Organising the seating arrangements for this years ceremony. Image via Vogue.co.uk
This weekend we celebrate the 67th British Academy Film Awards. We mentioned the BAFTA’s when we took a short look at the upcoming film season in our post, Tis the season post back in December.
This year’s ceremony takes place at the Royal Opera House in London (as it has since 2008) on Sunday at 9pm. It will be broadcast in Britain on BBC One and BBC One HD and we will be liveblogging the event as it happens from 8pm. Make sure you check our liveblog and our Twitter and Facebook to keep up to date with the news, award winners and any blunders as they happen (Miss Lawrence, we’re looking at you).
The films nominated for Best Film are 12 Years a Slave, American Hustle, Captain Phillips, Gravity and Philomena. Gravity is the most nominated film, up for a total of 11, American Hustle and 12 Years a Slave are nominated for 10 awards each.
The nominees, performers and presenters will walk down 131 yards of red carpet. Performing on the night are Tinie Tempah and Laura Mvula, who will open the awards with a performance of Heroes. Stephen Fry will be hosting the event for the ninth time.
Up for Best Actor are Christian Bale for American Hustle, Bruce Dern for Nebraska, Chiwetel Ejiofor for 12 Years a Slave, Tom Hanks for Captain Phillips and Leonardo DiCaprio for Wolf of Wall Street. It’s a well-known face that Leonardo DiCaprio has never won an Oscar. He’s also never won a Bafta and has only been nominated twice previously for The Aviator and The Departed.
For Best Actress the nominations are Amy Adams for American Hustle, Sandra Bullock for Gravity, Cate Blanchett for Blue Jasmine, Emma Thompson for Saving Mr Banks and Judi Dench for Philomena. Judi Dench is the most BAFTA nominated actress in Film with 15 nominations and 6 wins.
Another highly nominated actor is Woody Allen who has accumulated 24 BAFTA nominations and an impressive 10 wins throughout his career. This year he is nominated for Original Screenplay for Blue Jasmine.
Since 1971 a BAFTA Academy Fellowship Award has been presented to one outstanding achiever. The lifetime award is the highest honour bestowed by the Academy. The first winner was Alfred Hitchcock, last year it was awarded to Michael Palin. This year it will be presented to Dame Helen Mirren.
Mirren has one four previous BAFTA awards since she began acting in the 1970’s. Three of these are for her role as Jane Tennison in the ITV drama Prime Suspect and one was awarded for her role as Elizabeth II in The Queen. Elizabeth II is not the only Queen she has portrayed, Mirren has played five other Queens including Elizabeth I in The Queen and The Snow Queen in The Snow Queen.
Remember to join us from 8pm for coverage of the evening.