Kicking-off their tenth year in style, the Chicago Indie Critics (CIC) have announced the nominees for their 9th annual 2025 Windie Awards. The 38 voting film critic members completed ballots this week to select Windie nominees in 27 categories. The CIC members will commence a final round of voting ending on January 10, 2026. The 2025 Windie Award winners will be announced internally at a private members-only party at Blue Bayou Chicago across the street from the famed Music Box Theatre on January 15, 2024, with website and social media announcements to follow.

Leading the way with a whopping 18 nominations for the 2025 Windie Awards is Ryan Coogler’s Sinners. It danced its way to a nomination for Best Studio Film while Coogler himself landed nominations for Best Director and Original Screenplay.

The cast also received a nomination for Best Ensemble, which is fitting considering five of the actors also received individual nominations – Michael B. Jordan (Best Actor) Wunmi Musaku & Haliee Steinfeld (Supporting Actress), Delroy Lindo (Supporting Actor), and Miles Caton (Breakout Performer). Sinners finished its day by receiving nominations in every technical category receiving nominations for Cinematography, Production Design, Costume Design, Editing, Makeup and Hair, Visual Effects, Sound, and Score. It’s also the only film to have two nominations in Best Original Song.

Paul Thomas Anderson’s American epic, One Battle After Another, did its best to keep up with its fellow Warner Bros. Pictures release securing 12 nominations. It stands next to Sinners in Best Studio Film, while PTA received individual nominations in Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay. One Battle After Another is also the only other film to feature five actors with individual nominations – Leonardo DiCaprio (Best Actor), Teyana Taylor (Supporting Actress), Benicio del Toro & Sean Penn (Supporting Actor), and Chase Infiniti (Breakout Performer), who also happens to be a graduate of Columbia College Chicago.

Coming in at third, with 9 nominations for the 2025 Windie Awards is Guillermo del Toro’s dream project, Frankenstein. The faithful take on Mary Shelley’s classic monster tale dazzled in the artistic departments, The Creature himself, Jacob Elordi, secured a spot in the Best Supporting Actor lineup, and del Toro landed nominations for Best Director and Adapted Screenplay. Rounding out the top 4 is Josh Safie’s adrenaline-fueled Marty Supreme with 7 nominations, including Best Studio Film and Timothée Chalamet in Best Actor.

Completing the Best Studio Film Lineup are Chloé Zhao’s Shakespearean drama, Hamnet and Danny Boyle’s return to the apocalypse in 28 Years Later. Both these films, alongside Joseph Kosinski’s F1, tied for fifth place in terms of total nominations. To honor the group’s namesake, the Best Independent Film category listed If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You, It Was Just An Accident, The Life of Chuck, Train Dreams, and Sorry, Baby – from Northwestern Graduate, Eva Victor, who also received a Nomination for Best Actress and Breakout Behind-The-Scenes. But perhaps the most special nomination of the day: the Chicago Indie Critics couldn’t resist recognizing 2025’s Breakout Canine Star, Indy, who starred in the horror film Good Boy.

Altogether, 22 films received multiple Windie nominations, and 41 films overall were represented across all categories.

As a special category of local recognition at the 2025 Windie Awards, the Chicago Indie Critics annually presents the Impact Award. The distinction celebrates a group or person whose work during the past year or beyond positively influenced the Chicagoland film community. This year’s Impact Award nominees include Elizabeth Arnott, programmer of “Sapphopalooza”, Tyler Michael Baletine, programmer of “Life Within the Lens: Juneteenth Edition,” Matthew C. Hoffman - programmer and host at the Pickwick Theatre in Park Ridge, Anna Pattinson, Editor in Chief of Cinema Femme magazine, and Michael Phillips, former film critic of The Chicago Tribune.

COMPLETE LIST OF THE 2025 WINDIE AWARDS NOMINATIONS:

BEST INDEPENDENT FILM

If I Had Legs I’d Kick You

Producers: Sara Murphy, Ryan Zacarias, Ronald Bronstein, Josh Safdie, Eli Bush, Conor Hannon, and Richie

Doyle

It Was Just an Accident

Producers: Jafar Panahi and Philippe Martin

The Life of Chuck

Producers: Trevor Macy and Mike Flanagan

Sorry, Baby

Producers: Adele Romanski, Mark Ceryak, and Barry Jenkins

Train Dreams

Producers: Marissa McMahon, Teddy Schwarzman,Will Janowitz, Ashley Schlaifer, and Michael Heimler

BEST STUDIO FILM

Hamnet

Producers: Liza Marshall, Pippa Harris, Nicolas Gonda, Sam Mendes, and Steven Spielberg

Marty Supreme

Producers: Eli Bush, Ronald Bronstein, Josh Safdie, Anthony Katagas, and Timothée Chalamet

One Battle After Another

Producers: Adam Somner, Sara Murphy, and Paul Thomas Anderson

Sinners

Producers: Zinzi Coogler, Sev Ohanian, and Ryan Coogler

28 Years Later

Producers: Andrew Macdonald, Peter Rice, Bernie Bellew, Danny Boyle, and Alex Garland

BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM

It Was Just an Accident

Producers: Jafar Panahi and Philippe Martin

No Other Choice

Producers: Park Chan-wook, Back Jisun, Michèle Ray-Gavras, and Alexandre Gavras

The Secret Agent

Producers: Emilie Lesclaux, Kleber Mendonça Filho

Sentimental Value

Producers: Maria Ekerhovd and Andrea Berentsen Ottmar

Sirât

Producers: Domingo Corral, Oliver Laxe, Xavi Font, Pedro Almodóvar, Agustín Almodóvar, Esther García, Oriol

Maymó, Mani Mortazavi, and Andrea Queralt

BEST DOCUMENTARY

John Candy: I Like Me

Producers: Colin Hanks, Johnny Pariseau, George Dewey, Shane Reid, Ryan Reynolds, Sean Stuart, andm

Glen Zipper

Orwell: 2 + 2 = 5

Producers: Raoul Peck, Alex Gibney, George Chignell, and Nick ShumakerThe Perfect Neighbor

Producers: Alisa Payne, Geeta Gandbhir, Nikon Kwantu, and Sam Bisbee

Secret Mall Apartment

Producers: Jeremy Workman and Jesse Eisenberg

Zodiac Killer Project

Producers: Charlie Shackleton, Anthony Ing, and Catherine Bray

BEST ANIMATED FILM

Elio

Producers: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina, and Mary Alice Drumm

KPop Demon Hunters

Producers: Maggie Kang, Chris Applehans, and Michelle Wong

Looney Tunes: The Day the Earth Blew Up

Producers: Peter Browngardt, Sam Register, and Alex Kirwan

Predator: Killer of Killers

Producers: John Davis, Dan Trachtenberg, Marc Toberoff, and Ben Rosenblatt

Zootopia 2

Producers: Jared Bush, Byron Howard, and Yvett Merino

BEST DIRECTOR

Paul Thomas Anderson - One Battle After Another

Ryan Coogler - Sinners

Guillermo del Toro - Frankenstein

Jafar Panahi - It Was Just an Accident

Chloe Zhao - Hamnet

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Eddington - Ari Aster

Marty Supreme - Ronald Bronstein and Josh Safdie

Sinners - Ryan Coogler

Sorry, Baby - Eva Victor

Weapons - Zach Cregger

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

Bugonia - Will Tracy

Frankenstein - Guillermo del Toro

Hamnet - Chloé Zhao and Maggie O’Farrell

One Battle After Another - Paul Thomas Anderson

28 Years Later - Alex Garland

BEST ACTOR

Timothée Chalamet - Marty Supreme

Leonardo DiCaprio - One Battle After Another

Ethan Hawke - Blue Moon

Michael B. Jordan - Sinners

Jesse Plemons - Bugonia

BEST ACTRESS

Jessie Buckley - Hamnet

Rose Byrne - If I Had Legs I’d Kick You

Amanda Seyfried - The Testament of Ann Lee

Emma Stone - Bugonia

Eva Victor - Sorry, Baby

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Benicio del Toro - One Battle After Another

Jacob Elordi - Frankenstein

Delroy Lindo - Sinners

Sean Penn - One Battle After Another

Stellan Skarsgard - Sentimental Value

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Odessa A’zion - Marty Supreme

Amy Madigan - Weapons

Wunmi Mosaku - Sinners

Hailee Steinfield - Sinners

Teyana Taylor - One Battle After Another

BEST ENSEMBLE (awarded to casting director)

