2021 Film Independent Spirit Awards Postponed Until April

(Tommaso Boddi/Getty Images)

The Film Independent Spirit Awards are taking a cue from other awards shows and pushing back their festivities. ET can confirm the 2021 Film Independent Spirit Awards have been postponed to April 24, and will take place, as they traditionally do, the day before the Oscars.

Josh Welsh, president of Film Independent, said in a statement to ET on Tuesday that this year's ceremony will extend the time frame for awards consideration.

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"We will recognize films that were released between January 1, 2020 and February 28, 2021," Welsh explained, "in acknowledgement of the unique challenges the world of cinema, and the world as a whole, is currently experiencing."

The news comes one day after the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the 93rd Annual Oscars will be postponed until April 25.

As such, the eligibility window has also been extended beyond the traditional Dec. 31 deadline to Feb. 28, 2021, and Oscar nominations will be announced March 15.

Meanwhile, Lorenzo Soria, president of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, released a statement Monday responding to other awards show postponements.

"The HFPA and our partners at NBC and Dick Clark Productions are monitoring the situation closely," Soria's statement shared. "We will make the final determination regarding the timing of the 2021 Golden Globe ceremony and telecast in consultation with public health officials and proper authorities and as more information becomes available."

"We are examining every option in order to find a solution that will serve the interests of the film and television creative community and the industry during this time," he concluded.

As for the Oscars, the postponement news comes after a number of significant changes were announced by the Academy this year. To accommodate modified release plans due to the ongoing pandemic, it announced that streaming films with a previously planned theatrical run would be eligible "for this awards year only."

Additionally, after global protests against systemic racism and a call for greater diversity across the industry, the Academy announced new "equity and inclusion" measures, including an expanded Best Picture category guaranteeing 10 films and more representation and inclusion standards ahead of the 2022 Oscars.

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