Sony Pictures Classics Inc. is an American film production and distribution company that is a division of Sony Pictures. It was founded in 1992 by former Orion Classics heads Michael Barker, Tom Bernard and Marcie Bloom. It distributes, produces and acquires specialty films such as documentaries, independent and arthouse films in the United States and internationally. As of 2015, Barker and Bernard are co-presidents of the division.
The Gotham Awards are American film awards, presented annually to the makers of independent films at a ceremony in New York City, the city first nicknamed "Gotham" by native son Washington Irving, in an issue of Salmagundi, published on November 11, 1807. Part of the Gotham Film & Media Institute, "the largest membership organization in the United States dedicated to independent film", the awards were inaugurated in 1991 as a means of showcasing and honoring films made primarily in the northeastern region of the United States.
The 15th Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards, presented by the Independent Filmmaker Project, were held on November 30, 2005 and were hosted by Kyra Sedgwick. The nominees were announced on October 25, 2005.
Orion Classics started in 1982 as the distribution label for the then independent film production company Orion Pictures, now owned by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was relaunched in 2018.
The 19th Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards, presented by the Independent Filmmaker Project, were held on November 30, 2009. The nominees were announced on October 19, 2009. The ceremony was hosted by Kumail Nanjiani.
The 24th Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards, presented by the Independent Filmmaker Project, were held on December 1, 2014. The nominees were announced on October 23, 2014. The ceremony was hosted by Uma Thurman.
The 25th Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards, presented by the Independent Filmmaker Project, were held on November 30, 2015. The nominees were announced on October 22, 2015. The ceremony was hosted by Abbi Jacobson and Ilana Glazer.
The 26th Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards, presented by the Independent Filmmaker Project, were held on November 28, 2016. The nominees were announced on October 20, 2016. Actors Ethan Hawke and Amy Adams, director Oliver Stone and producer Arnon Milchan received tribute awards. The ceremony was hosted by Keegan-Michael Key.
The 16th Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards, presented by the Independent Filmmaker Project, were held on November 29, 2006 and were hosted by David Cross. The nominees were announced on October 23, 2006.
The 14th Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards, presented by the Independent Filmmaker Project, were held on December 1, 2004. The nominees for Breakthrough Actor and Director were announced on November 1, 2004 and the nominees in the film categories were announced on November 10, 2004. The ceremony was hosted by Bob Balaban. It was the first Gotham Award ceremony where the prizes for Best Feature and Best Documentary were awarded.
The 13th Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards, presented by the Independent Filmmaker Project, were held on September 22, 2003. The ceremony was hosted by Michael Ian Black. It was the first Gotham Awards ceremony where the individual awards such as the Filmmaker Award were replaced with Career Tributes resulting in several Tributes each year instead of one.
The 12th Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards, presented by the Independent Filmmaker Project, were held on September 26, 2002 and were hosted by Rosie Perez and John Turturro. At the ceremony, Ang Lee and Bingham Ray were honored with Career Tributes, Whitney Dow and Marco Williams received the Anthony Radziwell Documentary Achievement Award and Julianne Moore was awarded the Actor Award.
The 11th Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards, presented by the Independent Filmmaker Project, were held on October 1, 2001 and were hosted by Andy Dick. At the ceremony, Robert De Niro was honored with a Career Tribute, Edet Belzberg received the Anthony Radziwell Documentary Achievement Award and Uma Thurman was awarded the Actor Award. For the first and only time an Independent Vision Award was given out in memory of William J. Nisselson, longtime manager of the post-production studio Sound One Studios in New York who died in 2001 at the age of 56.
The 9th Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards, presented by the Independent Filmmaker Project, were held on September 22, 1999 and were hosted by Sandra Bernhard. At the ceremony, Meryl Streep was honored with a Career Tribute, composer Carter Burwell received the Below-the-Line Award and independent film producer Christine Vachon was awarded the Producer/Industry Executive Award.
The 8th Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards, presented by the Independent Filmmaker Project, were held on September 23, 1998 and were hosted by Stanley Tucci. At the ceremony, Sidney Lumet was honored with a Career Tribute, Frances McDormand received the Actor Award, Richard LaGravenese was given the Writer Award and David V. Picker was awarded the Producer/Industry Executive Award.
The 7th Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards, presented by the Independent Filmmaker Project, were held on September 16, 1997 and were hosted by Jon Stewart. At the ceremony, Bob and Harvey Weinstein were honored with a Career Tribute with Kevin Kline, Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, Faith Hubley and Errol Morris receiving the other individual awards.
The 5th Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards, presented by the Independent Filmmaker Project, were held on September 19, 1995 and were hosted by Michael Moore. At the ceremony, Robert Shaye was honored with a Career Tribute with Abel Ferrara, Christopher Walken, Pauline Kael, and Juliet Taylor receiving the other individual awards.
The 27th Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards, presented by the Independent Filmmaker Project, were held on November 27, 2017. The nominees were announced on October 19, 2017. Actors Dustin Hoffman and Nicole Kidman, director Sofia Coppola, producer Jason Blum, cinematographer Ed Lachman and politician/environmentalist Al Gore received tribute awards. The ceremony was hosted by John Cameron Mitchell.
The Gotham Independent Film Award for Best Ensemble Cast was one of the annual Gotham Independent Film Awards awarded between 2005 and 2012. The award was called Gotham Independent Film Award for Best Ensemble Performance between 2008 and 2012.
