Aftersun wins seven BIFAs including Best Film, Best Director and Best Screenplay

Last night, the winners of the 25th British Independent Film Awards (BIFAs) were announced in a star-studded ceremony at Old Billingsgate, hosted by Ben Bailey Smith.

The award for Best British Independent Film went to Aftersun, Charlotte Wells’s moving directorial debut centred on a daughter’s memorable childhood holiday with her father. Echoing Aleem Khan’s 2021 BIFA wins for After Love, Wells scooped three further BIFA awards – Best Director, The Douglas Hickox Award for Best Debut Director and Best Screenplay, to add to Aftersun’s three craft awards: Best Cinematography for Gregory Oke, Best Editing for Blair McClendon and the new Best Music Supervision award for Lucy Bright.   

Best Lead Performance went to Rosy McEwen and Best Supporting Performance to Kerrie Hayes for their roles in Georgia Oakley’s 1980s Section 28 era set Blue Jean, which also saw Georgia awarded the Best Debut Screenwriter. Previously announced, the Best Casting sponsored by Casting Society and Spotlight award went to Shaheen Baig for her work on the film.

Breakthrough Performance went to Safia Oakley-Green in The Origin, Andrew Cumming’s multi-nominated debut feature in which a nomadic tribe faces a terrifying ancient threat that comes when night falls. 

Further new categories for 2022 saw Best Joint Lead Performance awarded to Tamara Lawrance and Letitia Wright for their roles as extraordinary real-life siblings who communicated only with each other in The Silent Twins, and Our River…Our Sky took home the Best Ensemble award for cast members including Zainab Joda, Darina Al Joundi, Amed Hashimi, Mahmoud Abo Al Abbas, Basim Hajar, Labwa Arab, Meriam Abbas and Siham Mustafa, who portray neighbours caught in Baghdad during the civil war of 2006. 

Glory in the documentary awards categories went to Nothing Compares, a reflection on the life of fearless trailblazer Sinead O’Connor, which won both the Best Feature Documentary and Best Debut Director – Feature Documentary BIFAs for director Kathryn Ferguson.

Hassan Nazer’s Iran-set Winners, in which three film lovers seek the owner of a very recognisable golden statuette, won this year’s Raindance Discovery Award, also scoring the Breakthrough Producer award win for Nadira Murray.

Best British Short Film went to Too Rough, in which a young gay couple must avoid the threat of a homophobic and dysfunctional family.  

Winning Best International Independent Film, Joachim Trier’s The Worst Person in the World follows one woman’s less than straightforward quest for love and meaning in the modern world.

Previously announced craft award winners were also honoured at the ceremony, including Jenny Beavan for Best Costume Design for her work on Mrs Harris Goes to Paris, Matthew Herbert  for Best Original Music for The Wonder, Eugene Souleiman and Scarlett O’Connell for Best Make-Up and Hair Design for Medusa Deluxe, Helen Scott for Best Production Design for Living, David Simpson for Best Effects for Men and Tim Harrison, Raoul Brand and Cassandra Rutledge for Best Sound to for gastronomic soundscape Flux Gourmet.

The 2022 Richard Harris Award for Outstanding Contribution by an Actor to British Film was presented to Samantha Morton.

The Special Jury Prize, awarded by the BIFA Main Jury and presented by 2022 jury member Jenna Coleman, was given to Open Door for their work helping talented young people without financial support or resources gain places at leading UK drama schools.

Here’s the full list BIFA nominees and winners 2022

Best British Independent Film

WINNER AFTERSUN Charlotte Wells, Barry Jenkins, Mark Ceryak, Adele Romanski, Amy Jackson

BLUE JEAN Georgia Oakley, Hélène Sifre

GOOD LUCK TO YOU, LEO GRANDE Sophie Hyde, Katy Brand, Debbie Gray, Adrian Politowski

LIVING Oliver Hermanus, Kazuo Ishiguro, Stephen Woolley, Elizabeth Karlsen

THE WONDER Sebastián Lelio, Emma Donoghue, Alice Birch, Juliette Howell, Andrew Lowe, Tessa Ross, Ed Guiney

The Richard Harris Award for Outstanding Contribution by an Actor to British Film

