Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life and Mike Mills’ Beginners shared the best feature award at Monday night’s 21st Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards. Other nominees for Best Feature were nominees were The Descendants, Meek’s Cutoff and Take Shelter. Girlfriend won the audience award and Dee Rees was named breakthrough director for Pariah. Mike Mills’ Beginners took best ensemble performance, and the prize for Best Film Not Seen In A Theater Near You went to Scenes of A Crime. Those filmmakers win a week’s run at Cinema Village in New York City. The win by Beginners was a big surprise as the movie bested the higher profile The Descendants, Jeff Nichols’ Take Shelter and Martha Marcy May Marlene. Best documentary was Better This World. Breakthrough Actor Award went to Felicity Jones for Like Crazy. Event took place at Cipriani on Wall Street.
Complete list of winners:
Best Feature / Tie
BEGINNERS
Directed by Mike Mills
Produced by Leslie Urdang, Dean Vanech, Miranda de Pencier, Jay Van Hoy, Lars Knudsen
Released by Focus Features
TREE OF LIFE
Directed by Terrence Malick
Produced by Sarah Green, Bill Pohlad, Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner, Grant Hill
Released by Fox Searchlight
The Best Feature Jury included: Anne Carey, Jodie Foster, Nicole Kidman, Lee Percy, and Natalie Portman
Best Documentary
BETTER THIS WORLD
Directed and produced by Katie Galloway and Kelly Duane de la Vega
Produced by Mike Nicholson
The Best Documentary Jury included: Jonathan Caouette, Keiko Deguchi, Rachel Grady, Chris Hegedus and Stanley Nelson 

Breakthrough Director Award
DEE REES
Writer and director of PARIAH Released by Focus Features
The Breakthrough Director Jury included: Ellen Kuras, Anthony Mackie, John Cameron Mitchell, Mike S. Ryan, Mira Sorvino Breakthrough Actor Award presented by actors Stanley Tucci and Melissa Leo.

Breakthrough Actor
FELICITY JONES Actor in Like Crazy Released by Paramount Vantage The Breakthrough Actor Jury included: Chris Eyre, Melissa Leo, Anne Rosellini, Ira Sachsand Jeffrey Wright

Best Ensemble Performance Award
Ewan McGregor, Christopher Plummer, Melanie Laurent, Goran Visnjic, Kai Lennox,Mary Page Keller, Keegan Boos in BEGINNERS
Released by Focus FeaturesThe Best Ensemble Performance Jury included: Lena Dunham, Ryan Fleck, Peter Hedges,Philip Seymour Hoffman and Emily Watson.

Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You Award
SCENES OF A CRIME Blue Hadaegh & Grover Babcock, Directors and Producers
The recipient of The Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You™ award wasdetermined by the editors of Filmmaker magazine, a publication of IFP, and a curator from The Museum of Modern Art.

Gotham Independent Film Audience Award
GIRLFRIEND
Justin Lerner, DirectorProduced by Jerad Anderson, Kristina Lauren Anderson, Justin Lerner, Shaun O’Banion
The Audience Award was voted online by Filmgoers who love movies.

Euphoria Calvin Klein Spotlight on Women Filmmakers ‘Live the Dream’ grant
LUCY MULLOY for upcoming film UNA NOCHE
The euphoria  Spotlight on Women Filmmakers’ ‘Live the Dream’ grant jury included: Zoe Cassavetes, Katherine Dieckmann, Judy Greer and Jon Kilik.