Netflix’s acclaimed family drama Marriage Story received an early boost in the race for the Oscars as it won four prizes at the Gotham Awards.
The film won the main prize on the night, best feature, while star Adam Driver was named best actor.
Awkwafina took home best actress for her lead performance in bittersweet drama The Farewell.
Round of applause and congratulations to the winner of BEST FEATURE at the 2019 IFP #GothamAwards, MARRIAGE STORY. pic.twitter.com/PP7CtJmuUY
— IFP (@ifpfilm) December 3, 2019
The Gotham Awards, hosted by the Independent Filmmakers Project (IFP), are seen as a reliable indicator of Oscars success.
Previous best feature winners, including Moonlight in 2016 and Call Me By Your Name in 2017, have gone on to be major Academy Awards contenders.
Marriage Story’s four wins – director Noah Baumbach took home the prize for best screenplay while the film also won the IFP’s audience award – will cement its status as being among the early Oscars favourites.
The crime drama Uncut Gems starring Adam Sandler and acclaimed film The Last Black Man In San Francisco both had three nominations but left empty-handed during Monday’s ceremony in New York City.
Awkwafina, widely known as a comic actor whose previous films include Ocean’s 8 and Crazy Rich Asians, accepted her Gotham Award by joking: “I never won anything. I can’t even win an argument in the Instagram comments.”
Continuing an impressive night for Netflix, its drama When They See Us won best breakthrough series (long format) in the TV categories, beating HBO’s Chernobyl.
PEN15 won in the short format category.
American Factory won best documentary while The Mustang’s Laure De Clermont-Tonnerre won breakthrough director.
Taylor Russell was named breakthrough actor for his role in Waves.