Samantha Morton

The Special Jury Prize

Open Door 

Best Director sponsored by Sky Cinema OLIVER HERMANUS Living SOPHIE HYDE Good Luck to You, Leo Grande SEBASTIÁN LELIO The Wonder GEORGIA OAKLEY Blue Jean WINNER CHARLOTTE WELLS Aftersun   Best Lead Performance SALLY HAWKINS The Lost King COSMO JARVIS It Is in Us All EMMA MACKEY Emily WINNER ROSY McEWEN Blue Jean BILL NIGHY Living FLORENCE PUGH The Wonder EMILY WATSON God’s Creatures HALA ZEIN Nezouh	Best Screenplay KATY BRAND Good Luck to You, Leo Grande KAZUO ISHIGURO Living SEBASTIÁN LELIO, ALICE BIRCH, EMMA DONOGHUE The Wonder GEORGIA OAKLEY Blue Jean WINNER CHARLOTTE WELLS Aftersun   Best Supporting Performance ZOEY DEUTCH The Outfit AISLING FRANCIOSI God’s Creatures LUCY HALLIDAY Blue Jean WINNER KERRIE HAYES Blue Jean ZAINAB JODA Our River… Our Sky FATMA MOHAMED Flux Gourmet PAUL MESCAL God’s Creatures FIONN WHITEHEAD Emily AIMEE LOU WOOD Living
Best Joint Lead Performance FRANKIE CORIO, PAUL MESCAL Aftersun DARYL McCORMACK, EMMA THOMPSON Good Luck to You, Leo Grande JESSIE BUCKLEY, RORY KINNEAR Men WINNER TAMARA LAWRANCE, LETITIA WRIGHT The Silent Twins   Best Ensemble Performance BLUE JEAN Ensemble including Rosy McEwen, Kerrie Hayes, Lucy Halliday, Lydia Page, Stacy Abalogun, Farrah Cave, Amy Booth-Steel EMILY Ensemble including Amelia Gething, Emma Mackey, Oliver Jackson-Cohen, Fionn Whitehead, Alexandra Dowling, Gemma Jones, Adrian Dunbar FLUX GOURMET Ensemble including Makis Papadimitriou, Gwendoline Christie, Asa Butterfield, Fatma Mohamed, Ariane Labed, Richard Bremmer WINNER OUR RIVER… OUR SKY Ensemble including Zainab Joda, Darina Al Joundi, Amed Hashimi, Mahmoud Abo Al Abbas, Basim Hajar, Labwa Arab, Meriam Abbas, Siham Mustafa THE WONDER Ensemble including Kíla Lord Cassidy, Florence Pugh, Tom Burke, Toby Jones, Niamh Algar, Elaine Cassidy, Ciarán Hinds, Brían F. O’Byrne, Josie Walker
The Douglas Hickox Award (Best Debut Director) sponsored by BBC Film ANDREW CUMMING The Origin THOMAS HARDIMAN Medusa Deluxe FRANCES O’CONNOR Emily GEORGIA OAKLEY Blue Jean WINNER CHARLOTTE WELLS Aftersun Breakthrough Performance sponsored by Netflix FRANKIE CORIO Aftersun LEO LONG I Used to Be Famous KÍLA LORD CASSIDY The Wonder ROSY McEWEN Blue Jean WINNER SAFIA OAKLEY-GREEN The Origin   Best Debut Director – Feature Documentary WINNER KATHRYN FERGUSON Nothing Compares VICTORIA FIORE Nascondino [Hide & Seek] LEAH GORDON, EDDIE HUTTON MILLS Kanaval: A People’s History of Haiti in Six Chapters JONO McLEOD My Old School BECKY HUTNER Fashion Reimagined	Breakthrough Producer sponsored by Pinewood and Shepperton Studios ALEKSANDRA BILIĆ, JENNIFER CORCORAN Nascondino [Hide & Seek] PAUL KENNEDY Nightride [also produced by Jon Silk] RUPERT MAJENDIE Brian and Charles WINNER NADIRA MURRAY Winners [also produced by Paul Welsh] HÉLÈNE SIFRE Blue Jean Best Debut Screenwriter sponsored by Film4 SHANE CROWLEY God’s Creatures DAVID EARL, CHRIS HAYWARD Brian and Charles RUTH GREENBERG The Origin WINNER GEORGIA OAKLEY Blue Jean CHARLOTTE WELLS Aftersun   The Raindance Discovery Award ELECTRIC MALADY Marie Lidén, Aimara Reques FADIA’S TREE Sarah Beddington, Susan Simnett OFF THE RAILS Peter Day, Grant Keir, Rob Alexander REBELLION Elena Sánchez Bellot, Maia Kenworthy, Kat Mansoor WINNER WINNERS Hassan Nazer, Nadira Murray, Paul Welsh

