Film Independent Spirit Awards 2023 winners: Ke Huy Quan wins Best Supporting Performance award
The 2023 Independent Spirit Awards were held on the sandy shores near the iconic Santa Monica pier on Saturday, March 4, and Ke Huy Quan took home the first big award for Best Supporting Performance.
The star, 51, was the recipient of the honor for his portrayal of Waymond Wang in the science fiction film Everything Everywhere All At Once.
The Goonies alumnus, who recently shed tears while giving an emotional speech after the historic SAG win earlier last month, excitedly took the stage to accept the Spirit Award in front of the celebrity guests.
After receiving the award for The White Lotus actress, Aubrey Plaza, Quan movingly gushed on stage, ‘This is incredible!’
He continued, ‘I am so incredibly proud to be a part of the Everything Everywhere All At Once family,’ and continued to thank not only the cast, but also the crew involved on the project.
Big win! Ke Huy Quan, 51, took home the first big award for Best Supporting Performance during the 2023 Independent Spirit Awards on Saturday at the Santa Monica Pier
Recognition: The star was the recipient of the honor for his portrayal of Waymond Wang in the science fiction film, Everything Everywhere All At Once
Towards the end of his speech, Ke Huy Quan expressed that he was ‘overwhelmed by the outpowering love’ both he and the film has received since its release. ‘Thank you so much Film Independent.’
The star-studded cast also includes Jamie Lee Curtis, Michelle Yeoh, Stephanie Hsu, James Hong and also Jenny Slate.
The premise follows, ‘A middle-aged Chinese immigrant is swept up into an insane adventure in which she alone can save existence by exploring other universes and connecting with the lives she could have led,’ according to an IMDB synopsis.
The 2023 Independent Film Awards were broadcasted live only via streaming and not on the IFC network, a first since 1997.
Another change that was implemented for the 38th annual awards show was making the acting categories gender-neutral, such as Best Lead and Best Supporting Performances.
Best Screenplay, presented by Jamie Lee Curtis herself, also went to Everything Everywhere All At Once.
The screenwriters, Daniel Kwan and also Daniel Scheinert, happily stepped up onto the stage to express their gratitude for the honor.
The duo gushed to the audience that their hard work wasn’t what entirely led to their success, but also the amazing ‘community’ in the entertainment industry.
Excited: The Goonies alum, who recently shed tears while giving an emotional speech after the historic SAG win earlier last month, excitedly took the stage to accept the Spirit Award in front of the celebrity guests
‘Incredible!’ After receiving the award for The White Lotus actress, Aubrey Plaza, Quan movingly gushed on stage, ‘This is incredible!’
Various wins: Best Director went to both Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert for Everything Everywhere All At Once, who previously were awarded Best Screenplay earlier in the ceremony
Leading the honors: The film went on to lead in wins, with Michelle Yeah being honored with Best Lead Performance in a Film
Overwhelmed: Wearing an elegant, blue dress with large, ruffled embellishments, that actress stepped onto the stage and quickly became emotional
Best Director went to both Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert for Everything Everywhere All At Once, who previously were awarded Best Screenplay earlier in the ceremony.
The duo emphasized the importance of being extroverted and meeting people who could possibly lead to fulfilling a passion project. ‘I’m serious, meet your people tonight!’ Kwan stated.
The film went on to lead in wins, with Michelle Yeah being honored with Best Lead Performance in a Film.
Wearing an elegant, blue dress with large, ruffled embellishments, that actress stepped onto the stage and quickly became emotional as she looked out towards her fellow cast and the cheering audience.
‘Thank you. This is from my peers who are in it with me from day one, so, it is so special,’ she movingly expressed. ‘Thank you so much from the bottom of my heart.’
‘I think none of us indie filmmakers would be here without out heroes, and our hero for Everything Everywhere All At Once, A24, Ley Line, you believed in us. You believed in the masterpiece from the Daniels.’
She thanked both Kwan and Scheinert, calling them ‘my boys,’ and stated, ‘thank you for writing such an incredible script that gave us the opportunity to be here, to be seen, and to be heard.’
Another win for Everything Everywhere All At Once went to Stephanie Hsu for Best Breakthrough Performance for her portrayal of Joy in the critically acclaimed sci-fi film.
The actress hilariously ran onto the stage barefoot while holding her stylish, black heels in her hand.
