Houston Film Critics Society announces independent film awards nominees, first TV special

Five Texas-made films have been named by the Houston Film Critics Society as nominees for its annual Texas Independent Film Awards (TIFA). 

For the first time in the six-year history of this award, the films, artists and actors who contributed to their production will be the focus of a one-hour television special, scheduled to air on Houston’s local KUBE-TV station, at 4:00 PM CST on Sunday, January 31, 2021.

This year, eleven films were screened and selected by the Society’s nominating committee. Final voting by Society members will conclude on January 17. The TIFA winner, as well as the recipients of the Texas Independent Film Visionary Award and eighteen traditional categories, will be announced on Monday, January 18.

Nominees for the Best Texas Film of 2020 are:

• Boys State
• Miss Juneteenth
• Ready or Not
• The Vast of Night
• Yellow Rose

The Society created the TIFA in 2014 to spotlight the quality of independent films made in Texas. Each year, the Society welcomes submissions of films which were shot in Texas and financed outside the major studio system by small investors and/or independent production companies. The TIFA review and selection is overseen by Society members Joshua Starnes, who also served as past president of the Society, and Cary Darling. 

“Each year, our slate of eligible films gets stronger and stronger” observes Starnes, “and, judging by the number that have found their way to major viewing platforms, movie fans are taking notice. The Society has made it our mission to shine the spotlight on these deserving films and the talented people who made them.” 

The one-hour television special, which will be pre-recorded in Houston the week of Jan. 19, will include clips from each of the TIFA nominees, as well as interviews with filmmakers and cast members. The broadcast, hosted by Society members, will be available for viewing at no charge on Houston’s KUBE-TV channel, available on cable and broadcast systems. A list of channels for each provider can be found here.