NOMINATIONS ANNOUNCED FOR British Independent FILM AWARDS 2020!

9th December 2020

Saint Maud leads with 17 nominations!

His House follows with 16 nominations, Rocks has 15!

Calm With Horses receives 10 nominations, Mogul Mowgli has 7, The Father has 6!

Exciting times the  2020 British Independent Film Awards (BIFAs), were announced this morning by British actors Holliday Grainger and Micheal Ward. The nominations reveal a wealth of new UK filmmaking talent, with a strong showing for first-time filmmakers across the board; they also showcase the diversity of talent working in the UK, with female directors and filmmakers and performers of colour well represented in many categories.

Rose Glass’ sharp and smart psychological horror, a chilling hit with audiences on release in October, is nominated for Best British Independent Film, Best Screenplay sponsored by BBC Film and Best Director, as well as in the debut categories: Breakthrough Producer, Debut Director and Debut Screenwriter sponsored by Film4. Morfydd Clark is nominated for Best Actress and Jennifer Ehle for Supporting Actress. The film also features heavily in the technical categories with nominations for Best Casting sponsored by Casting Society of America & Spotlight, Best Cinematography sponsored by Dirty Looks, Best Costume Design, Best Editing sponsored by Intermission Film, Best Make Up & Hair Design, Best Production Design sponsored by Studio Juice, Best Sound and Best Effects.

Saint Maud will be taking on Remi Weekes’ His House, which has 16 nominations across the Director, Screenplay, debut and technical categories. Weaving the real-life horrors faced by asylum seekers with terrors altogether more supernatural, Weekes’ powerful debut also received nominations in Best Actress and Best Actor for Wunmi Mosaku and Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù.

Rocks, Sarah Gavron and Anu Henrique’s fresh, poignant and genuinely uplifting take on life as a marginalised British teen has 15 nominations, including double nominations for stars Bukky Bakray and Kosar Ali in Best Actress and Supporting Actress and Most Promising Newcomer. D’angleou Osei Kissiedu is nominated for Best Supporting Actor.

Director Nick Rowland and producer Daniel Emmerson’s first feature Calm With Horses has 10 nominations in the debut categories as well as recognition for performers Cosmo Jarvis (Best Actor), Niamh Algar (Best Supporting Actress, Most Promising Newcomer) and Barry Keoghan (Best Supporting Actor) and for casting director Shaheen Baig.

Florian Zeller’s The Father completes the Best British Independent Film line up. The film has six nominations in total, including a first BIFA nomination for Anthony Hopkins for his portrayal of the titular Father, a man struggling – quite literally – with the realities of the changing circumstances ageing brings.

Riz Ahmed has four BIFA nominations this year: as Best Actor, Debut Screenwriter and Best Screenplay for Mogul Mowgli and also for The Long Goodbye, a short film which he wrote and starred in. Riz’s Mogul Mowgli co-star Alyy Khan is also recognised in the Supporting Actor category.

Andrea Riseborough is nominated for Best Actress for her performance as a British aid worker haunted by past choices in Luxor; Clare Dunne is nominated for her performance in Herself, which she also co-wrote.

Debut Director Henry Blake is nominated for County Lines, alongside lead actor Conrad Khan, nominated for Most Promising Newcomer, and supporting actors Ashley Madekwe and Harris Dickinson.

Frankie Box is named a Most Promising Newcomer for her role in Perfect 10. Eva Riley is nominated for Best Debut Director and the film is nominated for The Raindance Discovery Award.

Amongst four nominations for the film, Amir El-Masry is nominated for Best Actor for Limbo. The film centres on four asylum seekers who are staying on a remote island in Scotland, and taking cultural awareness classes, while awaiting the processing of their refugee claims. Director Ben Shamrock has given us a whole other look at the refugee story without losing heart and compassion.

Merab Ninindze is nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in cold war thriller The Courier opposite Benedict Cumberbatch.

The Richard Harris Award, introduced in 2002 in honour of Richard Harris, recognises outstanding contribution to British Film by an actor. Previous winners have been Daniel Day Lewis, Julie Walters, John Hurt, Emma Thompson, Judi Dench and Kristin Scott Thomas in 2019. This year’s recipient will be announced in January.

