My Father’s Shadow Leads 2025 British Independent Film Awards Nominations

2025 has only 8 weeks left before 2026 arrives which means awards season is upon us. British Independent Film Awards has announced it’s 2025 nominees with Akinola Davies Jr’s My Father’s Shadow leading the nominations.

Akinola Davies Jr’s impressive debut nominated for 12 awards including Best British film and best debut director. Starring Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù, this is a story of two brothers who first come to understand their father at a pivotal moment in both his life and Nigerian history.

Harry Lighton’s debut feature Pillion is in the running for 10 awards. Kirk Jones’ touching feature chronicling the life of tourettes campaigner John Davison, I Swear, lines up nine nominations. Lynne Ramsay’s Die My Love, a feverish portrait of a woman driven to the edge, collects an impressive eight nominations.

The nominees for BIFA’s inaugural Cinema of the Year were also announced today. Over 130 cinemas entered and over 100,000 audience members nationwide voted. The five nominated cinemas are: Depot Cinema in Lewes, The Magic Lantern Cinema in Tywyn, Wales, Montrose Playhouse in Scotland, Queen’s Film Theatre in Belfast and Watershed in Bristol.

The winners for the 2025 British Independent Film Awards will be announced later this month on 30th November.

BIFA NOMINATIONS 2025
The Richard Harris Award for Outstanding Contribution by an Actor to British Film
TO BE ANNOUNCED

Best British Independent Film
THE BALLAD OF WALLIS ISLAND James Griffiths, Tom Basden, Tim Key, Rupert Majendie
I SWEAR Kirk Jones, Georgia Bayliff, Piers Tempest
MY FATHER’S SHADOW Akinola Davies Jr, Wale Davies, Rachel Dargavel, Funmbi Ogunbanwo
PILLION Harry Lighton, Lee Groombridge, Ed Guiney, Andrew Lowe, Emma Norton
URCHIN Harris Dickinson, Archie Pearch, Scott O’Donnell

Cinema of the Year sponsored by Kia
DEPOT CINEMA
THE MAGIC LANTERN CINEMA
MONTROSE PLAYHOUSE
QUEEN’S FILM THEATRE
WATERSHED

Best Director sponsored by Sky Cinema
LAURA CARREIRA On Falling
AKINOLA DAVIES JR My Father’s Shadow
KIRK JONES I Swear
HARRY LIGHTON Pillion
LYNNE RAMSAY Die My Love

Best Lead Performance
ROBERT ARAMAYO I Swear
FRANK DILLANE Urchin
DAVID JONSSON Wasteman
JENNIFER LAWRENCE Die My Love
HARRY MELLING Pillion
CILLIAN MURPHY Steve

Best Screenplay sponsored by Apple Original Films
TOM BASDEN, TIM KEY The Ballad of Wallis Island
LAURA CARREIRA On Falling
WALE DAVIES My Father’s Shadow
KIRK JONES I Swear
HARRY LIGHTON Pillion

Best Supporting Performance
TOM BLYTH Wasteman
SCOTT ELLIS WATSON I Swear
JAY LYCURGO Steve
PETER MULLAN I Swear
MAXINE PEAKE I Swear
ALEXANDER SKARSGÅRD Pillion

Best Joint Lead Performance
EBADA HASSAN, SAFFIYA INGAR Brides
TIM KEY, TOM BASDEN The Ballad of Wallis Island
ANDREA RISEBOROUGH, BRENDA BLETHYN Dragonfly

Best Ensemble Performance
éWARFARE D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai, Will Poulter, Cosmo Jarvis, Kit Connor, Finn Bennett, Joseph Quinn, Charles Melton

The Douglas Hickox Award (Best Debut Director) sponsored by BBC Film
LAURA CARREIRA On Falling
AKINOLA DAVIES JR My Father’s Shadow
HARRIS DICKINSON Urchin
HARRY LIGHTON Pillion
CAL McMAU Wasteman

Breakthrough Producer sponsored by Pinewood and Shepperton Studios
WYN BAPTISTE Shoot the People
CHARLOTTE KNOWLES Palestine Comedy Club
JOANN KUSHNER LifeHack [also produced by Timur Bekmambetov, Aleksandr Kletzov]
DHIRAJ MAHEY Ish [also produced by Bennett McGhee]
ARCHIE PEARCH Urchin [also produced by Scott O’Donnell]

Breakthrough Performance sponsored by Netflix
SCOTT ELLIS WATSON I Swear
EBADA HASSAN Brides
SAFIYYA INGAR Brides
POSY STERLING Lollipop
CONNOR TOMPKINS The Son and the Sea

Best Debut Screenwriter sponsored by Film4
HUNTER ANDREWS, EOIN DORAN Wasteman
TOM BASDEN, TIM KEY The Ballad of Wallis Island
LAURA CARREIRA On Falling
WALE DAVIES My Father’s Shadow
HARRY LIGHTON Pillion

Best Debut Director – Feature Documentary
MYRID CARTEN A Want in Her
CÉCILE EMBLETON, ALYS TOMLINSON Mother Vera
VICTORIA MAPPLEBECK Motherboard