Best Feature Documentary sponsored by Intermission

MY CHILDHOOD, MY COUNTRY – 20 YEARS IN AFGHANISTAN Phil Grabsky, Shoaib Sharifi, Amanda Wilkie

MY OLD SCHOOL Jono McLeod, John Archer, Olivia Lichtenstein

NASCONDINO [HIDE & SEEK] Victoria Fiore, Jennifer Corcoran, Aleksandra Bilić

WINNER NOTHING COMPARES Kathryn Ferguson, Eleanor Emptage, Michael Mallie

YOUNG PLATO Neasa Ní Chianáin, Declan McGrath, David Rane

 

Best British Short Film supported by BFI Network

A FOX IN THE NIGHT Keeran Anwar Blessie, Benjamin Jacob Smith

HONESTY Roxy Rezvany, Emily Renée, Elly Camisa

SANDSTORM Seemab Gul, Abid Aziz Merchant

SCALE Joseph Pierce, Hélène Mitjavile

WINNER TOO ROUGH Sean Lìonadh, Ross McKenzie, Alfredo Covelli

 

Best International Independent Film sponsored by Champagne Taittinger

ALL THE BEAUTY AND THE BLOODSHED Laura Poitras, Howard Gertler, John Lyons, Nan Goldin, Yoni Golijov,

CLOSE Lukas Dhont, Angelo Tijssens, Michiel Dhont, Dirk Impens

DECISION TO LEAVE Park Chan-wook, Chung Seo-Kyung

EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert, Jonathan Wang, Joe Russo, Anthony Russo, Mike Larocca

WINNER THE WORST PERSON IN THE WORLD Joachim Trier, Eskil Vogt, Andrea Berentsen Ottmar, Thomas Robsahm

 

Best Casting sponsored by Casting Society & Spotlight WINNER SHAHEEN BAIG Blue Jean LEILA BERTRAND Our River… Our Sky KHARMEL COCHRANE The Silent Twins KAHLEEN CRAWFORD Living LUCY PARDEE Aftersun

Best Cinematography sponsored by Dirty Looks & Kodak ALFREDO DE JUAN Nascondino [Hide & Seek] ROB HARDY Men JOEL HONEYWELL Kanaval: A People’s History of Haiti in Six Chapters WINNER GREGORY OKE Aftersun ARI WEGNER The Wonder

Best Costume Design WINNER JENNY BEAVAN Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris SAFFRON CULLANE Flux Gourmet (with Gwendoline Christie’s costumes by Giles Deacon) ODILE DICKS-MIREAUX The Wonder FRANK GALLACHER Aftersun SANDY POWELL Living   Best Original Music sponsored by Universal Music Publishing DANNY BENSI, SAUNDER JURRIAANS God’s Creatures OLIVER COATES Aftersun WINNER MATTHEW HERBERT The Wonder ADAM JANOTA BZOWSKI The Origin BEN SALISBURY, GEOFF BARROW Men   Best Effects CHRIS MARSHALL The Feast WINNER DAVID SIMPSON Men AHMED YOUSRY Nezouh   Best Sound supported by Halo WINNER TIM HARRISON, RAOUL BRAND, CASSANDRA RUTLEDGE Flux Gourmet GLENN FREEMANTLE, BEN BARKER, GILLIAN DODDERS, HOWARD BARGROFF, MITCH LOW Men JOVAN AJDER, İSMAIL ALACAN, RUBEN AGUIRRE BARBA, VIJAY RATHINAM Aftersun HUGH FOX, BEN BAIRD The Wonder DOM CORBISIERO, DAI SHELL The Feast

Best Editing JOANNA CRICKMAY Elizabeth: A Portrait in Parts IZABELLA CURRY Blue Jean MÁTYÁS FEKETE Flux Gourmet MICK MAHON Nothing Compares WINNER BLAIR McCLENDON Aftersun     Best Make-Up & Hair Design OYA AYGÖR, MURAT ÇAĞIN Aftersun MORNA FERGUSON, LORRI ANN KING The Wonder SIOBHAN HARPER-RYAN Flux Gourmet NIAMH MORRISON The Origin WINNER EUGENE SOULEIMAN, SCARLETT O’CONNELL Medusa Deluxe   Best Music Supervision WINNER LUCY BRIGHT Aftersun PHIL CANNING The Phantom of the Open RUPERT HOLLIER Living   Best Production Design FLETCHER JARVIS Flux Gourmet GRANT MONTGOMERY The Wonder WINNER HELEN SCOTT Living BILLUR TURAN Aftersun GARY WILLIAMSON Medusa Deluxe

The editorial unit
Photo: Courtesy of BIFA