BAFTA 2012 Nominations Announced

 

This morning's BAFTA press release has now arrived the final nominations have been announced. Unsurprisingly it is The Artist in the lead with 12 nominations, closely followed by Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy with 11. Martin Scorcese film Hugo has nine nominations, My Week with Marilyn has six and The Help and War Horse each have five.

Sadly Best Actress longlist nominee Olivia Colman has not made the final cut but first-time Director Paddy Considine has been nominated in the OUTSTANDING DEBUT BY A BRITISH WRITER, DIRECTOR OR PRODUCER category alongside Ralph Fiennes, Joe Cornish and Richard Ayoade. King of the award season so far, George Clooney, has some serious competition in the Best Actor category against Gary Oldman, Jean Dujardin and Michael Fassbender. And who will win the Best Actress category is anyone's guess with the final nominations including Bérénice Bejo, Meryl Streep, Michelle Williams, Tilda Swinton and Viola Davis.

Here are the nominations in full:

BEST FILM

THE ARTIST Thomas Langmann
THE DESCENDANTS Jim Burke, Alexander Payne, Jim Taylor
DRIVE Marc Platt, Adam Siegel
THE HELP Brunson Green, Chris Columbus, Michael Barnathan
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Robyn Slovo

OUTSTANDING BRITISH FILM

MY WEEK WITH MARILYN Simon Curtis, David Parfitt, Harvey Weinstein, Adrian Hodges
SENNA Asif Kapadia, James Gay-Rees, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Manish Pandey
SHAME Steve McQueen, Iain Canning, Emile Sherman, Abi Morgan
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY Tomas Alfredson, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Robyn
Slovo, Bridget O'Connor, Peter Straughan
WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN Lynne Ramsay, Luc Roeg, Jennifer Fox, Robert Salerno,
Rory Stewart Kinnear

OUTSTANDING DEBUT BY A BRITISH WRITER, DIRECTOR OR PRODUCER

ATTACK THE BLOCK Joe Cornish (Director/Writer)
BLACK POND Will Sharpe (Director/Writer), Tom Kingsley (Director), Sarah Brocklehurst (Producer)
CORIOLANUS Ralph Fiennes (Director)
SUBMARINE Richard Ayoade (Director/Writer)
TYRANNOSAUR Paddy Considine (Director), Diarmid Scrimshaw (Producer)

FILM NOT IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE

INCENDIES Denis Villeneuve, Luc Déry, Kim McGraw
PINA Wim Wenders, Gian-Piero Ringel
POTICHE François Ozon, Eric Altmayer, Nicolas Altmayer
A SEPARATION Asghar Farhadi
THE SKIN I LIVE IN Pedro Almodóvar, Agustin Almodóvar

DOCUMENTARY

GEORGE HARRISON: LIVING IN THE MATERIAL WORLD Martin Scorsese
PROJECT NIM James Marsh, Simon Chinn
SENNA Asif Kapadia

ANIMATED FILM

THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN: THE SECRET OF THE UNICORN Steven Spielberg
ARTHUR CHRISTMAS Sarah Smith
RANGO Gore Verbinski

DIRECTOR

THE ARTIST Michel Hazanavicius
DRIVE Nicolas Winding Refn
HUGO Martin Scorsese
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY Tomas Alfredson
WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN Lynne Ramsay

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

THE ARTIST Michel Hazanavicius
BRIDESMAIDS Annie Mumolo, Kristen Wiig
THE GUARD John Michael McDonagh
THE IRON LADY Abi Morgan
MIDNIGHT IN PARIS Woody Allen

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

THE DESCENDANTS Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon, Jim Rash
THE HELP Tate Taylor
THE IDES OF MARCH George Clooney, Grant Heslov, Beau Willimon
MONEYBALL Steven Zaillian, Aaron Sorkin
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY Bridget O'Connor, Peter Straughan

LEADING ACTOR

BRAD PITT Moneyball
GARY OLDMAN Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
GEORGE CLOONEY The Descendants
JEAN DUJARDIN The Artist
MICHAEL FASSBENDER Shame

