IFP’s 26th Annual Gotham Awards Ceremony to Take Place on Monday, November 28th at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City
by Erik Luers on August 1, 2016
Deadline for Submissions of Features and Series is September 15th, 2016
The Independent Filmmaker Project (IFP), the nation’s premier member organization of independent filmmakers and storytellers, today announced that the 26th Annual Gotham Awards will take place this year at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City on Monday, November 28th.
The first awards show of the season, the Gotham Awards, established in 1991, is one of the leading honors for independent film and media, celebrating authentic voices behind and in front of the camera. The Gothams provide critical early recognition to worthy independent films and their writers, directors, producers, and actors. Each year IFP chooses a jury of innovators and icons in documentary and feature film directing, producing, cinematography, and acting to bestow the Gotham’s competitive awards. The 2015 top film category winners were Spotlight (Best Feature), The Look of Silence (Best Documentary) and Tangerine (Audience Award).
IFP celebrated the 25th Anniversary of the Gotham Awards last year with the addition of several new categories, including two for “Breakthrough Series” to honor outstanding debut series on television and digital media platforms. Nominees for the inaugural Breakthrough Series (Long Form) included Jane the Virgin (The CW), Transparent (Amazon), Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (Netflix), UnREAL (A&E Studios for Lifetime), and the winner, Mr.Robot, the USA Network series created by Sam Esmail that has gone on to receive numerous additional nominations and awards over the past year including the Best Televsion Series award at the 2016 Golden Globes and six 2016 Primetime Emmy nominations. The first Breakthrough Series (Short Form) award was awarded to the web series Shugs & Fats, whose creators Nadia P. Manzoor and Radhika Vaz have since been approached by producers about expanding it into a longer form continuing series.
Nominated by committee recommendation in the first year, the Long Form Breakthrough Series category will be open to submissions beginning this year, with the submission deadline of September 15, 2016, the deadline for all competition categories.
Submissions are now being accepted in eight of the competitive categories: Best Feature, Best Documentary, Breakthrough Series Long Form, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Screenplay, Breakthrough Actor, and the Bingham Ray Breakthrough Director Award. Online applications, along with full criteria, are available at http://gotham.ifp.org.
Nominees will be announced on October 20th and winners will be honored at a star-studded ceremony at Cipriani Wall Street on November 28th.
In addition to ten competitive categories, the Gotham Awards also recognize those who have made significant contributions to independent filmmaking by selecting individuals to single out in tribute. The 2016 Tributes will be announced in the next few weeks
About IFP
The Independent Filmmaker Project (IFP) champions the future of storytelling by connecting artists with essential resources at all stages of development and distribution. The organization fosters a vibrant and sustainable independent storytelling community through its year-round programs, which include Independent Film Week, Filmmaker Magazine, the Gotham Independent Film Awards and the Made in NY Media Center by IFP, a tech and media incubator space developed with the New York Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment.
IFP represents a growing network of storytellers around the world, and plays a key role in developing 350 new feature and documentary works each year. During its 37-year history, IFP has supported over 10,000+ projects and offered resources to more than 20,000+ filmmakers, including Debra Granik, Miranda July, Michael Moore, Dee Rees, and Benh Zeitlin. More info at www.ifp.org.
About the Gotham Independent Film Awards by IFP
The Gotham Independent Film Awards by IFP, selected by distinguished juries and presented in New York City, the home of independent film, 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 IFP does behind the scenes throughout the year to bring such films to fruition.
For information on attending: http://gotham.ifp.org