The Raindance Maverick Award
FOUL EVIL DEEDS Richard Hunter
HOLLOWAY Sophie Compton, Daisy-May Hudson, Stella Heath Keir, Alice Hughes, Polly Creed
MOTHER VERA Cécile Embleton, Alys Tomlinson, Laura Shacham
MOTHERBOARD Victoria Mapplebeck
A WANT IN HER Myrid Carten

Best Feature Documentary sponsored by Intermission Film
ANTIDOTE James Jones, David Moulton
MOTHER VERA Cécile Embleton, Alys Tomlinson, Laura Shacham
MOTHERBOARD Victoria Mapplebeck
THE SHEPHERD AND THE BEAR Max Keegan, Elizabeth Woodward, Amanda McBaine, Jesse Moss
A WANT IN HER Myrid Carten, Tadhg O’Sullivan, Roisín Geraghty, Kat Mansoor

Best British Short Film
FLOCK Mac Nixon, Matt Ashwell, Daley Nixon
MAGID / ZAFAR Luís Hindman, Sufiyaan Salam, Aidan Robert Brooks
A SISYPHEAN TASK Gus Flind-Henry, George Malcher, George Telfer
STOMACH BUG Matty Crawford, Karima Sammout Kanellopoulou
TWO BLACK BOYS IN PARADISE Ben Jackson, Baz Sells, Dean Atta

Best International Independent Film sponsored by Champagne Taittinger
IT WAS JUST AN ACCIDENT Jafar Panahi, Phillippe Martin
SENTIMENTAL VALUE Joachim Trier, Eskil Vogt, Maria Ekerhovd, Andrea Berentsen Ottmar
SIRĀT Oliver Laxe, Santiago Fillol, Domingo Corral, Oriol Maymó, Andrea Queralt, Mani Mortazavi, Xavi Font, Pedro Almodóvar, Agustín Almodóvar, Esther García
SORRY, BABY Eva Victor, Adele Romanski, Mark Ceryak, Barry Jenkins
SOUND OF FALLING Mascha Schilinski, Louise Pete, Maren Schmitt, Lucas Schmidt

Best Casting sponsored by Casting Society & Spotlight
SHAHEEN BAIG Brides
SHAHEEN BAIG Urchin
KHARMEL COCHRANE Warfare
LAUREN EVANS I Swear
ROBERT STERNE Steve

Best Cinematography sponsored by Kodak & Molinare
CHARLOTTE BRUUS CHRISTENSEN H Is for Hawk
JERMAINE EDWARDS My Father’s Shadow
CÉCILE EMBLETON Mother Vera
SEAMUS McGARVEY Die My Love
PIOTR NIEMYJSKI A Pale View of Hills

Best Costume Design
SUSIE COULTHARD 100 Nights of Hero
KIRSTY HALLIDAY Tornado
GRACE SNELL Pillion
SAYAKA TAKAHASHI, MATTHEW PRICE A Pale View of Hills
PC WILLIAMS My Father’s Shadow

Best Editing
RONAN CORRIGAN, ALEKSANDR KLETSOV LifeHack
OMAR GUZMÁN CASTRO My Father’s Shadow
FIN OATES Warfare
SAM RICE-EDWARDS One to One: John & Yoko
GARETH C. SCALES Pillion

Best Effects
Simon Stanley-Clamp, Ryan Conder Warfare
VICTOR TOMI Die My Love
HAYLEY WILLIAMS, CONOR O’SULLIVAN, MARTIN MALMQVIST The Thing With Feathers

Best Music Supervision
PHIL CANNING Wasteman
IAN NEIL, RAIFE BURCHELL Die My Love
BRIDGET SAMUELS Urchin

Best Make-Up & Hair Design
KEHINDE ARE, FEYZO OYEBISI My Father’s Shadow
DIANDRA FERREIRA Pillion
PAUL GOOCH, TRISTAN VERSLUIS Warfare
COLLEEN LABAFF, MIHO SUZUKI Die My Love
NATASHA LAWES 100 Nights of Hero

Best Original Music sponsored by Universal Music Publishing Group
TOM BASDEN, ADEM ILHAN The Ballad of Wallis Island
BOBBY KRLIC Anemone
JED KURZEL Tornado
CJ MIRRA My Father’s Shadow
STEVEN PRICE Ocean With David Attenborough

Best Production Design sponsored by ATC
JENNIFER ANTI, PABLO ANTI My Father’s Shadow
MARK DIGBY Warfare
TIM GRIMES Die My Love
NATHAN PARKER Harvest
SOFIA SACOMANI 100 Nights of Hero

Best Sound sponsored by Bleat
STEVE FANAGAN, STEVIE HAYWOOD Anemone
TIM BURNS, PAUL DAVIES, LINDA FORSÉN, ANDREW STIRK, RON OSIOWY Die My Love
NINA HARTSTONE, JAKE WHITELEE, JENS PETERSEN, MIKE TEHRANI, ROB DAVIDSON Ish
CJ MIRRA, JAMES RIDGWAY, JOE JACKSON, ADELE FLETCHER, PIUS FATOKE My Father’s Shadow
SOUND TEAM Warfare