BIFA NOMINATIONS 2020

Best British Independent Film

CALM WITH HORSES Nick Rowland, Joe Murtagh, Daniel Emmerson

THE FATHER Florian Zeller, Christopher Hampton, David Parfitt, Jean-Louis Livi, Philippe Carcassonne

HIS HOUSE Remi Weekes, Martin Gentles, Edward King, Roy Lee, Aidan Elliott, Arnon Milchan

ROCKS Sarah Gavron, Theresa Ikoko, Claire Wilson, Faye Ward, Ameenah Ayub Allen

SAINT MAUD Rose Glass, Oliver Kassman, Andrea Cornwell

Best Director

SARAH GAVRON Rocks [associate director Anu Henriques]

ROSE GLASS Saint Maud

NICK ROWLAND Calm With Horses

REMI WEEKES His House

FLORIAN ZELLER The Father

Best Screenplay sponsored by BBC Film

ROSE GLASS Saint Maud

THERESA IKOKO, CLAIRE WILSON Rocks

BASSAM TARIQ, RIZ AHMED Mogul Mowgli

REMI WEEKES His House

FLORIAN ZELLER, CHRISTOPHER HAMPTON The Father

 

 

Best Actress

BUKKY BAKRAY Rocks

MORFYDD CLARK Saint Maud

CLARE DUNNE Herself

WUNMI MOSAKU His House

ANDREA RISEBOROUGH Luxor

Best Actor

RIZ AHMED Mogul Mowgli

ṢỌPẸ́ DÌRÍSÙ His House

AMIR EL-MASRY Limbo

ANTHONY HOPKINS The Father

COSMO JARVIS Calm With Horses

Best Supporting Actress

NIAMH ALGAR Calm With Horses

KOSAR ALI Rocks

JENNIFER EHLE Saint Maud

ASHLEY MADEKWE County Lines

FIONA SHAW Kindred

Best Supporting Actor

HARRIS DICKINSON County Lines

BARRY KEOGHAN Calm With Horses

ALYY KHAN Mogul Mowgli

MERAB NINIDZE The Courier

D’ANGELOU OSEI KISSIEDU Rocks

The Douglas Hickox Award (Debut Director) sponsored by Kodak & Pinewood

HENRY BLAKE County Lines

ROSE GLASS Saint Maud

EVA RILEY Perfect 10

NICK ROWLAND Calm With Horses

REMI WEEKES His House

Breakthrough Producer

DOUGLAS COX Host [also produced by Emily Gotto, Samuel Zimmerman]

DANIEL EMMERSON Calm With Horses

IRUNE GURTUBAI Limbo [also produced by Angus Lamont]

OLIVER KASSMAN Saint Maud [also produced by Andrea Cornwell]

EDWARD KING, MARTIN GENTLES His House[also produced by Aidan Elliott, Roy Lee, Arnon Milchan]

Debut Screenwriter sponsored by Film4

RIZ AHMED Mogul Mowgli [also written by Bassam Tariq]

ROSE GLASS Saint Maud

THERESA IKOKO, CLAIRE WILSON Rocks

JOE MURTAGH Calm With Horses

REMI WEEKES His House

 

Most Promising Newcomer

NIAMH ALGAR Calm With Horses

KOSAR ALI Rocks

BUKKY BAKRAY Rocks

FRANKIE BOX Perfect 10

CONRAD KHAN County Lines

Best Documentary

THE AUSTRALIAN DREAM Daniel Gordon, Stan Grant, Sarah Thomson, Nick Batzias, Virginia Whitwell, John Battsek

BEING A HUMAN PERSON Fred Scott, Mike Brett, Steve Jamison, Jo-Jo Ellison

THE REASON I JUMP Jerry Rothwell, Jeremy Dear, Stevie Lee, Al Morrow

RISING PHOENIX Ian Bonhôte, Peter Ettedgui, Greg Nugent, John Battsek, Tatyana McFadden