From her heart: ‘Thank you. This is from my peers who are in it with me from day one, so, it is so special,’ she movingly expressed. ‘Thank you so much from the bottom of my heart’
A ‘masterpiece’: ‘I think none of us indie filmmakers would be here without out heroes, and our hero for Everything Everywhere All At Once, A24, Ley Line, you believed in us. You believed in the masterpiece from the Daniels,’ Yeoh gushed
Wonderful script: She thanked both Kwan and Scheinert, calling them ‘my boys,’ and stated, ‘thank you for writing such an incredible script that gave us the opportunity to be here, to be seen, and to be heard’
Tearful: Another win for Everything Everywhere All At Once went to Stephanie Hsu for Best Breakthrough Performance for her portrayal of Joy in the critically acclaimed sci-fi film
Funny: The actress hilariously stepped onto the stage barefoot while holding her stylish, black heels in her hand
‘So honored’: Stephanie continued, ‘This is my first ever individual award and it feels…it feels incredibly appropriate that it is in this room. And I feel so honored’
She gave a tearful speech, and gushed, ‘Thank you so much! I don’t know why I am so emotional. I guess I have a bad habit of playing it cool. I guess I don’t feel cool inside. I feel overflowing with so much gratitude.’
‘I came from the world of downtown experimental theater and it is one my biggest, biggest prides to be from that community of knowing how to make something out of nothing, knowing how to support one another, doing it just because you love doing it, and so I feel so honored.’
Stephanie continued, ‘This is my first ever individual award and it feels…it feels incredibly appropriate that it is in this room. And I feel so honored.’
The beauty also took time to thank the cast she had worked with for being ‘incredibly supportive.’
To conclude the ceremony, Everything Every All At Once took home the Best Feature Award, one week before the 95th Annual Oscars airs on March 12. The movie notably received 11 nominations at the Academy Awards, including Best Picture.
Other projects included in the Best Feature were movies such as Aftersun, Bones And All, and also Tár.
Daniel Kwan stepped in front of the microphone, and gave a shout out to all the creative talent in the room.
‘What we have all done is almost an impossible task. We all made an independent film or television series during a pandemic, and you should all be applauded for that.’
‘Overflowing’: She gave a tearful speech, and gushed, ‘Thank you so much! I don’t know why I am so emotional. I guess I have a bad habit of playing it cool. I guess I don’t feel cool inside. I feel overflowing with so much gratitude’
Huge award: To conclude the ceremony, Everything Every All At Once took home the Best Feature Award, one week before the 95th Annual Oscars airs on March 12
Creative minds: Daniel Kwan stepped in front of the microphone, and gave a shout out to all the creative talent in the room
The Best Supporting Performance in a New Scripted Series went to Ayo Edebiri for her role as Sydney in the hit series, which was both her first win and nomination at the Spirit Awards held on Saturday.
She humorously began her acceptance speech with, ‘I didn’t really prepare any remarks and my manager gave me a piece of paper.’
‘I just want say I am very grateful,’ the star added. ‘This really nice because I am in a room full of a lot of people that I really admire and that I look up to. But there are also a lot of people that look like me, and feel like me. And that’s really nice.’
The Bear was also given the award of Best New Scripted Series, which starred not only Ayo, but also Jeremy Allen White, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Abby Elliot.
The premise of the hit FX series follows, ‘A young chef from the fine dining world returns to Chicago to run his family’s sandwich shop,’ according to an IMDB synopsis.
Other nominees that were included in the category were shows such as: Pachinko, The Porter, Severance and Station Eleven.
Best Documentary of the Year was given to All The Beauty And The Bloodshed, which follows, ‘the life of artist Nan Goldin and the downfall of the Sackler family, the pharmaceutical dynasty who was greatly responsible for the opioid epidemic’s unfathomable death toll, according to IMDB.
The director of the documentary was Laura Poitras and other contenders were All That Breathes, A House Made Of Splinters, Midwives, and also Riotsville, U.S.A.
Grateful: The Best Supporting Performance in a New Scripted Series went to Ayo Edebiri for her role as Sydney in the hit series, which was both her first win and nomination at the Spirit Awards
‘Really nice’: ‘I just want say I am very grateful,’ the star expressed during her speech, and added, ‘This really nice because I am in a room full of a lot of people that I really admire and that I look up to’
Other wins: The Bear was also given the award of Best New Scripted Series, which starred not only Ayo, but also Jeremy Allen White, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Abby Elliot
Stunning: The actress opted for a shimmering, silver and gold mesh and embroidered minidress as she made an appearance at the awards show
Laura accepted the award, which was both her fourth nomination and her second win at the Spirit Awards.