Black Bag - Carmen Cuba

It Was Just an Accident - Jafar Panahi

Marty Supreme - Jennifer Venditti

One Battle After Another - Cassandra Kulukundis

Sinners - Francine Maisler

BREAKOUT PERFORMER

Odessa A’zion

Miles Caton

Indy the Dog

Chase Infiniti

Jacobi Jupe

BREAKOUT BEHIND-THE-SCENES

Clint Bentley

Harris Dickinson

Scarlett Johansson

James Sweeney

Eva Victor

SIGHT UNSEEN PERFORMANCE

Jason Bateman - Zootopia 2

Oona Chaplin - Avatar: Fire and Ash

Nick Offerman - The Life of ChuckWill Patton - Train Dreams

Alan Tudyk - Superman

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

F1 - Claudio Miranda

Frankenstein - Dan Laustsen

One Battle After Another - Michael Bauman

Sinners - Autumn Durald Arkapaw

Train Dreams - Adolpho Veloso

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

The Fantastic Four: First Steps - Kasra Farahani and Jille Azis

Frankenstein - Tamara Deverell

Sinners - Hannah Beachler and Monique Champagne

28 Years Later - Carson McColl and Gareth Pugh

Wicked: For Good - Nathan Crowley and Lee Sandales

BEST EDITING

F1 - Stephen Mirrione

Marty Supreme - Ronald Bronstein and Josh Safdie

One Battle After Another - Andy Jurgensen

Sinners - Michael P. Shawver

Weapons - Joe Murphy

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

The Fantastic Four: First Steps - Alexandra Byrne

Frankenstein - Kate Hawley

Hedda - Lindsay Pugh

Sinners - Ruth E. Carter

Wicked: For Good - Paul Tazewell

BEST MAKEUP

Frankenstein - Mike Hill, Jordan Samuel, and Cliona Furey

Sinners - Mike Fontaine, Ken Diaz, and Shunika Terry

The Smashing Machine - Kazu Hiro, Felix Fox, and Mia Neal

28 Years Later - Flora Moody and John Nolan

Weapons - Leo Satkovich, Melizah Wheat, and Jason Collins

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

Avatar: Fire and Ash - Joe Letteri, Richard Baneham, Eric Saindon, and Daniel Barrett

F1 - Ryan Tudhope, Keith Alfred Dawson, Nicholas Chevallier, and Robert Harrington

Frankenstein - Dennis Berardi

Sinners - Michael Ralla, Espen Nordahl, Guido Wolter, and Donnie Dean

Superman - Stephane Ceretti, Enrico Damm, Stephane Naze, and Guy Williams

BEST STUNTS

Ballerina - Jackson Spidell and Stephen DunlevyF1 - Gary Powell and Luciano Bacheta

Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning - Wade Eastwood

One Battle After Another - Brian Machleit

Superman - Wayne Dalglish

BEST SOUND

Avatar: Fire and Ash - Gwendolyn Yates Whittle, Brent Burge, Gary Summers, Michael Hedges, Alexis

Feodoroff, and Julian Howarth

F1 - Al Nelson, Gwendolyn Yates Whittle, Gary A. Rizzo, Juan Peralta, and Gareth John

Sinners - Chris Welcker, Benny Burtt, Brandon Proctor, Steve Boeddeker, and Felipe Pacheco

28 Years Later - Johnnie Burn

Warfare - Mitch Low, Glenn Freemantle, Ben Barker, Howard Bargroff, and Richard Spooner

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

Frankenstein - Alexandre Desplat

Hamnet - Max Richter

Marty Supreme - Daniel Lopatin

One Battle After Another - Jonny Greenwood

Sinners - Ludwig Goransson

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

“Clothed by the Sun” - The Testament of Ann Lee

Written by Daniel Blumberg and Mona Fastvold

Performed by David Cale, Lewis Pullman, and Matthew Beard

“Golden” - KPop Demon Hunters

Written by EJAE, Mark Sonnenblick, IDO, 24, and Teddy

Performed by EJAE, AUDREY NUNA, and REI AMI

“Highest 2 Lowest” - Highest 2 Lowest

Written and performed by Aiyana-Lee

“I Lied to You” - Sinners

Written by Raphael Saadiq and Ludwig Goransson

Performed by Miles Caton

“Pale, Pale Moon” - Sinners

Written by Brittany Howard and Ludwig Goransson

Performed by Jayme Lawson

THE IMPACT AWARD

Elizabeth Arnott - programmer of “Sapphopalooza”

Tyler Michael Baletine - programmer of “Life Within the Lens: Juneteenth Edition”

Matthew C. Hoffman - programmer and host at the Pickwick Theatre

Anna Pattinson - Editor in Chief of Cinema Femme magazine

Michael Phillips - former film critic of The Chicago Tribune

ABOUT CHICAGO INDIE CRITICS

Chicago Indie Critics (CIC) is a creative and engaging not-for-profit organization composed of unique, dedicated, and diversified film critics organized by Illinois Indie Critics NFP. Our members are wide-ranging in experiences, backgrounds, tastes, diversities, and target audiences across both print and online platforms and publications. We have organized to share our personal assessments, commentaries, passions, and creativity in a vigilant effort to highlight the greatness and diversity found in both independent and mainstream films. While we originate in the Chicagoland area, the efforts of Chicago Indie Critics are to share, celebrate, and promote the rich artistic medium of film to audiences, fans, and eager minds across the nation and world as an exemplary and upstanding pillar of intelligent print and broadcast journalism.

Directors: Matt Kubinski, John Robinsin, Don Shanahan

Members: Jim Alexander, Victor Aragon, Annie Banks, George Bate, Josh Bate, Noah Berlatsky, Leo Brady, Nicholas Caruso, Michael Cockerill, Mike Crowley, Bonnie DeShong, Tarek Fayoumi, Adam Freed, Everardo Garcia Jr., Cati Glidewell, Ryan Jagiello, April Klein, Marc Kosak, Dave Lane, James Y. Lee, Al Lerner, Linda Lerner, Alex Maidy, Brett Marchant, Kevin McLenithan, Curtis Menke, Mike Osborn, Dan Pal, Adam Patla, Reginald Ponder, Jay Rohr, Jordy Sirkin, Peter Spedale, El’Ahrai Stanek, Andrea Thompson, Kevin Wozniak, Jeff York, Nicholas Zednick

Twitter/X: @CriticsChicago

Instagram: @chicagoindiecritics

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