Chicago Indie Critics nominations: ‘Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom’ leads with 9

The Chicago Indie Critics announced their nominations on Monday and leading all films with an impressive nine nods was Netflix’s Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom helmed by Best Director nominee George C. Wolfe and starring acting nominees Chadwick Boseman and Viola Davis. Following next with seven nominations each was David Fincher’s Mank and Aaron Sorkin’s The Trial of the Chicago 7, both also hailing from Netflix. In all, 45 different films are represented with nominations for the 2020 CIC Awards.  

Two awards of special recognition and interest are the annual Trailblazer and Impact Awards. The CIC’s Trailblazer Award honors the work of an artist who truly pushed the boundaries of the medium in terms of form and content. The Impact Award celebrates a person whose work during the past year or beyond made a positive influence on society. Beloved double-acting nominee Chadwick Boseman of Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom and Da 5 Bloods and Nomadland filmmaker Chloé Zhao are included in both fields.

The other nominees this year for 2020 Trailblazer Award include filmmakers Radha Blank (The 40-Year-Old Version), Emerald Fennell (Promising Young Woman), and Steve McQueen (Small Axe). For the Impact Award, the late actor and female filmmaker are joined by Music Box Theatre general manager Ryan Oestreich, McHenry Outdoor Theater owner Scott H. Dehn, and documentarian Garrett Bradley (Time). 

Winners will be announced on January 2, 2021. Here is the full list of nominations.

BEST INDEPENDENT FILM (budgets under $20 million)

THE FATHER
FIRST COW
NEVER RARELY SOMETIMES ALWAYS
NOMADLAND
PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN

BEST STUDIO FILM (budgets over $20 million)

DA 5 BLOODS
MA RAINEY’S BLACK BOTTOM
MANK
SOUL
THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

ANOTHER ROUND
BACURAU
BEANPOLE
HIS HOUSE
THE LIFE AHEAD

BEST DOCUMENTARY

BOYS STATE
DICK JOHNSON IS DEAD
RISING PHOENIX
THE SOCIAL DILEMMA
TIME

BEST ANIMATED FILM

ONWARD
OVER THE MOON
SOUL
THE WILLOUGHBYS
WOLFWALKERS

BEST DIRECTOR

Emerald Fennell – PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN
Spike Lee – DA 5 BLOODS
George C. Wolfe – MA RAINEY’S BLACK BOTTOM
Florian Zeller – THE FATHER
Chloé Zhao – NOMADLAND

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

MANK – Jack Fincher
NEVER RARELY SOMETIMES ALWAYS – Eliza Hittman
PALM SPRINGS – Andy Siara
PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN – Emerald Fennell
THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7 – Aaron Sorkin

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

THE FATHER – Florian Zeller
FIRST COW – Kelly Reichardt and Jonathan Raymond
I’M THINKING OF ENDING THINGS – Charlie Kaufman
MA RAINEY’S BLACK BOTTOM – Ruben Santiago-Hudson
NOMADLAND – Chloé Zhao

BEST ACTOR

Riz Ahmed – SOUND OF METAL
Chadwick Boseman – MA RAINEY’S BLACK BOTTOM
Anthony Hopkins – THE FATHER
Delroy Lindo – DA 5 BLOODS
Steven Yeun – MINARI

BEST ACTRESS

Nicole Beharie – MISS JUNETEENTH
Viola Davis – MA RAINEY’S BLACK BOTTOM
Sidney Flanigan – NEVER RARELY SOMETIMES ALWAYS
Frances McDormand – NOMADLAND
Carey Mulligan – PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Chadwick Boseman – DA 5 BLOODS
Bo Burnham – PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN
Sacha Baron Cohen – THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7
Frank Langella – THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7
Yayha Abdul-Mateen II – THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7
Bill Murray – ON THE ROCKS

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Maria Bakalova – BORAT SUBSEQUENT MOVIEFILM
Olivia Colman – THE FATHER
Talia Ryder – NEVER RARELY SOMETIMES ALWAYS
Amanda Seyfried – MANK
Youn Yuh-jung – MINARI

BEST ENSEMBLE CAST

DA 5 BLOODS
MA RAINEY’S BLACK BOTTOM
MINARI
ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI
THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

DA 5 BLOODS
EMMA
JINGLE JANGLE: A CHRISTMAS JOURNEY
MANK
NOMADLAND
TENET

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

EMMA
JINGLE JANGLE: A CHRISTMAS JOURNEY
MA RAINEY’S BLACK BOTTOM
MANK
TENET

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

EMMA
JINGLE JANGLE: A CHRISTMAS JOURNEY
MA RAINEY’S BLACK BOTTOM
MANK
SYLVIE’S LOVE

BEST MAKEUP

BIRDS OF PREY
EMMA
JINGLE JANGLE: A CHRISTMAS JOURNEY
MA RAINEY’S BLACK BOTTOM
POSSESSOR

BEST EDITING

THE FATHER
NOMADLAND
TENET
THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7
WANDER DARKLY

BEST MUSICAL SCORE

MANK
THE MIDNIGHT SKY
MINARI
SOUL
TENET

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

“Husavik” – EUROVISION SONG CONTEST: THE STORY OF FIRE SAGA
“Loyal Brave True” – MULAN
“Speak Now” – ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI
“This Day” – JINGLE JANGLE: A CHRISTMAS JOURNEY
“Wuhan Flu” – BORAT SUBSEQUENT MOVIEFILM

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

THE INVISIBLE MAN
JINGLE JANGLE: A CHRISTMAS JOURNEY
THE MIDNIGHT SKY
TENET
WONDER WOMAN 1984

SPECIAL AWARDS

TRAILBLAZER AWARD (Honors the work of an artist who truly pushes the boundaries of the medium in terms of form and content)

Radha Blank
Chadwick Boseman
Emerald Fennell
Steve McQueen
Chloe Zhao

IMPACT AWARD (Given to a person whose work has had a positive impact on society)

Chadwick Boseman
Garrett Bradley
Scott H. Dehn
Ryan Oestreich
Chloé Zhao

Founded in 2016, the Chicago Indie Critics (formerly known as the Chicago Independent Film Critics Circle) is a creative and engaging non-for-profit organization composed of unique, dedicated, and diversified film critics.  Its members are wide-ranging in experiences, backgrounds, tastes, and target audiences across both print and online platforms and publications. The CIC organized to share their personal assessments, commentaries, passions, and creativity in the vigilant effort to highlight the greatness and diversity found in both independent and mainstream films. While they originate in the Chicagoland area, the efforts of Chicago Indie Critics are to share, celebrate, and promote the rich artistic medium of film to audiences, fans, and eager minds across the nation and the world as an exemplary and upstanding pillar of intelligent print and broadcast journalism.

Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom image courtesy of David Lee / Netflix