The Movie Impartial Spirit Awards are pulling up anchor from the long-lasting Santa Monica seashore they’ve lengthy referred to as house. Simply two days after the 2025 ceremony, a brand new report has introduced that the Spirit Awards will not be going down at its common oceanfront venue. The transfer will begin “as quickly as subsequent 12 months,” as Deadline first reported. IndieWire can verify the transfer.
The shift in location is because of the constructing of recent infrastructures to accommodate the 2028 Summer time Olympics, which can happen in Los Angeles. Deadline cited that the biking portion of the Olympic Video games may very well be stationed on the seashore the place the Spirit Awards are often held. The ceremony is searching for different venues earlier than planning a return to that Santa Monica seashore location as soon as the 2028 Olympics have handed.
The 2025 Spirit Awards, which have been hosted by Aidy Bryant, had main wins for “Anora.” The function was already the most-nominated movie on the Spirits with six nods; “Anora” went on to win Finest Function, Finest Director for Sean Baker, and Finest Lead Efficiency for Mikey Madison. The complete Spirit Awards winners record is right here.
Author/director Baker mentioned throughout his acceptance speech that Movie Impartial has been his “biggest supporter” all through his profession. The Spirit Awards yearly honor the very best in indie movie and TV over the previous 12 months.
“Indie movie is struggling proper now greater than ever,” Baker mentioned. “Gone are the times of DVD gross sales that allowed for a better threat to be taken on difficult movies. … Why am I speaking about this in the present day? As a result of I’m an indie movie lifer, and I do know that there are different indie movie lifers on this room, those that don’t see indie movies as calling playing cards, those that don’t make these movies to land a sequence or a studio movie. A few of us wish to make private movies which might be supposed for theatrical launch with subject material that will by no means be greenlit by the massive studios. We wish full inventive freedom and the liberty to solid who is true for the function, not who we’re compelled to solid contemplating field workplace worth, or what number of followers they’ve on social media. The system has to alter as a result of that is merely unsustainable.”
Baker continued, “We’re creating product that creates jobs and income for the whole business. We shouldn’t be barely getting by. Creatives which might be concerned with tasks that span years have to start getting increased — a lot increased — upfront charges, and once more, as a result of again finish merely can’t be relied upon any longer, we’ve got to demand that. If not, indie movies will merely change into calling card movies, and I do know that’s not what I signed up for. So let’s demand what we’re price. I do know that for those who’re on this room, you’ve confirmed that you just’re price it, so let’s not undervalue ourselves any longer. And we are able to work collectively, it may be filmmakers working with businesses, working with financiers, movie gross sales corporations, and distributors to make indie movie sustainable for creatives and maintain indie movie alive. That is for all of the indie movie lifers who’re holding on and preventing the nice struggle.”
Ryan Lattanzio contributed reporting.