Oscars frontrunner Anora wins top prize at Spirit Awards

Sean Baker, whose low-budget movie Anora is the frontrunner for the Oscars on Monday next week (Hong Kong time), delivered an impassioned plea to "keep indie film alive" as he won top prize at the Spirit Awards.

The annual Film Independent Spirit Awards ceremony, held in a giant tent at Los Angeles' Santa Monica beach on Saturday, only celebrates movies made for less than US$30 million (HK$234 million).

Baker, long a leading figure of the US independent movie circuit, who is now shooting to mainstream success, won best feature and best director for Anora, which was shot for just US$6 million.

"Indie film is struggling right now more than ever," said Baker.

"I personally do not have children, but I know for a fact that if I did, I would not be able to make the movies that I make," warned one of the United States' most respected directors.

His latest film Anora portrays Ani, a stripper and escort, whose whirlwind marriage to the son of a Russian oligarch rapidly unravels in disastrous circumstances.

Mikey Madison, who plays Ani, won best lead performer honors at the Spirit Awards.

Having launched at the Cannes film festival last May, where it won the Palme d'Or, Anora became an arthouse hit, grossing US$40 million worldwide.

It is widely tipped to win best picture at the Oscars.

But Baker warned that the collapse of DVD sales, which once supported up-and-coming filmmakers, means creatives like him rarely make any money even when their movies succeed in theaters.

He warned that major Hollywood studios swallow profits, refuse to "green light" movies tackling controversial subjects, and force directors to cast actors based on "how many followers they have on social media."

Baker urged agents, financiers and studios to help creative directors "keep indie film alive."

Agence France-Presse