Ceremony to premiere live exclusively on IFC, Saturday, February 21 at 2:00 pm PT and 5:00 pm ET
LOS ANGELES (January 7, 2015) – Film Independent President Josh Welsh announced today that actress Emmy Rossum will co-host with Michael Peña the Filmmaker Grant and Nominee Brunch on Saturday, January 10 at BOA restaurant in West Hollywood. The nonprofit, that also produces the Los Angeles Film Festival and Film Independent at LACMA Film will be celebrating this year’s Spirit Award Nominees and awarding $75,000 in grants to emerging filmmakers.
The event precedes the 30th Film Independent Spirit Awards that will take place as a daytime luncheon in a tent on the beach in Santa Monica on Saturday, February 21. This year the show will broadcast live exclusively on IFC at 2:00 PM PT/ 5:00 PM ET.
“Emmy Rossum is both a past Spirit Award nominee for her work in Songcatcher and a LA Film Festival alum,” said Film Independent President Josh Welsh. “Her film Comet had its premiere at the Festival in 2014. We are thrilled she will be joining us to celebrate this year’s Spirit Award nominees and give out the filmmaker grants.”
Rossum currently stars in Showtime’s dark comedy series, Shameless, which will begin its fifth season on January 11th. The Actress has been captivating audiences with her diverse, extraordinary talents for over a decade. Rossum was recently seen in You’re Not You alongside Josh Duhamel and Hilary Swank. Rossum also appeared in Shawn Christensen’s Before I Disappear, based on the 2012 Oscar-winning short Curfew, which won the prestigious Audience Award at SXSW in March, and starred in Comet opposite Justin Long which premiered at the Los Angeles Film Festival in June. Other film credits include Warner Bros.’ Beautiful Creatures, DARE alongside Zach Gilford, Dragonball, Poseidon, The Day After Tomorrow with Jake Gyllenhaal, and the Clint Eastwood-directed drama Mystic River.
Rossum’s acting performance in Songcatcher earned her a Spirit Award nomination in the category of Best Debut Performance in 2000. Four years later in 2004, her starring performance as Christine in The Phantom of the Opera earned her a Golden Globe Award nomination, as well as the National Board of Review’s Best Female Breakthrough Performance Award and the Broadcast Film Critics Association’s Best Young Actress Award in 2005.
ABOUT THE FILM INDEPENDENT SPIRIT AWARDS
Now in its 30th year, the Film Independent Spirit Awards is an annual celebration that honors artist-driven films made with an economy of means by filmmakers whose films embody independence and originality. The Spirit Awards recognizes the achievements of American and international independent filmmakers and promotes the finest independent films of the year to a wider audience. The winners of the Spirit Awards are voted upon by Film Independent and IFP Members. Awards are given in the following categories: Best Feature, Best First Feature, Best First Screenplay, Best Director, Best Screenplay, John Cassavetes Award (given to the best feature made for a budget under
$500,000), Best Male Lead, Best Female Lead, Best Supporting Male, Best Supporting Female, Best Cinematography, Best Editing, the Robert Altman Award, Best International Film and Best Documentary. The Filmmaker Grants include the Piaget Producers Award, the Kiehl’s Someone to Watch Award and the LensCrafters Truer Than Fiction Award. The Film Independent Spirit Awards are sponsored by Premier Sponsors Piaget, The Lincoln Motor Company, Bank of America, Heineken, American Airlines and IFC. T-Mobile is the Official Arrivals Show Sponsor and FIJI Water is the Official Water of the 2015 Spirit Awards. WireImage is the Official Photographer of Film Independent.
For more information on submission guidelines, voting, media and publicist credentials, and the history of the Spirit Awards, please visit SpiritAwards.com.