2012 BAFTA nominations announced

The Artist faces off against Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

by Jennie Kermode

One is the hot favourite in Hollywood. The other is the cool British thriller that wowed espionage fans. Now The Artist and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy are going head to head for Best Film at the BAFTAs while their stars, Jean Dujardin and Gary Oldman, compete for Best Actor.

The Artist leads the pack with an impressive 12 nominations, while Tinker Tilor Soldier Spy has 11, but what will happen on the night remains to be seen, with competition also coming from Drive, The Help and Golden Globe winner The Descendants. We Need To Talk About Kevin looks strong in the British categories but Tilda Swinton will face a tough race against Globe winner Meryl Streep.

War Horse is looking strong in the technical categories and Senna is making an impressive showing for a documentary, even securing a nomination for Outstanding British Film.

You can view the full list of nominations below.

Best Film
Outstanding British Film
  • My Week With Marilyn - Simon Curtis, David Parfitt, Harvey Weinstein, Adrian Hodges
  • Senna - Asif Kapadia, James Gay-Rees, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Manish Pandey
  • Shame - Steve McQueen, Iain Canning, Emile Sherman, Abi Morgan
  • Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy - Tomas Alfredson, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Robyn Slovo, Bridget O'Connor, Peter Straughan
  • We Need To Talk About Kevin - Lynne Ramsay, Luc Roeg, Jennifer Fox, Robert Salerno, Rory Stewart Kinnear

Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer
  • Attack The Block - Joe Cornish (Director/Writer)
  • Black Pond - Will Sharpe (Director/Writer), Tom Kingsley (Director), Sarah Brocklehurst (Producer)
  • Coriolanus - Ralph Fiennes (Director)
  • Submarine - Richard Ayoade (Director/Writer)
  • Tyrannosaur - Paddy Considine (Director), Diarmid Scrimshaw (Producer)

Director
Documentary
  • George Harrison: Living In The Material World - Martin Scorsese
  • Project Nim - James Marsh, Simon Chinn
  • Senna - Asif Kapadia

Original Screenplay
Adapted Screenplay
Film Not In The English Language
Animated Film
Leading Actor
Leading Actress
Supporting Actor
Supporting Actress
Original Music
Cinematography
Editing
Production Design
Costume Design
Sound
Special Visual Effects
Make-up and Hair
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