# 20th Independent Spirit Awards

The 20th Independent Spirit Awards, honoring the best in independent filmmaking for 2004, were announced on February 26, 2005. It was hosted by Samuel L. Jackson.

## Nominees and winners

| Best Feature | Best Director |
| Sideways Baadasssss! Kinsey Maria Full of Grace Primer | Alexander Payne – Sideways Shane Carruth – Primer Joshua Marston – Maria Full of Grace Walter Salles – The Motorcycle Diaries Mario Van Peebles – Baadasssss! |
| Best Male Lead | Best Female Lead |
| Paul Giamatti – Sideways Kevin Bacon – The Woodsman Jeff Bridges – The Door in the Floor Jamie Foxx – Redemption Liam Neeson – Kinsey | Catalina Sandino Moreno – Maria Full of Grace Kimberly Elise – Woman Thou Art Loosed Vera Farmiga – Down to the Bone Judy Marte – On the Outs Kyra Sedgwick – Cavedweller |
| Best Supporting Male | Best Supporting Female |
| Thomas Haden Church – Sideways Jon Gries – Napoleon Dynamite Aidan Quinn – Cavedweller Roger Robinson – Brother to Brother Peter Sarsgaard – Kinsey | Virginia Madsen – Sideways Cate Blanchett – Coffee and Cigarettes Loretta Devine – Woman Thou Art Loosed Robin Simmons – Robbing Peter Yenny Paola Vega – Maria Full of Grace |
| Best Screenplay | Best First Screenplay |
| Sideways – Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor Baadasssss! – Mario Van Peebles and Dennis Haggerty Before Sunset – Richard Linklater, Julie Delpy and Ethan Hawke The Door in the Floor – Tod Williams Kinsey – Bill Condon | Maria Full of Grace – Joshua Marston Brother to Brother – Rodney Evans Garden State – Zach Braff Primer – Shane Carruth Robbing Peter – Mario F. de la Vega |
| Best Cinematography | Best Debut Performance |
| The Motorcycle Diaries – Eric Gautier Dandelion – Tim Orr Redemption – David Greene Saints and Soldiers – Ryan Little We Don't Live Here Anymore – Maryse Alberti | Rodrigo de la Serna – The Motorcycle Diaries Anthony Mackie – Brother to Brother Louie Olivos Jr. – Robbing Peter Hannah Pilkes – The Woodsman David Sullivan – Primer |
| Best First Feature (Over $500,000) | Best Documentary |
| Garden State Brother to Brother Napoleon Dynamite Saints and Soldiers The Woodsman | Metallica: Some Kind of Monster Bright Leaves Chisholm '72: Unbought & Unbossed Hiding and Seeking: Faith and Tolerance After the Holocaust Tarnation |
| Best International Film ||
| The Sea Inside • Spain Bad Education • Spain Oasis • South Korea Red Lights • France Yesterday • South Africa ||

## Special awards
### John Cassavetes Award

Mean Creek
* Down to the Bone
* On the Outs
* Robbing Peter
* Unknown Soldier

### Truer Than Fiction Award

Born into Brothels
* Chisholm '72: Unbought & Unbossed
* Control Room
* Farmingville

### Producers Award

Gina Kwon – The Good Girl, Me and You and Everyone We Know and The Motel
* Danielle Renfrew – November and Groove
* Sean Covel and Chris Wyatt – Napoleon Dynamite and Think Tank

### Someone to Watch Award

Jem Cohen – Chain
* Bryan Poyser – Dear Pillow
* Jennifer Reeves – The Time We Killed

### Special Distinction Award

* The ensemble cast of Mean Creek: Rory Culkin, Ryan Kelley, Scott Mechlowicz, Trevor Morgan, Josh Peck and Carly Schroeder

### Films with multiple nominations and awards
#### Films with multiple nominations

| Nominations | Film |
| 6 | Sideways |
| 5 | Maria Full of Grace |
| 4 | Brother to Brother |
| 4 | Kinsey |
| 4 | Primer |
| 4 | Robbing Peter |
| 3 | Badasssss! |
| 3 | The Motorcycle Diaries |
| 3 | Napoleon Dynamite |
| 3 | The Woodsman |
| 2 | Cavedweller |
| 2 | The Door in the Floor |
| 2 | Down to the Bone |
| 2 | Garden State |
| 2 | On the Outs |
| 2 | Redemption |
| 2 | Saints and Soldiers |
| 2 | Woman Thou Art Loosed |

#### Films with multiple wins

| Awards | Film |
| 6 | Sideways |
| 3 | Maria Full of Grace |
| 3 | Mean Creek |
| 3 | The Motorcycle Diaries |