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Winners of the Film Independent Spirit Awards made the case Sunday night that you cannot separate their art from politics. NPR's Mandalit del Barco reports on the celebration of indie films and TV shows.
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MANDALIT DEL BARCO, BYLINE: The British series "Adolescence," about a 13-year-old accused of murder, picked up four Spirit Awards, including a breakthrough prize for teen star Owen Cooper. The Western drama "Train Dreams," starring Joel Edgerton, won the Spirit Award for best picture, best cinematography and best director, Clint Bentley.
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CLINT BENTLEY: In a world where there's so many people trying to put up walls and put people in cages and divide people, we're making little communities and we're putting goodness into the world.
DEL BARCO: Besides Bentley, others at the ceremony referred to indie film and politics, including presenter Natasha Rothwell, who used an expletive for ICE, Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
"The Perfect Neighbor," which won for best documentary, recounts how a Black woman was shot and killed by her white neighbor in Florida. Director Geeta Gandbhir said the story, captured with police body-camera footage, reflects a moment in this country.
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GEETA GANDBHIR: Where truth is contested, empathy is overshadowed by fear and where systems meant to protect people are turning against them.
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DEL BARCO: "The Secret Agent," set during Brazil's dictatorship in the 1970s, won for best international film. In his speech, director Kleber Mendonca Filho said presenting films in cinemas is a political act.
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KLEBER MENDONCA FILHO: Cinema is a manifestation of memory itself. And remembering is also a political act.
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PAUL REUBENS: (As Pee-wee Herman) Today's secret word is fun.
DEL BARCO: The late comedian Paul Reubens - TV's Pee-wee Herman - was the subject of a documentary series that won a Spirit Award. Here's executive producer Matt Wolf.
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MATT WOLF: I'm so proud to be part of this community of nonconformist filmmakers.
DEL BARCO: Wolf said scrappy indie filmmakers try to make people feel things on a big scale.
Mandalit del Barco, NPR News.
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