‘I’m so proud to be here on behalf of our small organization pain and the incredibly courageous Nan Goldin for taking on the Sackler family. The Sackler’s have done untold damage to this country, however, there is hope.’
‘We have drug use led grassroots movement on the ground who know that the solution to the overdose crisis is harm reduction and overdose prevention centers.’
Best First Feature was awarded to Aftersun, which starred Paul Mescal, Frankie Corio, and Celia Rowlson-Hall.
The film, which was directed by Charlotte Wells, follows the premise of, ‘Sophie reflects on the shared joy and private melancholy of a holiday she took with her father twenty years earlier.’
‘Memories real and imagined fill the gaps between as she tries to reconcile the father she knew with the man she didn’t…,’ according to IMDB.
Charlotte ‘Charlie’ gave a heartfelt speech as she held the award in front of the cheering audience, and a few supportive cast members who stood closely behind.
‘Thank you Paul and Frankie,’ the director began. ‘We’ve come a long way since that first Zoom. We all looked a lot younger in lots of different ways. And I am so grateful that we have been able to experience this first all together.’
Best documentary: Best Documentary of the Year was given to All The Beauty And The Bloodshed and the director, Laura Poitras, accepted the award, which was both her fourth nomination and her second win at the Spirit Awards
Best First Feature: Best First Feature was awarded to Aftersun, which starred Paul Mescal, Frankie Corio, and Celia Rowlson-Hall
Critically acclaimed: The film, which was directed by Charlotte Wells, follows the premise of, ‘Sophie reflects on the shared joy and private melancholy of a holiday she took with her father twenty years earlier’
The story: ‘Memories real and imagined fill the gaps between as she tries to reconcile the father she knew with the man she didn’t…,’ according to IMDB
The next big category of the show went to Best Lead Performance in a New Scripted Series which went to Abbot Elementary’s Quinta Brunson.
Wearing an eye-catching, yellow dress, the actress stepped onto the stage and expressed, ‘I’m so so honored to win this because of the spirit of my show and all that goes into it.’
‘We have a bunch of people who come from making things out of nothing. And my show, Abbot Elementary, is made by people who make something out of nothing every day.’
She added, ‘I do want to dedicate this award to whatever kid is out there right now who is making a video on TikTok and the rest of the kids is telling them you’re probably never going to win an award.’
‘If you care about it enough, and you respect the craft, and the craft is important to you, and you believe in it, and you study it, that little video that comes out at the time might be splish-splosh when you are a kid. I hope that you know that with enough care for your craft, you can make it win an award.’
Eye-catching: The next big category of the show went to Best Lead Performance in a New Scripted Series which went to Abbot Elementary’s Quinta Brunson
The ‘spirit’ of her show: Wearing an eye-catching, yellow dress, the actress stepped onto the stage and expressed, ‘I’m so so honored to win this because of the spirit of my show and all that goes into it’
Creative: ‘We have a bunch of people who come from making things out of nothing. And my show, Abbot Elementary, is made by people who make something out of nothing every day’
The ‘craft’: Quinta explained that dedication and love for the ‘craft’ could lead to holding an award such as the Spirit Award one day in the future
2023 Independent Spirit Awards Nominees
Best Feature
Bones And All
Everything Everywhere All At Once-WINNER
Our Father, The Devil
Tár
Women Talking
Best Director
Todd Field – Tár
Kogonada – After Yang
Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert – Everything Everywhere All at Once-WINNER
Sarah Polley – Women Talking
Halina Reijn – Bodies Bodies Bodies
Best First Feature
Aftersun-WINNER
Emily The Criminal
The Inspection
Murina
Palm Trees And Power Lines
Best Lead Performance
Cate Blanchett – Tár
Dale Dickey – A Love Song
Mia Goth – Pearl
Regina Hall – Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul.