LEADING ACTRESS

BÉRÉNICE BEJO The Artist
MERYL STREEP The Iron Lady
MICHELLE WILLIAMS My Week with Marilyn
TILDA SWINTON We Need to Talk About Kevin
VIOLA DAVIS The Help

SUPPORTING ACTOR

CHRISTOPHER PLUMMER Beginners
JIM BROADBENT The Iron Lady
JONAH HILL Moneyball
KENNETH BRANAGH My Week with Marilyn
PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN The Ides of March

SUPPORTING ACTRESS

CAREY MULLIGAN Drive
JESSICA CHASTAIN The Help
JUDI DENCH My Week with Marilyn
MELISSA MCCARTHY Bridesmaids
OCTAVIA SPENCER The Help

ORIGINAL MUSIC

THE ARTIST Ludovic Bource
THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross
HUGO Howard Shore
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY Alberto Iglesias
WAR HORSE John Williams

CINEMATOGRAPHY

THE ARTIST Guillaume Schiffman
THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO Jeff Cronenweth
HUGO Robert Richardson
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY Hoyte van Hoytema
WAR HORSE Janusz Kaminski

EDITING

THE ARTIST Anne-Sophie Bion, Michel Hazanavicius
DRIVE Mat Newman
HUGO Thelma Schoonmaker
SENNA Gregers Sall, Chris King
TINKER TAILOR SOLIDER SPY Dino Jonsater

PRODUCTION DESIGN

THE ARTIST Laurence Bennett, Robert Gould
HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART 2 Stuart Craig, Stephenie McMillan
HUGO Dante Ferretti, Francesca Lo Schiavo
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY Maria Djurkovic, Tatiana MacDonald
WAR HORSE Rick Carter, Lee Sandales

COSTUME DESIGN

THE ARTIST Mark Bridges
HUGO Sandy Powell
JANE EYRE Michael O'Connor
MY WEEK WITH MARILYN Jill Taylor
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY Jacqueline Durran

MAKE UP & HAIR

THE ARTIST Julie Hewett, Cydney Cornell
HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART 2 Amanda Knight, Lisa Tomblin
HUGO Morag Ross, Jan Archibald
THE IRON LADY Marese Langan
MY WEEK WITH MARILYN Jenny Shircore

SOUND

THE ARTIST Nadine Muse, Gérard Lamps, Michael Krikorian
HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART 2 James Mather, Stuart Wilson, Stuart Hilliker, Mike Dowson, Adam Scrivener
HUGO Philip Stockton, Eugene Gearty, Tom Fleischman, John Midgley
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY John Casali, Howard Bargroff, Doug Cooper, Stephen Griffiths, Andy Shelley
WAR HORSE Stuart Wilson, Gary Rydstrom, Andy Nelson, Tom Johnson, Richard Hymns

SPECIAL VISUAL EFFECTS

THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN: THE SECRET OF THE UNICORN Joe Letteri
HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART 2 Tim Burke, John Richardson, Greg Butler, David Vickery
HUGO Rob Legato, Ben Grossman, Joss Williams
RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES Joe Letteri, Dan Lemmon, R. Christopher White
WAR HORSE Ben Morris, Neil Corbould

SHORT ANIMATION

ABUELAS Afarin Eghbal, Kasia Malipan, Francesca Gardiner
BOBBY YEAH Robert Morgan
A MORNING STROLL Grant Orchard, Sue Goffe

SHORT FILM

CHALK Martina Amati, Gavin Emerson, James Bolton, Ilaria Bernardini
MWANSA THE GREAT Rungano Nyoni, Gabriel Gauchet
ONLY SOUND REMAINS Arash Ashtiani, Anshu Poddar
PITCH BLACK HEIST John Maclean, Gerardine O'Flynn
TWO AND TWO Babak Anvari, Kit Fraser, Gavin Cullen

THE ORANGE WEDNESDAYS RISING STAR AWARD (voted for by the public)

ADAM DEACON
CHRIS HEMSWORTH
CHRIS O'DOWD
EDDIE REDMAYNE
TOM HIDDLESTON

BIFA Award Nominees Announced

The nominees have now been announced on Twitter by Moët BIFA (The Moët British Independent Film Awards).

