The Gotham Film & Media Institute said the 31st annual Gotham Awards take place Monday, November 29.
The event at Cipriani Wall Street returns the show to its longtime place at the start of awards season, though this year is apt to still show plenty of marks from Covid-19. In announcing the date and eligibility guidelines, organizers did not offer details about the number of in-person attendees or any other logistics, promising more information down the line.
Films released March 1 through Dec. 31 of 2021 and television series released Oct. 1, 2020, through September 30, 2021 will be eligible. Deadline for submissions is Sept. 15, 2021, with nominations announced on Oct. 21.
The Gotham, known as IFP until a rebrand last year, is led by executive director Jeffrey Sharp. While it is known for the awards, which generate significant revenue for the organization, the institute works year-round to offer resources to filmmakers. Its programs include Gotham Week, Gotham Labs, Filmmaker Magazine, the Gotham Awards, and Gotham EDU.
In 2020, the Gotham Awards named Nomadland as Best Feature, and the eventual Oscar winner for Best Picture also captured the audience award. The ceremony was entirely virtual due to ongoing concerns about travel and in-person events due to the coronavirus pandemic. New York earlier this month reached the key 70% threshold of vaccinations and the city’s Covid-19 positivity rate is below 1%. The just-concluded Tribeca Festival was the first major North American festival to host in-person events, and another milestone in late summer will be the start of Broadway’s reopening.
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Because of the traditional timing of the Gothams in late-November, at the start of awards season and after the buzz from the fall festivals, it is seen as an important early-stage event. This year, if virus trends hold, it could also have greater-than-usual appeal for awards campaigners and participants as a splash of normal industry life resuming.