Georgia Oakley’s Blue Jean, Charlotte Wells’ Aftersun and Jono McLeod’s My Old School and are among the titles that have made the new talent longlists for the 2022 British Independent Film Awards (Bifas), with 28 fiction and 14 documentary features longlisted.
Blue Jean has taken the most nominated spots with five – the Douglas Hickox Award for best debut director, as well as best debut screenwriter for Oakley, best breakthrough performance for Lucy Halliday and Screen Star of Tomorrow 2022 Rosy McEwen and best breakthrough producer for Hélène Sifre.
Scroll down for the full new talent longlist
Venice premiere Blue Jean is set in England in 1988 as the Conservative government is about to pass a new law stigmatising gay and lesbian people. McEwen plays a PE teacher whose double life is put under pressure by the arrival of a new girl at her school. Sifre produces through the UK’s Kleio Films, with backing from BBC Film and the BFI, in association with Great Point Media.
The title had its UK premiere at BFI London Film Festival last month, with Film Constellation handling sales.
Fridtjof Ryder’s BFI London Film Festival premiere Inland has four nominations – best debut director, best debut screenwriter, both for Ryder, plus breakthrough performance for Rory Alexander and breakthrough producer for Henry Richmond, Louis Paine and Ryder.
Charlotte Wells’ Cannes premiere Aftersun has been nominated for three awards – best debut director for Wells, best debut screenwriter for Well and best breakthrough performance for Frankie Corio.
Jim Archer’s Brian And Charles, Roger Williams’ The Feast, Ruth Paxton’s A Banquet and Andrew Cumming’s The Origin have also each scored three nominations.
New award
For the 25th year of Bifa, a new award has been introduced, for best debut director – feature documentary. The longlist includes Jono McLeod’s documentary-animation hybrid My Old School, which features a lip syncing performance from Alan Cumming and tells the true story of a man in his 30s who returns to his old high school in Glasgow posing as a pupil. It premiered at Sundance, ahead of a festival run that included Glasgow Film Festival, Zurich and Dinard.
Also on the inaugural best debut director – feature documentary longlist is Kathryn Ferguson for Sundance premiere Nothing Compares, that charts the life of Irish musician Sinead O’Connor.
The international and documentary longlists were announced last week. The final five nominations in each category will be announced November 4. Winners will be revealed at the Bifa ceremony on December 4.
Bifa 2022 new talent longlist
Best debut director
Ruth Paxton, A Banquet
Charlotte Wells, Aftersun
Georgia Oakley, Blue Jean
Jim Archer, Brian And Charles
Frances O’Connor, Emily
Lee Haven Jones, The Feast
Stacey Gregg, Here Before
Fridtjof Ryder, Inland
Thomas Hardiman, Medusa Deluxe
Mikey Murray, Mind-Set
Andrew Cumming, The Origin
Best debut screenwriter
Charlotte Wells, Aftersun
Georgia Oakley, Blue Jean
David Earl, Chris Hayward, Brian And Charles
Claire Peate, The Colour Room
Frances O’Connor, Emily
Roger Williams, The Feast
William Stone, The Fence
Shane Crowley, God’s Creatures
Stacey Gregg, Here Before
Fridtjof Ryder, Inland
Thomas Hardiman, Medusa Deluxe
Ruth Greenberg, The Origin
Maysoon Pachachi, Our River…Our Sky
Best debut director – feature documentary
Joseph Curran, Dominic Aubrey De Vere, A Story Of Bones
Jay Bedwani, Donna
Marie Lidén, Electric Malady
Matthew Dyas, Explorer
Sarah Beddington, Fadia’s Tree
Becky Hutner, Fashion Reimagined
Leah Gordon, Eddie Hutton Mills, Kanaval
Jono McLeod, My Old School
Victoria Fiore, Nascondino (Hide And Seek)
Kathryn Ferguson, Nothing Compares
Peter Day, Off The Rails
Elena Sánchez Bellot, Maia Kenworthy, Rebellion
Matthew Bauer, The Other Fellow
Best breakthrough performance
Jessica Alexander, A Banquet
Rory Alexander, Inland
Percelle Ascott, I Came By
Kíla Lord Cassidy, The Wonder
Frankie Corio, Aftersun
Phoebe Dynevor, The Colour Room
Bally Gill, Allelujah
Lucy Halliday, Blue Jean
Luca Hogan, A Bit Of Light
Alexander Lincoln, In From The Side
Leo Long, I Used To Be Famous
Rosy McEwen, Blue Jean
Safia Oakley-Green, The Origin
David Perkins, The Fence
Daniel Watson, Give Them Wings
Breakthrough producer
Aleksandra Bilić, 8 Bar - The Evolution of Grime (also produced by Jamie Clark, David Upshal)
Leonora Darby, A Banquet (also produced by Nik Bower, James Harris, Mark Lane, Laure Vaysse)
Hélène Sifre, Blue Jean
Rupert Majendie, Brian And Charles
Becky Hutner, Lindsay Lowe, Fashion Reimagined (also produced by Andrea van Beuren)
Roger Williams, The Feast
Serena Armitage, Flux Gourmet (also produced by Pietro Greppi)
Elizabeth Eves, The Forgiven (also produced by John Michael McDonagh, Nick Gordon, Trevor Matthews)
Collie McCarthy, I Used To Be Famous
Henry Richmond, Louis Paine, Fridtjof Ryder, Inland
Aleksandra Bilić, Jennifer Corcoran, Nascondino (Hide And Seek)
Paul Kennedy, Nightride (also produced by Jon Silk)
Tom Miller, Kate Glover, The Phantom Of The Open (also produced by Nichola Martin)
Ben Pullen, The Score (also produced by Matthew James Wilkinson)
Nadira Murray, Winners (also produced by Paul Welsh)
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