BAFTA Analysis: Film Noms Offer Up Diverse Field, More Women Than Ever & Will Smith’s First Nod, Also Directing Category Surprises
deadline.comThe BAFTA Film Awards nominations announced this afternoon in London offer up a diverse crop, and the highest number of female nominees on record; they’re also notable for a strong British presence and Will Smith’s first-ever mention.There is one category — Director — that stands out as a bit of a head-scratcher.
Not necessarily in a bad way, but surprising nevertheless. The field has an equal split of male and female filmmakers, however the list strays far from the recent DGA nominations, and barely aligns with the Best Film race at BAFTA.One explanation for the non-alignment could be that BAFTA’s Director nominees are chosen by a nominating jury, while the Best Film nominees are voted on by the entire membership.Nominated for Best Film are Belfast, Don’t Look Up, Dune, Licorice Pizza and The Power Of The Dog.
In the Directing category, only Licorice Pizza’s Paul Thomas Anderson and The Power Of The Dog’s Jane Campion figure. The other four nominees are Drive My Car’s Ryusuke Hamaguchi, Happening’s Audrey Diwan (winner of the Golden Lion last year in Venice), Titane’s Julia Ducournau (the Palme d’Or laureate in 2021) and first-timer Aleem Khan for After Love.
The sole nominations for Happening and Titane are in the directing category.In 2021, there was only one film, Nomadland, that repeated in Best Film and Best Director — and it went on to scoop both prizes.
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