oscar.

Eva Victor won the screenplay prize for "Sorry, Baby." Naomi Ackie also won the supporting award for Victor's film, over fellow nominees like Zoey Deutch ("Nouvelle Vague"), Kirsten Dunst ("Roofman"), Nina Hoss ("Hedda") and Archie Madekwe ("Lurker").

Take a look at the comple winners' list below:

Film categories

Best feature

WINNER: Train Dreams

Peter Hujar’s Day

The Plague

Sorry, Baby

Twinless




Best first feature

WINNER: Lurker

Blue Sun Palace

Dust Bunny

East of Wall

One of Them Days

John Cassavetes Award (best feature made for under $1M)

WINNER: Esta Isla (This Island)

The Baltimorons

Boys Go to Jupiter

Eephus

Familiar Touch




Best director

WINNER: Clint Bentley, Train Dreams

Mary Bronstein, If I Had Legs I’d Kick You

Lloyd Lee Choi, Lucky Lu

Ira Sachs, Peter Hujar’s Day

Eva Victor, Sorry, Baby

Best screenplay

WINNER: Eva Victor, Sorry, Baby

Michael Angelo Covino, Kyle Marvin, Splitsville

Angus MacLachlan, A Little Prayer

James Sweeney, Twinless

Christian Swegal, Sovereign

Best first screenplay

WINNER: Alex Russell, Lurker

Andrew DeYoung, Friendship

Elena Oxman, Outerlands

Syreeta Singleton, One of Them Days

Constance Tsang, Blue Sun Palace




Best lead performance

WINNER: Rose Byrne, If I Had Legs I’d Kick You

Everett Blunck, The Plague

Kathleen Chalfant, Familiar Touch

Chang Chen, Lucky Lu

Joel Edgerton, Train Dreams

Dylan O’Brien, Twinless

Keke Palmer, One of Them Days

Théodore Pellerin, Lurker

Tessa Thompson, Hedda

Ben Whishaw, Peter Hujar’s Day




Best supporting performance

WINNER: Naomi Ackie, Sorry, Baby

Zoey Deutch, Nouvelle Vague

Kirsten Dunst, Roofman

Rebecca Hall, Peter Hujar’s Day

Nina Hoss, Hedda

Jane Levy, A Little Prayer

Archie Madekwe, Lurker

Kali Reis, Rebuilding

Jacob Tremblay, Sovereign

Haipeng Xu, Blue Sun Palace




Best breakthrough performance

WINNER: Kayo Martin, The Plague

Liz Larsen, The Baltimorons

Misha Osherovich, She’s the He

SZA, One of Them Days

Tabatha Zimiga, East of Wall

Best cinematography

WINNER: Adolpho Veloso, Train Dreams

Alex Ashe, Peter Hujar’s Day

Norm Li, Blue Sun Palace

David J. Thompson, Warfare

Nicole Hirsch Whitaker, Dust Bunny




Best editing

WINNER: Sofía Subercaseaux, The Testament of Ann Lee

Ben Leonberg, Good Boy

Carson Lund, Eephus

Fin Oates, Warfare

Sara Shaw, Splitsville




Robert Altman Award

WINNER: The Long Walk




Best documentary

WINNER: The Perfect Neighbor

Come See Me in the Good Light

Endless Cookie

My Undesirable Friends: Part I – Last Air in Moscow

The Tale of Silyan




Best international film

WINNER: The Secret Agent

All That’s Left of You

On Becoming a Guinea Fowl

A Poet

Sirāt




Producers Award

WINNER: Tony Yang

Emma Hannaway

Luca Intili




Someone to Watch Award

WINNER: Tatti Ribeiro, Valentina

Neo Sora, Happyend

Annapurna Sriram, Fucktoys




Truer than Fiction Award

WINNER: Rajee Samarasinghe, Your Touch Makes Others Invisible

Tony Benna, André is an Idiot

Brittany Shyne, Seeds

TV categories

background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 0.3px;Best new non-scripted or documentary series

WINNER: Pee-wee as Himself

Citizen Nation

Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time

Seen & Heard: The History of Black Television

Vow of Silence: The Assassination of Annie Mae

Best new scripted series

WINNER: Adolescence

Common Side Effects

Forever

Mr Loverman

North of North




Best lead performance in a new scripted series

WINNER: Stephen Graham, Adolescence

Sydney Chandler, Alien: Earth

Ethan Hawke, The Lowdown

Lennie James, Mr Loverman

Anna Lambe, North of North

Lola Petticrew, Say Nothing

Seth Rogen, The Studio

Lovie Simone, Forever

Michelle Williams, Dying for Sex

Noah Wyle, The Pitt




Best supporting performance in a new scripted series

WINNER: Erin Doherty, Adolescence

Ariyon Bakare, Mr Loverman

Babou Ceesay, Alien: Earth

Sharon D Clarke, Mr Loverman

Taylor Dearden, The Pitt

Stephen McKinley Henderson, A Man on the Inside

Poorna Jagannathan, Deli Boys

Xosha Roquemore, Forever

Jenny Slate, Dying for Sex

Ben Whishaw, Black Doves




Best breakthrough performance in a new scripted series

WINNER: Owen Cooper, Adolescence

Asif Ali, Deli Boys

Wally Baram, Overcompensating

Michael Cooper Jr., Forever

Ernest Kingsley Junior, Washington Black




Best ensemble cast in a new scripted series

WINNER: Chief of War

The awards sometimes overlsignificantly with major Oscar contenders and winners, as it did with "Anora," and "Everything Everywhere All At Once," and sometimes not. Organizers limit eligibility to productions with budgets less than $30 million, meaning more expensive films like "One Battle After Another" are not in the running.Get the latest entertainment updates from the Times of India, along with the latest Hindi movies, upcoming Hindi movies in 2026 , and Telugu movies.”