Aftersun shines at the BIFAs

Aftersun Photo: Courtesy of KVIFF

Charlotte Wells' saga about a father/daughter relationship, Aftersun, was the big winner at tonight's British Independent Film Awards (BIFAs), winning in seven of the 16 categories in which it had been nominated: Best British Film, Best Director, Best Debut Director, Best Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Editing and Best Music Supervision. Its toughest competition came from Blue Jean, Georgia Oakley's drama about a teacher who fears losing her job after a pupil threatens to expose her sexuality.

There was more joy for Scottish short Too Rough, which is now Oscar-qualified twice over, having also secured victory at the Scottish BAFTAs. Director Sean Lionadh had previously told Eye For Film that he felt entitled to awards after the effort involved in making the film, but he has nevertheless expressed surprise and delight at its success.

The awards ceremony was held at Old Billingsgate and hosted by Ben Bailey Smith. Stars in Attendance included Florence Pugh, Morfydd Clark, Hayley Atwell and Sebastian Lelio.

Because the BIFAs use a different basis period from many other major awards, Joachim Trier’s The Worst Person in the World was able to win Best International Film; it will not be eligible at most other events this year.

Those award winners in full:

Best British Independent Film

• Aftersun

Best Director

• Charlotte Wells – Aftersun

Best Screenplay

• Charlotte Wells – Aftersun

Best Lead Performance

• Rosy McEwen – Blue Jean

Best Supporting Performance

• Kerrie Hayes – Blue Jean

Best Joint Lead Performance

• Tamara Lawrance and Letitia Wright – The Silent Twins

Best Ensemble Performance

• Zainab Joda, Darina Al Joundi, Amed Hashimi, Mahmoud Abo Al Abbas, Basim Hajar, Labwa Arab, Meriam Abbas and Siham Mustafa - Our River… Our Sky

Breakthrough Performance

• Safia Oakley-Green – The Origin

Best Début Director

• Charlotte Wells - Aftersun

Best Debut Director – Feature Documentary

• Kathryn Ferguson – Nothing Compares

Breakthrough Producer

• Nadira Murray – Winners

Best Début Screenwriter

• Georgia Oakley – Blue Jean

The Raindance Discovery Award

• Winners

Best Feature Documentary

• Nothing Compares

Best British Short Film

• Too Rough

Best International Independent Film

• The Worst Person In The World

Best Casting

• Shaheen Baig – Blue Jean

Best Costume Design

• Jenny Beavan – Mrs. Harris Goes To Paris

Best Cinematography

• Gregory Oke – Aftersun

Best Editing

• Blair McClendon – Aftersun

Best Original Music

• Matthew Herbert – The Wonder

Best Effects

• David Simpson – Men

Best Sound

• Tim Harrison, Raoul Brand, Cassandra Rutledge – Flux Gourmet

Best Make-Up & Hair Design

• Eugene Souleiman, Scarlett O’Connell – Medusa Deluxe

Best Music Supervision

• Lucy Bright – Aftersun

Best Production Design

• Helen Scott – Living

The Richard Harris Award For Outstanding Contribution By An Actor To British Film

• Samantha Morton

The Special Jury Prize

• Open Door