The Knockturnal was on the scene in the winners room at the 2021 Gotham Awards.
The Gotham Awards, one of the leading honors for independent film and television, provides early acknowledgement to groundbreaking independent films and television series. Selected by distinguished juries and presented in New York City, the home of independent film, the Gotham Awards are the first honors of the film awards season. This public showcase honors the filmmaking community, expands the audience for independent films, and supports the work that The Gotham Film & Media Institute does behind the scenes throughout the year to bring such films to fruition.
Additionally announced during the ceremony:
The Questlove Gotham EDU Scholarship
Questlove announced the creation of a $150,000 scholarship fund earmarked for HBCU students’ tuition and to allow participation in the Gotham EDU suite of programs and mentor support. The award is supported by iHeartMedia.
Focus Features & JetBlue Student Short Film Showcase
Tessa Thompson announced the winners of the third annual showcase supported by sponsoring partners Focus Features and JetBlue. The program is designed to discover and empower a diverse group of emerging filmmakers and foster multi-platform distribution of their work. Each winner receives a $10,000 grant and have their films shown for twelve months on JetBlue’s seatback entertainment systems under the “Gotham Selects” movie category and on Focus Features digital streaming platforms. Throughout 2022, winning filmmakers will also receive ongoing mentorship and workshopping opportunities from The Gotham.
The winning filmmakers and shorts were:
· Evan Bode, Thine Own Self, Syracuse University
· Jorge G. Camarena, Spaceship, American Film Institute
· Akanksha Chawla, Close Ties to Home Country, Columbia College
· Jun Hee Han, Uncle, University of California, Los Angeles
· J. Sean Smith, #Whitina, University of Southern California
An Ensemble Tribute (presented by Jeymes Samuel) was given to the cast of The Harder They Fall, including Jonathan Majors, Zazie Beetz, Delroy Lindo, LaKeith Stanfield, Danielle Deadwyler, Edi Gathegi, R.J. Cyler, Damon Wayans Jr., Deon Cole with Regina King and Idris Elba.
Check out our interviews with Jeymes, Deon Cole & Zazie Beetz in the winners room:
The 31st Annual Gotham Award recipients are:
For Best Feature, presented by Dakota Johnson
The Lost Daughter
Directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal
Produced by Osnat Handelsman Keren, Talia Kleinhendler, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Charles Dorfman
Released by Netflix
The Best Feature jury included Jason Mitchell, Lydia Dean Pilcher, Adele Romanski, Peter Saraf, and Cathy Yan.
For Best Documentary, presented by Devery Jacobs and Michael Greyeyes
Flee
Directed Jonas Poher Rasmussen
Produced Monica Hellström, Signe Byrge Sørensen, and Charlotte De La Gournerie
Released by NEON
The Best Documentary jury included Bonni Cohen, Ramona Diaz, Kirsten Johnson, Roger Ross Williams, and Hao Wu.
Check out our exclusive interview with the Flee team in the winners room!
For Best International Feature, presented Thandiwe Newton
Drive My Car
Directed by Ryûsuke Hamaguchi
Produced by Teruhisa Yamamoto
Released by Sideshow and Janus Films
The Best International Feature jury included Jimmie Fails, Eliza Hittman, Orion Lee, Jonathan Raymond, and Catalina Sandino Moreno.
For Outstanding Lead Performance, presented by Dan Levy
To two performers:
Olivia Colman in The Lost Daughter
Released by Netflix
and
Frankie Faison in The Killing of Kenneth Chamberlain
Released by Gravitas Ventures
The Outstanding Lead Performance jury included Aldis Hodge, Tamara Jenkins, Avy Kaufman, Lisa Kjerulff, and KiKi Layne.
Check out our exclusive interview with winner Frankie below from the Winners Room.
For Outstanding Supporting Performance, presented by Daveed Diggs
Troy Kotsur in CODA
Released by Apple TV+
The Outstanding Supporting Performance jury included Michael Beach, M. Blair Breard, Blythe Danner, Rob Morgan, and Crystal Moselle.
For Breakthrough Performer, presented by Moses Ingram
Emilia Jones in CODA
Released by Apple TV+
The Breakthrough Performer jury included Matt Bomer, Yolonda Ross, Isabel Sandoval, Shari Springer Berman, and Katherine Waterston.
For Bingham Ray Breakthrough Director, presented by Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson
Maggie Gyllenhaal for The Lost Daughter
Released by Netflix
The Bingham Ray Breakthrough Director jury included Anne Carey, Helena Howard, Famke Janssen, John Turturro, and Phillip Youmans.
Check out our exclusive interview with Emilia Jones in the Winners Room right after her big win!
For Best Screenplay, presented by Joe Wright
Maggie Gyllenhaal for The Lost Daughter
Released by Netflix
For Breakthrough Series (Over 40 Minutes), presented by Marlee Matlin and Troy Kotsur
Squid Game
Executive Produced by Kim Ji-yeon and Hwang Dong-hyuk
Netflix
The Breakthrough Series (Over 40 Minutes) jury included Jasmine Batchelor, Eli Goree, Mike Harrop, Amy Koppelman, and Paul Mezey.
Check out what the Squid Game cast told us in the winners room:
For Breakthrough Series (Under 40 Minutes), presented by Marlee Matlin and Troy Kotsur
Reservation Dogs
Created by Sterlin Harjo and Taika Waititi
Executive Produced by Taika Waititi, Sterlin Harjo, and Garrett Basch
FX
The Breakthrough Series (Under 40 Minutes) jury included Adam Goldman, Anna Konkle, Jenni Konner, Victoria Mahoney, and Jonathan Majors
For Breakthrough Nonfiction Series, presented by Jung Ho-yeun
Philly D.A.
Created by Ted Passon, Yoni Brook, and Nicole Salazar
Executive Produced by Dawn Porter, Sally Jo Fifer, Lois Vossen, Ryan Chanatry, Gena Konstantinakos, Jeff Seelbach, and Patty Quillin
Topic, Independent Lens, PBS
The Breakthrough Nonfiction Series jury included Andrew Jarecki, Laura Ricciardi, Bernardo Ruiz, Elyse Steinberg, and Tracy Heather Strain.
Check out our interviews with “Philly D.A.” directors Ted Passon, Yoni Brook, Nicola Salazar about their @thegotham awards win!
The Premier Sponsor of the 2021 Gotham Awards was The New York Times and the Platinum Sponsors were GreenSlate and AV Club. The Official Auto Partner was Cadillac, the Official Water Partner was FIJI Water, the Official Airline Partner was JetBlue, the Official Wine Partner was Robert Hall Winery, and the Official Tequila Partner was Komos Tequila.
Photo Credit: John Nacion