Ryan Gosling has been nominated in the best actor category for the upcoming Independent Spirit Awards.
In what is the official beginning of the 2012 award season, the actor got a nod for his role in the critically acclaimed movie Drive.
The film received multiple nominations including for best feature, best director and best supporting male.
Woody Harrelson also received a best actor nod for his role in Rampart and he will face off against Demin Bichir, Michael Shannon and Jean Dujardin in the same category.
Michelle Williams is already being seen as an early Oscar favourite and was nominated in the best actress category for her role in My Week With Marilyn, where she plays 50s icon Marilyn Monroe struggling on the set of the British movie The Prince and the Showgirl.
Other nominees vying for the top prize include Lauren Ambrose in Think of Me, Rachel Harris in Natural Selection, Adepero Oduye in Pariah and Elizabeth Olsen in Martha Marcy May Marlene.
Other films including, The Artist, Take Shelter and 50/50, were also top nominees for the award ceremony that will be held on February 25 next year.
"The Film Independent Spirit Awards recognise the finest artistic achievements across the broad spectrum of independent filmmaking from emerging talent working on a shoestring budget to established auteurs," Film Independent Senior Director Sean McManus said in a statement.
Nominees for the 2012 Independent Spirit Awards:
Best Feature:
50/50
Beginners
Drive
Take Shelter
The Artist
The Descendants
Best Director:
Michel Hazanavicius - The Artist
Mike Mills - Beginners
Jeff Nichols - Take Shelter
Alexander Payne - The Descendants
Nicolas Winding Refn - Drive
Best Screenplay:
Joseph Cedar - Footnote
Michel Hazanavicius - The Artist
Tom McCarthy - Win Win
Mike Mills - Beginners
Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon, Jim Rash - The Descendants
Best First Feature:
Mike Cahill - Another Earth
Patrick Wang - In the Family
J.C. Chandor - Margin Call
Sean Durkin - Martha Marcy May Marlene
Robbie Pickering - Natural Selection
Best First Screenplay:
Mike Cahill, Brit Marling - Another Earth
J.C. Chandor - Margin Call
Patrick deWitt - Terri
Phil Johnston - Cedar Rapids
Will Reiser - 50/50
John Cassavetes Award - Given to the best feature made for under $500,000:
Bellflower
Circumstance
Hello Lonesome
Pariah
The Dynamiter
Best Female Lead:
Lauren Ambrose - Think of Me
Rachael Harris - Natural Selection
Adepero Oduye - Pariah
Elizabeth Olsen - Martha Marcy May Marlene
Michelle Williams - My Week with Marilyn
Best Male Lead:
Demin Bichir - A Better Life
Jean Dujardin - The Artist
Ryan Gosling - Drive
Woody Harrelson - Rampart
Michael Shannon - Take Shelter
Best Supporting Female:
Jessica Chastain - Take Shelter
Anjelica Huston 50/50
Janet McTeer - Albert Nobbs
Harmony Santana - Gun Hill Road
Shailene Woodley - The Descendants
Best Supporting Male:
Albert Brooks - Drive
John Hawkes - Martha Marcy May Marlene
Christopher Plummer - Beginners
John C. Reilly - Cedar Rapids
Corey Stoll - Midnight in Paris
Best Cinematography:
Joel Hodge - Bellflower
Benjamin Kasulke - The Off Hours
Darius Khondji - Midnight in Paris
Guillaume Schiffman - The Artist
Jeffrey Waldron - The Dynamiter
Best Documentary:
An African Election
Bill Cunningham New York
The Interrupters
The Redemption of General Butt Naked
We Were Here
Best International Film:
A Separation (Iran)
Melancholia (Denmark/Sweden/France/Germany)
Shame (UK)
The Kid With a Bike (Belgium/France/Italy)
Tyrannosaur (UK)