35th The Gotham Film Awards Winners

Yesterday at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City the 2025 awards ceremony for The Gotham Film Awards took place and perhaps what was most covered in the news is the many A-Listers in one place at the same time.

Actors, directors and even singers (Rihanna was there), came to honor or to get honored in the name of independent cinema and yes, not often you can see in one place Kristen Stewart, Jennifer Lawrence, Nina Hoss, Renate Reinsve, Jessie Buckley, Riley Keough, Chloe Sevigny, Julia Roberts, Naomi Watts, Jacob Elordi, Ethan Hawke, Stellan Skarsgard, Alexander Skarsgard, Hugh Jackman, Joel Edgerton, Adam Sandler, Wagner Moura, Luca Guadagnino, Guillermo del Toro, Noah Baumbach, Chloe Zhao, Brady Corbet, Mona Fastvold, Park Chan-wook, and many more. Sigh! Not even at the Oscars. Wonder how many of those that were there last night will make it to Oscar night. Phew.

Up-to-now industry pundits have been proclaiming Paul Thomas Anderson's One Battle After Another as the top Oscar contender and if winning The Gotham top award confirms it is something that we will have to find as not often both awards have coincide, last time was in 2022 with Everything Everywhere All at Once. Nevertheless his win is remarkable. especially when you think about all Paul Thomas Anderson's movies and find this is his first win after what was his fourth nomination.

Undoubtedly big winner is Jafar Panahi with his 2025 Cannes Palm d'Or winner It Was Just an Accident which got 3 awards, Best Director, Best International Feature, and Best Original Screenplay followed by My Father's Shadow by Akinola Davies Jr with 2 awards.

It is appalling to find that from many nominations only one (1) woman got an award from this group, not in even in the acting categories. Perhaps is time to go back to divide actors categories by gender, so at least, women will have a chance with this group. Sigh.

The Winners

Best Feature: One Battle After Another, Paul Thomas Anderson, USA

Best International Feature: It Was Just an Accident, Jafar Panahi, Iran, France, Luxembourg, and USA

Best Documentary Feature: My Undesirable Friends: Part I - Last Air in Moscow, Julie Loktev, Russia and USA

Best Director: Jafar Panahi for It Was Just an Accident, Jafar Panahi, Iran, France, Luxembourg, and USA
Breakthrough Director: Akinola Davies Jr. for My Father's Shadow, Akinola Davies Jr., UK, Ireland and Nigeria

Best Original Screenplay: It Was Just an Accident, Jafar Panahi, Iran, France, Luxembourg, and USA
Best Adapted Screenplay: Pillion, Harry Lighton, UK and Ireland

Outstanding Lead Performance: Sopé Dìrísù, My Father's Shadow, Akinola Davies Jr., UK, Ireland and Nigeria
Outstanding Supporting Performance: Wunmi Mosaku in Sinners, Ryan Coogler, USA, Australia and Canada
Breakthrough Performer: Abou Sangaré in L'Histoire de Souleymane (Souleymane's Story), Boris Lojkine, France

The Tributes

Cultural Icon Tribute: Jeremy Allen White and Scott Cooper in Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere
Director Tribute: Noah Baumbach for Jay Kelly
Ensemble Tribute: Cast of Sinners
Musical Tribute: Kate Hudson and Hugh Jackman for Song Sung Blue
Spotlight Tribute: Tessa Thompson in Hedda
Vanguard Tribute: Guillermo del Toro, Oscar Isaac and Jacob Elordi for Frankenstein 
Visionary Tribute: Julia Roberts and Luca Guadagnino in After The Hunt