By George & Josh Bate
The Chicago Indie Critics (CIC) have officially announced the nominees for their 9th annual Windie Awards. Ryan Coogler’s acclaimed vampire drama Sinners led the pack with a stunning 18 nominations, nabbing nods for Best Studio Film, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Ensemble, amongst others. Meanwhile, Paul Thomas Anderson’s timely comedy epic One Battle After Another secured 12 nominations, including one for the film’s star and Chicago native Chase Infiniti.
For those unfamiliar, Chicago Indie Critics (CIC) is a non-for-profit critics group that prioritizes diversity in film criticism. As proud of members of the organization, we join directors Don Shanahan, John Robinsin, and Matt Kubinski alongside 38 voting members to promote film in a passionate, positive, and inclusive manner across our variety of platforms.
The winners of the Windie Awards will be announced during a private event on January 15, 2026, which will be followed by public announcements across social media.
Check out the full list of nominees for the Chicago Indie Critics’ 9th Annual Windie Awards below….
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 Shumaker
The 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 Chuck
Will 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 Dunlevy
F1 – 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
WINDIE AWARD NOMINATIONS BY THE NUMBERS:
18 – Sinners
12 – One Battle After Another
9 – Frankenstein
7 – Marty Supreme
5 – F1, Hamnet, 28 Years Later
4 – It Was Just an Accident, Weapons
3 – Avatar: Fire and Ash, Bugonia, Sorry, Baby, Superman, Train Dreams
2 – The Fantastic Four: First Steps, If I Had Legs I’d Kick You, Kpop Demon Hunters, The Life of Chuck, Sentimental Value, The Testament of Ann Lee, Wicked: For Good, Zootopia 2 1 – Ballerina, Black Bag, Eddington, Elio, Hedda, Highest to Lowest, John Candy: I Like Me, Looney Tunes: The Day the Earth Blew Up, Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, No Other Choice, Orwell: 2 + 2 = 5, The Perfect Neighbor, Predator: Killer of Killers, The Secret Agent, Secret Mall Apartment, Sirât, The Smashing Machine, Warfare, Zodiac Killer Project