‘Nomadland’ Continues Successful Awards Season with BAFTA Win
BY SCOTTIE KNOLLIN
The 74th EE British Academy Film Awards (BAFTAs) initially stood out for its alternate awards season nominations for films like “Rocks”, which wasn’t eligible for awards this season in the U.S. With its updated nomination process, more diverse voices and underserved talents appeared in nearly every major category, including Best Director, which saw four women nominated for the first time in BAFTA history.
This year’s ceremony took place over two nights during virtual ceremonies. Both virtual evenings were hosted at London’s Royal Albert Hall though nominees were present virtually.
Chloé Zhao’s “Nomadland” continued its awards season haul by taking home the trophies for Best Film, Best Director, Best Actress (Frances McDormand), and Best Cinematography. It is expected to win three of those awards at this month’s Academy Awards, with the Best Actress win in question as the most challenging Oscars category to predict. McDormand’s win means each of the Oscar nominees for Best Actress have won a single precursor award, resulting in no clear frontrunner.
For her win as Best Director, Zhao became the first woman of color and only the second woman in history to win the BAFTA prize.
Following “Nomadland”, several films picked up wins in multiple categories: “The Father” earned Best Actor (Anthony Hopkins) and Best Adapted Screenplay; “Promising Young Woman” received the Best British Film and Best Original Screenplay awards; “Soul” was named Best Animated Film and Best Original Score; and, “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” earned the awards for Best Makeup and Hair and Best Costume Design. The British drama “Rocks” earned wins for Best Casting and BAFTA Rising Star for its lead Bukky Bakray.
In the second evening’s most memorable moment, Best Supporting Actress winner Yuh-Jung Youn (“Minari”) joked that her win was especially meaningful to her since the Brits are known as being “snobbish”. Daniel Kaluuya was named Best Supporting Actor for “Judas and the Black Messiah”. Both actors are expected to win the same awards at the Oscars.
FULL LIST OF FILM WINNERS:
BEST FILM
NOMADLAND
Mollye Asher, Dan Janvey, Frances McDormand, Peter Spears, Chloé Zhao
OUTSTANDING BRITISH FILM
PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN
Emerald Fennell, Ben Browning, Ashley Fox, Josey McNamara
OUTSTANDING DEBUT BY A BRITISH WRITER, DIRECTOR OR PRODUCER
HIS HOUSE
Remi Weekes (Writer/Director)
BEST FILM NOT IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE
ANOTHER ROUND
Thomas Vinterberg, Sisse Graum Jørgensen
BEST DOCUMENTARY
MY OCTOPUS TEACHER
Pippa Ehrlich, James Reed, Craig Foster
BEST ANIMATED FILM
SOUL
Pete Docter, Dana Murray
BEST DIRECTOR
NOMADLAND
Chloé Zhao
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN
Emerald Fennell
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
THE FATHER
Christopher Hampton, Florian Zeller
BEST LEADING ACTRESS
Frances McDormand
NOMADLAND
BEST LEADING ACTOR
Anthony Hopkins
THE FATHER
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Yuh-Jung Youn
MINARI
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Daniel Kaluuya
JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
SOUL
Jon Batiste, Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross
BEST CASTING
ROCKS
Lucy Pardee
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
NOMADLAND
Joshua James Richards
BEST EDITING
SOUND OF METAL
Mikkel E.G. Nielsen
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
MANK
Donald Graham Burt, Jan Pascale
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
MA RAINEY’S BLACK BOTTOM
Ann Roth
BEST MAKE UP & HAIR
MA RAINEY’S BLACK BOTTOM
Matiki Anoff, Larry M. Cherry, Sergio Lopez-Rivera, Mia Neal
BEST SOUND
SOUND OF METAL
Jaime Baksht, Nicolas Becker, Phillip Bladh, Carlos Cortés, Michelle Couttolenc
BEST SPECIAL VISUAL EFFECTS
TENET
Scott Fisher, Andrew Jackson, Andrew Lockley
BEST BRITISH SHORT ANIMATION
THE OWL AND THE PUSSYCAT
Mole Hill, Laura Duncalf
BEST BRITISH SHORT FILM
THE PRESENT
Farah Nabulsi
BAFTA RISING STAR AWARD
Bukky Bakray
