BAFTA Film Awards 2020

Awards season is, once again, upon us and it’s set to be a phenomenal year for British film and television with Olivia Colman and Taron Egerton already picking up gongs at the recent Golden Globe awards. Celebrating its 6th anniversary, the UK will welcome the Newport Beach Film Festival Honours Night – an exclusive evening that pays homage to the British arts and its success in Hollywood.

The annual pre-BAFTA event will celebrate and launch Variety magazine’s 2020 ‘Ten Brits to Watch’ list – an honours list of talented individuals who have recently made a global impact on the arts. Lauded for their contributions to the industry are:

• Zawe Ashton (Velvet Buzzsaw and Broadway’s Betrayal)
• Sheila Atim (Olivier Award winner for Girl From the North Country, Barry Jenkins’ Amazon series The Underground Railroad and BBC One’s The Pale Horse)
• Honor Swinton Byrne (Feature lead debut in Joanna Hogg’s acclaimed drama The Souvenir after a non-speaking cameo in I Am Love with her mother Tilda Swinton)
• Dean-Charles Chapman (Game of Thrones and now currently starring in Sam Mendes’ WWI drama and Golden-Globe winner 1917)
• Jessica Henwick (Underwater with Kristen Stewart)
• Chance Perdomo (BAFTA winning drama Killed by My Debt)
• Laura Solon (The co-creator and co-writer of the acclaimed BBC Comedy Back to Life)
• Nathan Stewart-Jarrett (Features in the reboot of Candyman, produced by Jordan Peele)
• Stormzy (Glastonbury headliningrapper, singer and songwriter)
• Jodie Turner-Smith (Lead role in Queen & Slim opposite Daniel Kaluuya)

In addition, the honours night will recognise and award actors, movie icons and films for their contribution to the industry. This year’s recipients of the prestigious award include Erin Doherty (The Crown), George MacKay (1917), Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years a Slave, Lion King) and legendary actor Richard E Grant, with this year’s ‘Outstanding Achievement in British Cinema’ award going to BAFTA and Oscars nominee and Golden Globe winner, 1917.

Aston spoke to Jenelle Riley, Deputy features and awards editor at Variety Magazine and Gary Sherwin, CEO at visit Newport Beach to discuss the Newport Beach Film Festival and also predict what could happen at this weekends BAFTA film awards.