The 2014 Independent Spirit Awards nominations have been announced, and director Steve McQueen’s excellent drama 12 Years a Slave tops the nominees with seven nods, including Best Feature, Best Director, and Best Actor.  Nebraska is not far behind with six nominations, and the Robert Redford drama All Is Lost also did well with four nods.  The much-beloved Short Term 12 failed to land a Best Feature nomination, but Primer director Shane Carruth’s twisty second feature Upstream Color landed nods for Best Director and Best Editing.  The Best Actor category is a strong mirror of the very tight Oscar race in the same category, and the wonderful Shailene Woodley and Brie Larson nabbed Best Actress nominations for The Spectacular Now and Short Term 12, respectively.

Hit the jump for the full list of nominations and additional commentary.  The Independent Spirit Awards will be hosted on March 1, 2014.

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As far as snubs go, it’s disappointing not to see Miles Teller recognized for his stellar work in The Spectacular Now or the lovely Greta Gerwig who grounds Frances Ha, and Before Midnight would have been a worthy addition to the Best Feature category.  That being said, this year is a highly competitive awards race (as evidenced by the Best Actor category expanding to six nominees), so it's tough to argue with this list of nominees.

Pleasant surprises include James Gandolfini (Enough Said) and Will Forte (Nebraska) landing Best Supporting Actor nods, Gaby Hoffmann receiving a Best Female Lead nomination for her work in the Michael Cera pic Crystal Fairy, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt being recognized in the Best First Screenplay category for Don Jon.

If you’re looking for correlations between the Spirit Awards and the Oscars, the winner of the Best Feature Spirit Award has been a Best Picture Oscar nominee nine out of the past ten times.

Best Feature

  • 12 Years a Slave
  • All Is Lost
  • Frances Ha
  • Inside Llewyn Davis
  • Nebraska

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Image via Fox Searchlight

Best Director

  • Shane Carruth – Upstream Color
  • J.C. Chandor – All Is Lost
  • Steve McQueen – 12 Years a Slave
  • Jeff Nichols – Mud
  • Alexander Payne - Nebraska 

Best Screenplay

  • Woody Allen – Blue Jasmine
  • Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke, & Richard Linklater – Before Midnight
  • Nicole Holofcener – Enough Said
  • Scott Neustadter & Michael H. Weber – The Spectacular Now
  • John Ridley – 12 Years a Slave 

Best Female Lead

  • Cate Blanchett – Blue Jasmine
  • Julie Delpy – Before Midnight
  • Gaby Hoffmann – Crystal Fairy
  • Brie Larson – Short Term 12
  • Shailene Woodley – The Spectacular Now 

Best Male Lead

  • Bruce Dern – Nebraska
  • Chiwetel Ejiofor – 12 Years a Slave
  • Oscar Isaac – Inside Llewyn Davis
  • short-term-12-brie-larson-keith-stanfield
    Michael B. Jordan – Fruitvale Station
  • Matthew McConaughey – Dallas Buyers Club
  • Robert Redford – All Is Lost 

Best Supporting Female

  • Melonie Diaz – Fruitvale Station
  • Sally Hawkins – Blue Jasmine
  • Lupita Nyong’O – 12 Years a Slave
  • Yolanda Ross – Go for Sisters
  • June Squibb - Nebraska 

Best Supporting Male

  • Michael Fassbender – 12 Years a Slave
  • Will Forte – Nebraska
  • James Gandolfini – Enough Said
  • Jared Leto – Dallas Buyers Club
  • Keith Stanfield – Short Term 12 

Best First Feature

  • Blue Caprice
  • Concussion
  • Fruitvale Station
  • Una Noche
  • Wadjda

Best First Screenplay

  • Lake Bell – In a World…
  • Joseph Gordon-Levitt – Don Jon
  • don-jon-joseph-gordon-levitt-scarlett-johansson
    Bob Nelson – Nebraska
  • Jill Soloway – Afternoon Delight
  • Michael Starrbury – The Inevitable Defeat of Mister and Pete

Best Cinematography

  • Sean Bobbitt – 12 Years a Slave
  • Benoit Debie – Spring Breakers
  • Bruno Delbonnel – Inside Llewyn Davis
  • Frank G. Demarco – All Is Lost
  • Matthias Grunsky – Computer Chess

Best Editing

  • Shane Carruth and David Lowery – Upstream Color
  • Jem Cohen and Marc Vives – Museum Hours
  • Jennifer Lame – Frances Ha
  • Cindy Lee – Una Noche
  • Nat Sanders – Short Term 12

Best Documentary

  • 20 Feet from Stardom
  • After Tiller
  • Gideon’s Army
  • The Act of Killing
  • The Square

Best International Film

  • A Touch of Sin – China
  • blue-is-the-warmest-color-lea-seydoux
    Blue Is the Warmest Color
    – France
  • Gloria – Chile
  • The Great Beauty – Italy
  • The Hunt - Denmark 

Robert Altman Award for Ensemble

  • Mud 

John Cassavetes Award for films made under $500,000

  • Computer Chess
  • Crystal Fairy
  • Museum Hours
  • Pit Stop
  • This Is Martin Bonner

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Image via Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions