2019 British Independent Film Awards For Sama & The Personal History of David Copperfield Win Big
Documentary For Sama was named Best British Independent Film 2019 at the 22nd BIFA ceremony.
The film, an intimate and scarring portrait of a young mother’s experience of the Syrian civil war, won Best British Independent Film, Best Director and Best Documentary. The three awards announced this evening were added to the previously announced win for Best Editing sponsored by Intermission Film.
The Personal History of David Copperfield won two awards on the night: Best Supporting Actor for Hugh Laurie, who plays Mr Dick in Armando Iannucci’s adaptation of the Dickens classic, and Best Screenplay for writers Armando Iannucci and Simon Blackwell. Previously announced had been the film’s awards for Best Casting, Best Costume Design, and Best Production Design.
Josh O’Connor’s portrayal of lovesick romantic Jake in Harry Wootliff’s debut feature Only You won him the Best Actor award – his second after 2017’s win for his role in Francis Lee’s Yorkshire-set love story God’s Own Country. The film’s director Harry Wootliff was named Best Debut Director
Renée Zellweger won Best Actress for her performance as Judy Garland in Rupert Goold’s critically-acclaimed biopic, Judy. The film had also previously won Best Make Up & Hair Design .
Sam Adewunmi was named Most Promising Newcomer for his first significant performance in a British feature film, Shola Amoo’s The Last Tree. In the film he plays Femi, a British boy of Nigerian heritage struggling to adjust to a new life in London. His co-star Ruthxjiah Bellenea received the award for Best Supporting Actress.
Writer Emma Jane Unsworth won the award for Debut Screenwriter sponsored by Film4 for her big-screen adaptation of her second novel, Animals, which stars Holliday Grainger and Alia Shawkat as a pair of hedonistic, hard-partying best friends whose lives begin to change as they enter their 30s.
Producers Kate Byers and Linn Waite won the Breakthrough Producer award for their film Bait. Written and directed by Cornish filmmaker Mark Jenkin, Bait follows Martin, a fisherman without a boat struggling to survive in a changing economy. The film is set in the modern-day but was shot on hand-processed, black and white film stock on a hand-cranked ’80s Bolex camera, with all sound added in post-production.
The Raindance Discovery Award went to Children of the Snow Land. This remarkable documentary tells the stories of children born in the high Himalayas of Nepal who spend over 10 years in schools away from their parents before making the long and dangerous trek back home.
The award for Best British Short Film supported by BFI NETWORK, was presented to Dekel Berenson’s Anna.
The only category of the night open to non-UK films, Best International Independent Film sponsored by Champagne Taittinger, was won by Bong Joon Ho’s Parasite. The legendary South Korean filmmaker’s latest film is a dark comedy about an unemployed, unmotivated patriarch and his equally unambitious family who catch a lucky break when they become entangled with a wealthy household.
The Special Jury Prize was presented to Amanda Nevill CBE. Nevill is the outgoing CEO of the British Film Institute (BFI) and has been praised for transforming the organisation and the wider film industry with initiatives designed to support a vibrant national film culture across all sectors, from production to distribution. The jury praised her openness, deep personal involvement in her work and determination to involve filmmakers in all aspects of the BFI’s strategies and activities during her tenure.
As previously announced, Kristin Scott Thomas was presented with the 2019 Richard Harris Award for Outstanding Contribution by an Actor to British Film.
Other previously announced Craft awards were Best Effects for A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon, Best Music sponsored by Universal Music Publishing Group for Wild Rose and Best Cinematography and Best Sound supported by Halo Post for Beats.
BIFA NOMINATIONS & WINNERS 2019
The Richard Harris Award for Outstanding Contribution by an Actor to British Film
KRISTIN SCOTT THOMAS
Special Jury Prize
AMANDA NEVILL
Best British Independent Film
BAIT Mark Jenkin, Kate Byers, Linn Waite
* FOR SAMA Waad al-Kateab, Edward Watts
THE PERSONAL HISTORY OF DAVID COPPERFIELD Armando Iannucci, Simon Blackwell, Kevin Loader
THE SOUVENIR Joanna Hogg, Luke Schiller
WILD ROSE Tom Harper, Nicole Taylor, Faye Ward
Best Director sponsored by Broadsword Event House
* WAAD AL-KATEAB, EDWARD WATTS For Sama
OLIVER HERMANUS Moffie
JOANNA HOGG The Souvenir
MARK JENKIN Bait
ASIF KAPADIA Diego Maradona
Best Screenplay sponsored by BBC Films
JOANNA HOGG The Souvenir
* ARMANDO IANNUCCI, SIMON BLACKWELL The Personal History of David Copperfield
PAUL LAVERTY Sorry We Missed You
PETER STRICKLAND In Fabric
NICOLE TAYLOR Wild Rose
Best Documentary
COUP 53 Taghi Amirani, Walter Murch, Paul Zaentz
DIEGO MARADONA Asif Kapadia, James Gay-Rees, Paul Martin
* FOR SAMA Waad al-Kateab, Edward Watts
SEAHORSE Jeanie Finlay, Andrea Cornwell
TELL ME WHO I AM Ed Perkins, Simon Chinn
Best Actress
JESSIE BUCKLEY Wild Rose
HOLLIDAY GRAINGER Animals
SALLY HAWKINS Eternal Beauty
VICKY KNIGHT Dirty God
* RENÉE ZELLWEGER Judy
Best Actor
SAM ADEWUNMI The Last Tree
TOM BURKE The Souvenir
KRIS HITCHEN Sorry We Missed You
* JOSH O’CONNOR Only You
DEV PATEL The Personal History of David Copperfield
Best Supporting Actress
JESSICA BARDEN Scarborough
*RUTHXJIAH BELLENEA The Last Tree
ELIZABETH DEBICKI Vita & Virginia
TILDA SWINTON The Personal History of David Copperfield
JULIE WALTERS Wild Rose
Best Supporting Actor
CHIWETEL EJIOFOR The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind
* HUGH LAURIE The Personal History of David Copperfield
EDILSON MANUEL OLBERA NUÑEZ Yuli – The Carlos Acosta Story
PETER MULLAN The Vanishing
BLUEY ROBINSON Dirty God
Most Promising Newcomer
* SAM ADEWUNMI The Last Tree
VICKY KNIGHT Dirty God
LORN MACDONALD Beats
ROXANNE SCRIMSHAW Lynn + Lucy
HONOR SWINTON BYRNE The Souvenir
The Douglas Hickox Award (Debut Director) sponsored by Kodak & Pinewood
WILL BECHER, RICHARD PHELAN A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon
FYZAL BOULIFA Lynn + Lucy
NINIAN DOFF Boyz in the Wood
CHIWETEL EJIOFOR The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind
* HARRY WOOTLIFF Only You
Debut Screenwriter sponsored by Film4
KIERAN HURLEY Beats
LISA OWENS Days of the Bagnold Summer
NICOLE TAYLOR Wild Rose
* EMMA JANE UNSWORTH Animals
HARRY WOOTLIFF Only You
Breakthrough Producer
FINN BRUCE Tucked
* KATE BYERS, LINN WAITE Bait
JOY GHARORO-AKPOJOTOR Blue Story [also produced by Damian Jones]
BECKY READ Three Identical Strangers [also produced by Grace Hughes-Hallett]
JACK SIDEY Moffie [also produced by Eric Abraham]
The Raindance Discovery Award
A BUMP ALONG THE WAY Shelly Love, Tess McGowan, Louise Gallagher
* CHILDREN OF THE SNOW LAND Zara Balfour, Marcus Stephenson, Mark Hakansson
HERE FOR LIFE Andrea Luka Zimmerman, Adrian Jackson, James Lingwood, Michael Morris, Cressida Day
MUSCLE Gerard Johnson, Matthew James Wilkinson, Richard Wylie, Ed Barratt
THE STREET Zed Nelson
Best Casting sponsored by Casting Society of America & Spotlight
SHAHEEN BAIG In Fabric
SHAHEEN BAIG, AISHA BYWATERS The Last Tree
KAHLEEN CRAWFORD, CAROLINE STEWART Only You
KAHLEEN CRAWFORD Wild Rose
* SARAH CROWE The Personal History of David Copperfield
Best Cinematography
OLE BRATT BIRKELAND Judy
* BENJAMIN KRACUN Beats
ZAC NICHOLSON The Personal History of David Copperfield
JAMIE D RAMSAY Moffie
ARI WEGNER In Fabric
Best Costume Design
* SUZIE HARMAN, ROBERT WORLEY The Personal History of David Copperfield
ANNA MARY SCOTT ROBBINS Wild Rose
GRACE SNELL The Souvenir
JANY TEMIME Judy
JO THOMPSON In Fabric
Best Editing sponsored by Intermission Film
MICK AUDSLEY, PETER LAMBERT The Personal History of David Copperfield
MARK JENKIN Bait
CHRIS KING Diego Maradona
* CHLOE LAMBOURNE, SIMON McMAHON For Sama
HELLE LE FEVRE The Souvenir
Best Effects
*HOWARD JONES A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon
PAUL MANN In Fabric
ANDY QUINN The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind
Best Make-Up & Hair Design sponsored by MAC Cosmetics
MORTEN JACOBSEN, ROGIER SAMUELS, LINDELOTTE VAN DER MEER Dirty God
KAREN HARTLEY-THOMAS The Personal History of David Copperfield
EMMA SCOTT In Fabric
JODY WILLIAMS Wild Rose
*JEREMY WOODHEAD Judy
Best Music sponsored by Universal Music Publishing Group
*JACK ARNOLD Wild Rose
CAVERN OF ANTI-MATTER In Fabric
NAINITA DESAI For Sama
ANTONIO PINTO Diego Maradona
JD TWITCH, PENELOPE TRAPPES, STEPHEN HINDMAN Beats
Best Production Design sponsored by Studio Juice
*CRISTINA CASALI The Personal History of David Copperfield
STÉPHANE COLLONGE The Souvenir
KAVE QUINN Judy
ANNE SEIBEL The White Crow
PAKI SMITH In Fabric
Best Sound supported by Halo Post
ANNA MY BERTMARK, JONATHAN SEALE, JULES WOODS Gwen
*DAVID BOWTLE-McMILLAN, JOAKIM SUNDSTRÖM, ROBERT FARR Beats
STEPHEN GRIFFITHS, TIM CAVAGIN, MAX WALSH, ANDY SHELLEY Diego Maradona
LEE WALPOLE, COLIN NICHOLSON, STUART HILLIKER Wild Rose
MARTIN PAVEY, ROB ENTWISTLE In Fabric
Best British Short Film supported by BFI NETWORK
*ANNA Dekel Berenson, Merlin Merton, Olga Beskhmelnitsyna
BOILING POINT Philip Barantini, Bart Ruspoli, James Cummings, Gabriella Callea, Grace Nelder
THE DEVIL’S HARMONY Dylan Holmes Williams, Jess O’Kane, Nathan Craig
GOLDFISH Hector Dockrill, Laura Dockrill, Benedict Turnbull, Harri Kamalanathan
SERIOUS TINGZ Abdou Cissé, Kieran Kenlock, Matt Ellingham
Best International Independent Film sponsored by Champagne Taittinger
ASH IS PUREST WHITE Jia Zhang-Ke, Shôzô Ichiyama
MARRIAGE STORY Noah Baumbach, David Heyman
MONOS Alejandro Landes, Alexis Dos Santos, Fernando Epstein, Cristina Landes, Santiago A Zapata
*PARASITE Bong Joon-ho, Jan Young-Hwan, Moon Yang-kwon, Sin-ae Kwak, Han Jin Won
PORTRAIT OF A LADY ON FIRE Céline Sciamma, Véronique Cayla, Bénédicte Couvreur
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