Paul Mescal – Aftersun
Aubrey Plaza – Emily The Criminal
Jeremy Pope – The Inspection
Andrea Riseborough – To Leslie
Taylor Russell – Bones And All
Michelle Yeoh – Everything Everywhere All At Once-WINNER
Best Supporting Performance
Jamie Lee Curtis – Everything Everywhere All at Once
Brian Tyree Henry – Causeway
Nina Hoss – Tár
Brian d’Arcy James – The Cathedral
Ke Huy Quan – Everything Everywhere All At Once — WINNER
Trevante Rhodes – Bruiser
Theo Rossi – Emily The Criminal
Mark Rylance – Bones And All
Jonathan Tucker – Palm Trees And Power Lines
Gabrielle Union – The Inspection
Best Screenplay
Lena Dunham – Catherine Called Birdy
Todd Field – Tár
Kogonada – After Yang
Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert – Everything Everywhere All At Once — WINNER
Sarah Polley – Women Talking
Best First Screenplay
Joel Kim Booster – Fire Island
Jamie Dack and Audrey Findlay, story by Jamie Dack – Palm Trees And Power Lines
K.D. Dávila – Emergency
Sarah DeLappe, story by Kristen Roupenian – Bodies Bodies Bodies
John Patton Ford – Emily the Criminal — WINNER
Best New Scripted Series
The Bear — WINNER
Pachinko
The Porter
Severance
Station Eleven
Best Lead Performance In A New Scripted Series
Aml Ameen – The Porter
Mohammed Amer – Mo
Quinta Brunson – Abbott Elementary-Winner
Bridget Everett – Somebody Somewhere
KaMillion – Rap Sh!t
Himesh Patel – Station Eleven
Sue Ann Pien – As We See It
Adam Scott – Severance
Ben Whishaw – This Is Going To Hurt
Best Cinematography
Florian Hoffmeister – Tár — WINNER
Hélène Louvart – Murina
Gregory Oke – Aftersun
Eliot Rockett – Pearl
Anisia Uzeyman – Neptune Frost
Best Editing
Dean Fleischer Camp and Nick Paley – Marcel The Shell With Shoes On
Ricky D’Ambrose – The Cathedral
Blair McClendon – Aftersun
Paul Rogers – Everything Everywhere All At Once — WINNER
Monika Willi – Tár
John Cassavetes Award
The African Desperate
The Cathedral-WINNER
Holy Emy
A Love Song
Something In The Dirt
Robert Altman Award
Women Talking-WINNER
Best Documentary
All That Breathes
All The Beauty And The Bloodshed — WINNER
A House Made Of Splinters
Midwives
Riotsville, USA
Best International Film
Corsage – Austria, Belgium, UK, France, Italy, Luxembourg
Joyland – Pakistan, USA — WINNER
Leonor Will Never Die – Philippines
Return To Seoul – Belgium, France, Romania, South Korea
Saint Omer – France
Producers Award
Liz Cardenas
Tory Lenosky-WINNER
David Grove Churchill Viste
Someone To Watch Award
Adamma Ebo – Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul.
Nikyatu Jusu – Nanny — WINNER
Araceli Lemos – Holy Emy
Truer Than Fiction Award
Isabel Castro – Mija
Reid Davenport – I Didn’t See You There — WINNER
Rebeca Huntt – Beba
Best Ensemble Cast in a New Scripted Series
Pachinko – Soji Arai, Jin Ha, Inji Jeong, Minha Kim, Kaho Minami, Lee Minho, Steve Sanghyun Noh, Anna Sawai, Jimmi Simpson, and Yuh-jung Youn — WINNER
Best New Non-Scripted Or Documentary Series
Children Of The Underground
Mind Over Murder
Pepsi, Where’s My Jet?
The Rehearsal — WINNER
We Need To Talk About Cosby
Best Supporting Performance In A New Scripted Series
Danielle Deadwyler – Station Eleven
Ayo Edebiri – The Bear — WINNER
Jeff Hiller – Somebody Somewhere
Gbemisola Ikumelo – A League Of Their Own
Janelle James – Abbott Elementary
Ebon Moss-Bachrach – The Bear
Frankie Quiñones – This Fool
Sheryl Lee Ralph – Abbott Elementary
Molly Shannon – I Love That For You
Tramell Tillman – Severance
Best Breakthrough Performance
Frankie Corio – Aftersun
Garcija Filipovic – Murina
Stephanie Hsu – Everything Everywhere All At Once — WINNER
Lily McInerny – Palm Trees and Power Lines
Daniel Zolghadri – Funny Pages