British Independent Film Awards

Popped in to the Agency to see Ian Benson. Big smile on his face. He liked 'Terra Firma' (pilot for a sci-fi series) saying it was well written, clean vivid descriptions and a believable world and dialogue - little unsure on the structure/plotting as he is unfamiliar with the TV format (as I am!) so all good. He will be sending it in to Mat at Tiger Aspect. So all good there.

Discussed how the AFI is going and possible future courses of action. So all very useful. After wishing me luck for the BIFAs that night I headed off to meet Julia and the guys.

Down the red carpet flanked by paparazzi flashing away. I guess it was more for Ray Winstone than our entourage!



Champagne reception with lots of familiar faces - Dame Judi Dench, Ray Winstone, Daniel Craig, James Nesbitt, Jason Isaacs, Tilda Swinto, Shane Meadows etc along with the more anonymous and probably more important members of the industry - financiers, producers, UK Film Council, distributors etc. It was a fabulous start to the evening.

Oh the event program had an amazing article re 'What Does Your Daddy Do?' - I have copied it below. Really flattered and delighted that John was so strongly mentioned. It was a real credit to the team. Oh also mentions I am at the American Film Institute!



Then into the formal dinner.







Then into the awards ceremony. Well to cut to the chase we didn't win. The competition was strong and the outcome of no real surprise. The award went to Paddy Considine's 'Dog Altogether' which was produced by Mark Herbert at Warp and funded by EM Media, Film 4 and Scottish Screen and starred Peter Mullan. I think it would be fair to say that we were all disappointed. Oh forgot to mention that before every announcement they played clips of all the competing films, so it was amazing to see an extract of 'What Does Your Daddy Do?' playing in front of such an august gathering - very flattering. We also went on to find out that our short film was shot on the lowest budget and was the most independently produced of the bunch!

Daniel Craig was presented an award by Alberto from Variety - was funny to see a friend being so eloquent in such a situation - good job Alberto.



'Control' did amazingly well, with Anton Corbijn and his cast and crew really catching the eye of the selection committee.



Judi Dench won the best Actress award for her role in 'Notes on a Scandal'



Ray Winstone picked up the the 'Richard Harris' award for his contribution to film. Well deserved and what a great geezer!



Then it was onto the festivities! Was a great opportunity to catch up with some familiar faces, Daniel Jewel, Rory, Katie and Bennet, Joe Oppenheimer, Robert Jones but to mention a few.

So all in all a phenomenal privilege to be a part of such an amazing evening. Better get on and make another film and this time aim to win!!!





Press Release:

Johanna von Fischer and Tessa Collinson, BIFA co-directors say: "A decade ago, the need for an awards ceremony that celebrated British independent film talent was identified. We are now ten years on and BIFA has grown to celebrate the increasingly diverse range of talent out there. This year's winners are no exception to this rule with Anton Corbijn winning the Douglas Hickox award and Judi Dench winning Best Actress."

John Woodward, Chief Executive Officer of the UK Film Council, the major funding partner of the BIFAs says: "This year's nominations and award winners really highlight the outstanding talent working in the UK with beautiful and thought-provoking films made by both established and emerging filmmakers. The BIFAs are a great champion for the British film industry celebrating excellence and originality in independent filmmaking."

BIFA are proud to announce the following winners for this year's Awards:

BEST BRITISH INDEPENDENT FILM
Control

BEST ACTRESS
Sponsored by Mac
Judi Dench - Notes on a Scandal

BEST ACTOR
Viggo Mortensen - Eastern Promises

SPECIAL JURY PRIZE
Sponsored by the UK Film Council
Andi Engel, Pamela Engel and Robert Beeson [Artificial Eye]

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR/ACTRESS
Sponsored by Tiscali
Toby Kebbell - Control

MOST PROMISING NEWCOMER
Sponsored by Diesel
Sam Riley - Control

BEST DIRECTOR
Sponsored by The Creative Partnership
Anton Corbijn - Control

BEST SCREENPLAY
Sponsored by BBC Films
Patrick Marber - Notes on a Scandal

THE DOUGLAS HICKOX AWARD [BEST DEBUT DIRECTOR]
Sponsored by Pathé
Anton Corbijn - Control

BEST DOCUMENTARY
Joe Strummer: The Future Is Unwritten

BEST ACHIEVEMENT IN PRODUCTION
Black Gold

BEST TECHNICAL ACHIEVEMENT
Sponsored by Skillset
Mark Tildesley - Production Design - Sunshine

BEST BRITISH SHORT
Sponsored by Canon
Dog Altogether

BEST FOREIGN INDEPENDENT FEATURE
The Lives of Others

THE RAINDANCE AWARD
Sponsored by Raindance
The Inheritance

THE RICHARD HARRIS AWARD
Sponsored by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, UK
Ray Winstone

THE VARIETY AWARD
Daniel Craig


Elliot Grove, Founder of BIFA and creator of Raindance says:

"BIFA aims to recognise the plethora of new and established talent in the UK film industry. A special heart-felt thanks to the sponsors and filmmakers who have made this 10th edition such a success."

Proud supporters and patrons of BIFA include Tilda Swinton, Ray Winstone, Mike Figgis, Tom Hollander, Adrian Lester, Ken Loach, Ewan McGregor, Samantha Morton, Bill Nighy, Trudie Styler, Meera Syal and Michael Winterbottom.