Announced Tuesday by previous BIFA winners Jay Lycurgo and Posy Sterling, the BIFA nominations also gave high praise to Cleo Barnard’s “I See Buildings Fall Like Lightning,” which earned eight nominations, followed by Ashley Walters’ feature directorial debut “Animol,” with seven. Welsh-language feature “Effi O Blaenau” and “Queen at Sea” both emerged with six nominations, including best British independent film.
Elsewhere, there was love for new filmmakers and old, with feature directorial debuts “Extra Geography,” “Straight Circle” and “Florid” getting five nominations each and “Tender Loving Care,” the final film from indie cinema icon Mike Leigh, landing three (including best British independent film and director).
The British Independent Film Awards winners will be announced in two parts, with the Craft winners unveiled on Nov. 24 on BIFA’s social channels and other categories revealed at the BIFA ceremony on Dec. 6 at London’s Roundhouse.
See the full list of nominations below:
Best British Independent Film
“Effi O Blaenau” — Marc Evans, Gary Owen, Branwen Cennard“Elsinore” — Simon Stone, Stephen Beresford, Andrea Occhipinti, Gabrielle Tana, Pete Shilaimon, Mickey Liddell, Stefano Massenzi, Carolyn Marks Blackwood, Andrew Scott“I See Buildings Fall Like Lightning” — Clio Barnard, Enda Walsh, Tracy O’Riordan“Queen at Sea” — Lance Hammer, Tristan Goligher“Tender Loving Care” — Mike Leigh, Georgina Lowe
Best Director
Best Lead Performance
Juliette Binoche — “Queen at Sea”Erin Doherty — “Faith”Leisa Gwenllian — “Effi O Blaenau”Jonathan Jules — “Florid”Tut Nyuot — “Animol”Andrew Scott — “Elsinore”
Best Supporting Performance
Anna Calder-Marshall — “Queen at Sea”Tom Courtenay — “Queen at Sea”Sekou Diaby — “Animol”Claire Foy — “Ink”Billie Piper — “Elsinore”Bill Pullman — “Everybody Digs Bill Evans”
Best Joint Lead Performance
Séamus Mclean Ross, Samuel Bottomley — “California Schemin’”Flora Nicholson, Clare Dunne, Mia Tharia — “The Education of Jane Cumming”Marni Duggan, Galaxie Clear — “Extra Geography”Chimpaye Florence Mariserena, Bizimana Hussain — “Small Gods”
Best Ensemble Performance
Best Screenplay
Stephen Beresford — “Elsinore”Lance Hammer — “Queen at Sea”Mike Leigh — “Tender Loving Care”Gary Owen — “Effi O Blaenau”Enda Walsh — “I See Buildings Fall Like Lightning”
The Douglas Hickox Award (Best Debut Director)
Billy Lumby — “Florid”Molly Manners — “Extra Geography”Bertil Nilsson — “Masc”Louis Paxton — “The Incomer”Ashley Walters — “Animol”
Breakthrough Producer
Breakthrough Performance
Galaxie Clear — “Extra Geography”Sekou Diaby — “Animol”Leisa Gwenllian — “Effi O Blaenau”Jonathan Jules — “Florid”Tut Nyuot — “Animol”
Best Debut Screenwriter
Best Debut Director – Feature Documentary
Cinema of the Year
Abbeygate CinemaCampus WestHippodrome CinemaThe Kinema in the WoodsThe Ultimate Picture Palace
The Raindance Maverick Award
“Act 3” — Christine Molloy, Joe Lawlor, Alex Thiele, Hannah Patterson“Chatlines” — Neil Ely, Lloyd Eyre-Morgan, Paul Mortlock“Masc” — Bertil Nilsson“The Peril at Pincer Point” — Jake Kuhn, Noah Stratton-Twine“Something Familiar” — Rachel Taparjan, Monica Lăzurean-Lorgan, Elena Martin, Aleksandra Bilic
Best Feature Documentary
“All Rivers Spill Their Stories to the Sea” — Jeanie Finlay, Charlie Phillips“Everybody to Kenmure Street” — Felipe Bustos Sierra, Ciara Barry“One in a Million” — Itab Azzam, Jack MacInnes, Will Anderson, Andrew Palmer, James Bluemel, Raney Aronson-Rath“Something Familiar” — Rachel Taparjan, Aleksandra Bilic, Monica Lăzurean-Lorgan“We, the Hated” — Rich Felgate, David Allen
Best British Short Film
“Allies in Exile” — Hasan Kattan, Orlando von Einsiedel“Coyotes” — Said Zagha, Myriam Sassine, Laura Jumel“Forgotten Spaceman” — Elham Ehsas, Lorraine Bhattachary“Untitled Woman” — Camille Summers-Valli, Rosmarie Vind, Sorcha Bacon, Martha McGuirk, David Zander“Vote Gavin Lyle” — Aneil Karia, Scott O’Donnell, Tom Gardner
Best International Independent Film
Best Casting
Shaheen Baig — “I See Buildings Fall Like Lightning”Heather Basten — “Animol”Lara Manwaring — “Florid”Lucy Pardee — “Extra Geography”Jessica Ronane — “Elsinore”
Best Cinematography
Mike Eley — “Elsinore”Piers McGrail — “Everybody Digs Bill Evans”Christopher Ripley — “Straight Circle”Simon Tindall — “I See Buildings Fall Like Lightning”André Turpin — “A Long Winter”
Best Costume Design
Sarah Blenkinsop — “The Incomer”Alex Bovaird — “Savage House”Carol Case — “A Long Winter”Darion Hing — “Straight Circle”Mel Page — “Elsinore”
Best Editing
Best Effects
Jon Biggins, Jeff Dillon — “Shaun the Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom”Ruslan Borysov, Richard Cheal, Tim Ledbury — “The Magic Faraway Tree”Daniel Morris — “The Incomer”
Best Music Supervision
Connie Farr — “I See Buildings Fall Like Lightning”Connie Farr — “Queen at Sea”Phil Canning — “Sunny Dancer”
Best Make-Up & Hair Design
Best Original Music
Best Production Design
Luke Moran-Morris — “Straight Circle”Gareth Pugh, Carson McColl — “Ink”Helen Scott — “Elsinore”Alexandra Walker — “The Magic Faraway Tree”Gary Williamson — “Savage House”
Best Sound