The nominations include Submarine, Tyrannosaur, We Need to Talk About Kevin, Albatross, Jane Eyre and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. All in all, it's been a great year for British Cinema and long may it continue. There seems to also be a great mix of fresh new screenplays and book to film adaptations.

Personally, I would love to see Paddy Considine and Olivia Colman get recognised for their incredible work in Tyrannosaur and must say a massive congratulations to Jessica Brown Findlay for her nomination for Albatross, though I am sad to see Tamzin Rafn hasn't made the list for her brilliantly witty and original screenplay of the same film.

The hardest award to call may just be the Best Supporting Actor category as Tom Hardy, Benedict Cumberbatch and Ezra Miller all brought phenomenal acting to the screen.

See what you think of the list below. Is your favourite on there? 

MOST PROMISING NEWCOMER (ON SCREEN)

• Jessica Brown Findlay for ALBATROSS
• John Boyega for ATTACK THE BLOCK
• Craig Roberts for SUBMARINE
• Yasmin Paige for SUBMARINE
• Tom Cullen for WEEKEND

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

• Felicity Jones for ALBATROSS
• Vanessa Redgrave for CORIOLANUS
• Carey Mulligan for SHAME
• Sally Hawkins for SUBMARINE
• Kathy Burke for TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

• Michael Smiley for KILL LIST
• Tom Hardy for TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY
• Benedict Cumberbatch for TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY
• Eddie Marsan for TYRANNOSAUR
• Ezra Miller for WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN

BEST ACTOR

• Brendan Gleeson for THE GUARD
• Neil Maskell for KILL LIST
• Michael Fassbender for SHAME
• Gary Oldman for TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY
• Peter Mullan for TYRANNOSAUR

BEST ACTRESS

• Rebecca Hall for THE AWAKENING
• Mia Wasikowska for JANE EYRE
• MyAnna Buring for KILL LIST
• Olivia Colman for TYRANNOSAUR
• Tilda Swinton for WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN

BEST SCREENPLAY

• John Michael McDonagh for THE GUARD
• Ben Wheatley and Amy Jump for KILL LIST
• Abi Morgan and Steve McQueen for SHAME
• Richard Ayoade for SUBMARINE
• Lynne Ramsay and Rory Kinnear for WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN

BEST DIRECTOR

• Ben Wheatley for KILL LIST
• Steve McQueen for SHAME
• Tomas Alfredson for TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY
• Paddy Considine for TYRANNOSAUR
• Lynne Ramsay for WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN

BEST BRITISH INDEPENDENT FILM

• SENNA
• SHAME
• TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY
• TYRANNOSAUR
• WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN

Tyrannosaur Q&A with Paddy Considine, Olivia Colman and Eddie Marsan

Thanks to the lovely folks over at the Phoenix Cinema, I was fortunate enough to attend a Q&A session with Tyrannosaur Writer and Director of the film Paddy Considine, along with two of the film's stars - Olivia Colman and Eddie Marsan.

Considine talked a lot about this being his directorial debut and showed unashamedly his complete adoration for his cast members. On Colman's performance, he said she was "a force of nature" and it was "a transformation of the soul". There was no gaining weight or changing your hairstyle. This was an entirely different transformation, he explained.

On directing in particular, Considine said that he had worked on so many film sets in the past and just knew that he had to stand out on his own and "make my own stories". He admits that acting is not his primary form of expression.

On Considine's skills as a director, Colman said that he was "so passionate, so fair" and everyone just loved him which made it easier to get things done. The entire film was shot in only four weeks and Colman insists that it was "not long enough".

When I asked all three how they prepared for the film, given the sensitive subject of domestic violence, Considine said he was familiar with the environment, though clarified he did not mean his own parents, Colman said she worked with an abuse charity and read a couple of case studies - which she argued were so horrific that if they were in the film, nobody would have believed they were true. She also said that Eddie Marsan is such an incredible actor that he was terrifying. And as Considine added, it's not acting - it's reacting. When filming one of the dramatic final scenes, Considine allocated a lot of time to allow Colman sufficient time and care to reach the places she would have to reach to really pull off the scene. But then, when it came to shooting, she just "tore the place apart".

