Sunday 13 March saw the 2022 EE British Academy Film Awards ceremony take place and we’ve got the lowdown on all of the winners, Besties! 

The Power of the Dog was a big winner of the night, taking home the awards for Best Film and Director for Jane Campion. Belfast won Outstanding British Film, beating musicals Everybody’s Talking About Jamie and Cyrano, among others. Writer and Director Jeymes Samuel won Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer for The Harder They Fall, and Drive My Car won Best Film Not in the English Language. Summer of Soul, a documentary about the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival, won Best Documentary, and Disney’s Encanto (with music by musical theatre legend Lin-Manuel Miranda) took the award for Best Animated Film. 

Screenplay awards went to Licorice Pizza, with Paul Thomas Anderson’s film winning Best Original Screenplay, and to CODA, Siân Heder’s adaptation of the French film La Famille Bélier, winning Best Adapted Screenplay.

Sci-fi epic Dune took home five awards for Cinematography, Production Design, Sound, Special Visual Effects, and Original Score for Hans Zimmer’s score. Daniel Craig’s final outing as James Bond before he goes to play Macbeth on Broadway, No Time To Die, won the award for Editing. Cruella’s Jenny Beavan won the award for Costume Design, and The Eyes of Tammy Faye won for Make Up & Hair. West Side Story, Steven Spielberg’s powerful remake of the 1961 classic musical, took home the award for Casting, thanks to Cindy Tolan’s incredible work.

Do Not Feed the Pigeons was awarded British Short Animation, and The Black Cop won the British Short Film Award.

Deaf West Theatre alumnus Troy Kotsur won the Best Supporting Actor award for his role in CODA, making him the first deaf male actor to win this award. West Side Story’s Ariana Debose, known to theatre fans for her work in Hamilton and Summer: The Donna Summer Musical, among others, won Best Supporting Actress for her performance as Anita. Joanna Scanlan took the award for Best Leading Actress for her role in After Love, and Will Smith won his first BAFTA for Best Leading Actor for his portrayal of Serena and Venus Williams’ father in King Richard.

Finally, Lashana Lynch, soon to play Miss Honey in the film adaptation of Matilda the Musical, won the EE Rising Star Award, which is voted for by the public. We can’t wait to see more of her work when Matilda is released, Besties! 

Congratulations to all of the winners!