AceShowbiz -

The list of those competing for the 2008 Spirit Awards has been out. Film Independent as the organization holding the annual event announced Tuesday morning (Nov. 27) the lineup of nominees for the prizes at West Hollywood's Softel Hotel, represented by Lisa Kudrow and Zach Braff.

Squeaking ahead of the pack, currently-showing "I'm Not There" gloriously nabs four nominations plus the inaugural Robert Altman Award, notably that of Best Feature. To win the top honor, however, pic has to compete against "Juno" and "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" which also receive four nods each apart from other contenders of "A Mighty Heart" and "Paranoid Park."

Other categories The Weinstein Company release scores in include Best Director for Todd Haynes, Best Supporting Female for Cate Blanchett, and Best Supporting Male for Marcus Carl Franklin. While Blanchett is facing Jennifer Jason Leigh of "Margot at the Wedding" and Marisa Tomei of "Before the Devil Knows You're Dead" for the title, Franklin gets challenged by "Talk To Me" star Chiwetel Ejiofor as well as "Rescue Dawn" actor Steve Zahn.

Ejiofor's "Talk" co-star Don Cheadle, in the meantime, successfully lands a slot in Best Male Lead nomination alongside Philip Seymour Hoffman and Frank Langella of "The Savages" and "Starting Out in the Evening", respectively. On the opposite side, names like Angelina Jolie, Sienna Miller, Ellen Page, Parker Posey, and Tang Wei are all lined up for the Best Female Lead honor.

Full list of nominees can be reached on the official site for the Film Independent. Award recipients will be unveiled one day before the Oscars on February 23, 2008 in a tent on the Santa Monica beach with the Independent Film Channel to broadcast the moment live and uncensored at 2 PM PT.