All three talked a lot about the script. Marsan and Colman both said they had most of the preparation they needed in the script itself because it was so well written, it was all there for them. Marsan said: "The characters were so clear. It was written by an actor." Even Considine admitted that he didn't write the script just to have actors "improvise" with it. When asked if it was easy to give his script over to his actors, if they had suggestions, he added: "It's easy to give it over to good actors, it's not easy to give it over to wankers [laughs]."

When asked how they kept themselves from getting bogged down in the seriousness of the film's theme - Considine joked that they had a bouncy castle on set. "They do their best work when at ease," he said.

He also stuck up for British cinema and said it was time to stop apologising for British cinema and just make great films - to rapturous applause.

Considine spoke openly about his recent diagnosis with Asbergers Syndrome and explained that he was actually quite relieved to know he wasn't "mentally ill" as he has been told since he was a teenager. He says it has not restricted him in his film-making. He is focused and wrote the script to Tyrannosaur in a week and prefers being "on the outside looking in". He actually found it easier directing as he was running the ship.

So will this be the end to Considine's acting career?... "I will act again," he says. "I've got family. It's alright. [laughs] I haven't done my best work yet. I like to think there's another few discoveries on the way..."

Well Paddy - so do we... so do we!

Review - Tyrannosaur

Tyrannosaur is Paddy Considine's baby. He wrote and directed it and in his own words: "It is the film I always wanted to make." To sum up what the film is about in one sentence would, I fear, do it a disservice. It's a complex tale with many lives interweaving - but at the centre of it all are two people. These two people, both damaged in their own way, form an unlikely bond. Joseph, played by Peter Mullen, first meets Hannah (Olivia Colman) after he has thrown a brick through a shop window and decides to hide in a nearby shop. Alone in the shop, Hannah is forced to talk to him. It is this chance meeting that starts their relationship.

It gives nothing away to say that Joseph is a massively violent and abusive man - the opening scene sees him kick a dog to death in a fit of rage and blurt out expletive after expletive as though there were no other words in the English language. So when Hannah, who we see soon after is a victim of domestic abuse at the hands of husband James (Eddie Marsan), forms a relationship with Joseph, it is jarring but sort of comforting. At least he will be able to protect her from her violent husband, you think - unless he hurts her himself.

There are two moments of animal cruelty in the film, a fair few punches and what can only be called one-sided fights and one incident of utterly horrific human on human violence that will leave you stunned. But if you can get past all of that, this is a cinematic masterpiece.

Joseph opens the film, as I said, by kicking a dog to death. Yet you are still invested in him as the film progresses. Mullen is such a phenomenal actor that he brings you into his constant battle with his violent outbursts. It is something that seems very much beyond his control and watching him try to fight the urge to lash out is compelling viewing indeed. He also doesn't know how to be around people. He is abrasive and snappy. So when Hannah prays for him and shows him kindness, he is moved in a way he doesn't fully comprehend.

 

DIY


Hannah is the most fascinating character of all though. Solitary in her work in a charity shop, she is often devoid of human company. She has a strong belief in God, which she uses to get her through her struggles and goes from happy, smiley "I fell in the bathtub" to shaking with fear vulnerability in a second. Known largely as a comedic actress in Peep Show and Hot Fuzz, Colman has done a performance here that should not just win every British award going but every award - period! She never over-plays the role and gives Hannah just that little bit something extra. She is feisty and conflicted and more than just a one-dimensional victim. She has depths you don't see coming.

All in all, the acting, the script and the direction make for a completely brilliant film. It is a snapshot into the lives of the two leads in the time when their paths converge and where that snapshot will take them is anyone's guess. The only fault I can find in the film is the intensity of the violence, which many film-goers will just find too much to bear. But even that is needed to really bring out the heart of the film.

A perfectly acted and written cinematic masterpiece, occasionally too unbearable to watch.

4.5/5 FOBLES

Tyrannosaur hits UK cinemas this Friday 7th October.

For Q&A with Paddy Considine, Olivia Colman and Eddie Marsan click here