Brits lose out to European rivals at Film Awards

Volver and Das Leben Der Anderen take top gongs.

by Amber Wilkinson

Of the nine British and Irish films on the short-list for the European Film Awards, only Ken Loach's won a prize.

Barry Loach - cinematographer for the re-examination of the Irish Republican movement at the turn of the 20th century - shared the cinematography award with José Luis Alcaine for Spanish film .

The Pedro Almodovar flick about a dead woman's spirit which returns to comfort her daughters won a clutch of awards at the ceremony in Warsaw last week, including Director, Actress - for Penelope Cruz, Composer - for Alberto Iglesias and the People's Choice.

It was also a good night for German film Das Leben Der Anderen (The Lives Of Others), which snagged the gongs for Best Film, Best actor - for Ulrich Muhe - and Screenwriter, for Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck.

Other winners included (European Discovery), The Science Of Sleep (Artistic Contribution, Into Great Silence (Documentary), Before Dawn (Short Film) and Les Amants Reguliers (European Film Critics Award.

British producer Jeremy Thomas (, ) won the Achievement In World Cinema Award, while Roman Polanski (, ) picked up a special Lifetime Achievement Award.

For a full shortlist of the films, read our previous

Share this with others on...

Movies out this week include:

Is This Thing On? Nouvelle Vague Primate Rabbit Trap
News

Home truths Marijana Janković on Balkan representation, and the immigrant question of belonging

The division belle Suzannah Herbert on facing the US' troubled history and making Natchez

Spin-off alchemy Claude Schmitz on bringing back cop pairing for Conrad & Crab – Idiotic Gems

Past crime Christoffer Boe on creating a world for his period mystery Special Unit - The First Murder

It Was Just An Accident screenwriter arrested in Iran Jafar Panahi speaks out

Sundance announces winners Josephine, Nuisance Bear, Shame And Money and To Hold A Mountain take top prizes

More news and features

Interact

As we move into 2026, don't forget that you can follow us on YouTube for trailers of festival films and more. You can also find us on Mastodon and Bluesky.

With awards season in full flow, you can keep track of the latest news on that here:

César nominations Nouvelle Vague leads the race for France's biggest awards

BAFTA nominations One Battle After Another and Sinners almost neck and neck

Critics' Circle Awards One Battle After Another wins fight

Oscars Sinners dominates the nominations