WHITE RIOT Rubika Shah, Ed Gibbs

The Raindance Discovery Award

JUSTINE Jamie Patterson, Jeff Murphy, Jason Rush, Sarah Drew, Julius Beltrame

LOOTED Rene van Pannevis, Kefi Chadwick, Jennifer Eriksson, Jessie Mangum

ONE MAN AND HIS SHOES Yemi Bamiro, Will Thorne

PERFECT 10 Eva Riley, Jacob Thomas, Bertrand Faivre, Valentina Brazzini

ROSE: A LOVE STORY Jennifer Sheridan, April Kelley, Sara Huxley, Matt Stokoe, Rob Taylor, Sophie Rundle

 

Best British Short Film supported by BFI NETWORK

FILIPIÑANA Rafael Manuel, Naomi Pacifique

THE FORGOTTEN C Molly Manning Walker, Jessi Gutch

THE LONG GOODBYE Aneil Karia, Riz Ahmed, Tom Gardner

MANDEM John Ogunmuyiwa, Emily Everdee

SUDDEN LIGHT Sophie Littman, Tom Wood

Best International Independent Film sponsored by Champagne Taittinger

BABYTEETH Shannon Murphy, Rita Kalnejais, Alex White

LES MISÉRABLES Ladj Ly, Giordano Gederlini, Alexis Manenti, Toufik Ayadi, Christophe Barral

NEVER RARELY SOMETIMES ALWAYS Eliza Hittman, Adele Romanski, Sara Murphy

NOMADLAND Chloé Zhao, Frances McDormand, Peter Spears, Mollye Asher, Dan Janvey

NOTTURNO Gianfranco Rosi, Donatella Palermo, Paolo Del Brocco, Serge Lalou, Camille Laemlé, Orwa Nyrabia, Eva-Maria Weerts

 

Best Cinematography sponsored by Dirty Looks

NICK COOKE Limbo

BEN FORDESMAN Saint Maud

HÉLÈNE LOUVART Rocks

ANNIKA SUMMERSON Mogul Mowgli

JO WILLEMS His House

Best Costume Design


MICHELE CLAPTON The Secret Garden

RUKA JOHNSON Rocks

TINA KALIVAS Saint Maud

MICHAEL O’CONNOR Ammonite

CHARLOTTE WALTER Misbehaviour

Best Editing sponsored by Intermission Film


JULIA BLOCH His House

YORGOS LAMPRINOS The Father

MAYA MAFFIOLI Rocks

BRENNA RANGOTT Host

MARK TOWNS Saint Maud

 

Best Effects


AGNES ASPLUND, MARTIN MALMQVIST Undergods

SCOTT MACINTYRE, BARIŞ KARELI, KRISTYAN MALLETT Saint Maud

PEDRO SABROSA, STEFANO PEPIN His House

Best Make Up & Hair Design

JACQUETTA LEVON Saint Maud

SHARON A MARTIN His House

IVANA PRIMORAC Ammonite

NORA ROBERTSON Rocks

JILL SWEENEY Misbehaviour

Best Music sponsored by Universal Music Publishing Group


ROQUE BAÑOS His House

PAUL CORLEY Mogul Mowgli

NAINITA DESAI The Reason I Jump

CONNIE FARR, EMILIE LEVIENAISE-FARROUCH Rocks

ADAM JANOTA BZOWSKI Saint Maud

Best Production Design sponsored by Studio Juice

JACQUELINE ABRAHAMS His House

CRISTINA CASALI Misbehaviour

PETER FRANCIS The Father

MARKETA KORINKOVA, ELO SOODE Undergods

PAULINA RZESZOWSKA Saint Maud

Best Sound supported by Halo Post

ADRIAN BELL, GLENN FREEMANTLE, FRANK KRUSE, BRENDAN NICHOLSON, RICHARD PRYKE His House

PAUL DAVIES Saint Maud

PAUL DAVIES, ROBERT FARR, NIGEL ALBERMANICHE, IAN MORGAN Mogul Mowgli

NICK RYAN, BEN BAIRD, SARA DE OLIVEIRA LIMA The Reason I Jump

CALUM SAMPLE Host

 

RIZ AHMED BARES ALL IN ‘MOGUL MOWGLI’!

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