BAFTAs 2016: Nominees

Carol, a period drama about a lesbian love affair starring Cate Blanchett, and Bridge of Spies, a wartime spy thriller with Tom Hanks from Steven Spielberg, lead the pack with a generous nine nominations each. Following just behind is The Revenant taking eight with that Leonardo DiCaprio performance from last year's Oscar claimant, Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu. Following them is Mad Max: Fury Road with seven.

The awards circuit seem not to be too keen on a regular favourite's latest oeuvre, Quentin Tarantino's The Hateful Eight which manages three nominations. Just like Spotlight does, a film which is effectively unheard of in the UK. This week will see the release of the unstoppable Room starring first-time leading film actor, Brie Larson, who, despite it being her leading debut, is doing well in the race for Best Leading Actress.

Amy, the documentary about Amy Winehouse which brought her music soaring back into the charts, and one of the best films I've seen this year, is nominated for both Best Documentary which it is almost certain to win, and Best British Film.

Also under consideration is the EE BAFTA Rising Star Award which pits together film acting newbies: Brie Larson for Room (the only one with another acting nomination), Taron Egerton for Kingsman: The Secret Service, Dakota Johnson for Fifty Shades of Gray, Bel Powley for The Diary of a Teenage Girl, and John Boyega for Star Wars: The Force Awakens (despite having already starred in the acclaimed Attack The Block back in 2011). I'd like it to go to Larson but as this award is voted for by the public, it's more likely to go to Boyega, confusingly, or Egerton.

Alicia Vikander takes quite the monopoly on acting nominations, as she has in the Golden Globe nominations. She's one of few people ever to be nominated for both Best Leading Actress (opposite Eddie Redmayne in The Danish Girl) and Best Supporting Actress (in the indie juggernaut, Ex Machina). Both her films take five nominations each, too. Leading on from Vikander, we're all wondering, can Eddie do it twice? Can he win the Leading Actor BAFTA two years in a row? Or perhaps BAFTA feels a bit sensitive to award such a niche and slightly controversial tale, based on the surprises in their list of nominations...?

Snubs and surprises

BAFTA seem to have slipped from tradition this year with unexpectedly little recognition for this year's British films. Not one Best Film nominee is British and there are glaring absences by 45 Years, Spectre, Macbeth, and The Lobster. Only the first and the last take one nomination each. 45 Years' Charlotte Rampling is racing ahead across the rest of the awards circuit for Best Leading Actress but not recognised by her own academy. Spectre deserves recognition in craft categories and yet, none.

Macbeth and The Lobster led nominations in the British Independent Film Awards but at the BAFTAs, one between them! Some of the most critically important aspects of the most critically successful films in the country, if not, the world, are snubbed, sadly.

Another substantial surprise comes with zero nominations for Joy, the third outing by David O'Russell with Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper. While Joy hasn't been as successful as O'Russell's previous recent work (Silver Linings Playbook won Lawrence her Oscar among numerous nominations, American Hustle famously nominated for ten Oscars but won zero), you'd expect some grace considering their reputations in the award circuit.

What's more, where on earth is Helen Mirren?! Surely she gets at least a nomination a year, no? No. This year, despite two high profile performances, leading Woman In Gold and supporting Trumbo, she's been left out. Is BAFTA trying to pander to American tastes by leaving out British expectations, or is it just a coincidence? Something to think on...

Take a search for your own surprises in the full list below:

Best Film

The Big Short
Bridge of Spies
Carol
The Revenant
Spotlight

Outstanding British Film

45 Years
Amy
Brooklyn
The Danish Girl
Ex Machina
The Lobster

Outstanding Debut by British Writer, Director or Producer

Alex Garland (director, Ex Machina)
Debbie Tucker Green (writer/director, Second Coming)
Naji Abu Nowar (writer/director, Theeb), Rupert Lloyd (producer, Theeb)
Sean McAllister (director/producer, A Syrian Love Story), Elhum Shakerifar (producer, A Syrian Love Story)
Stephen Fingleton (writer/director, The Survivalist)

Best Film Not in the English Language

The Assassin
Force Majeure
Theeb
Timbuktu
Wild Tales

Best Documentary

Amy
Cartel Land
He Named Me Malala
Listen to Me Marlon
Sherpa

Best Animated Film

Inside Out
Minions
Shaun the Sheep the Movie

Best Director

Adam McKay for The Big Short
Steven Spielberg for Bridge of Spies
Todd Haynes for Carol
Ridley Scott for The Martian
Alejandro González Iñárritu for The Revenant

Best Original Screenplay

Bridge of Spies
Ex Machina
The Hateful Eight
Inside Out
Spotlight

Best Adapted Screenplay

The Big Short
Brooklyn
Carol
Room
Steve Jobs

Best Actor

Bryan Cranston for Trumbo
Eddie Redmayne for The Danish Girl
Leonardo DiCaprio for The Revenant
Matt Damon for The Martian
Michael Fassbender for Steve Jobs

Best Actress

Alicia Vikander for The Danish Girl
Brie Larson for Room
Cate Blanchett for Carol
Maggie Smith for The Lady in the Van
Saoirse Ronan for Brooklyn

Best Supporting Actor

Benicio del Toro for Sicario
Christian Bale for The Big Short
Idris Elba for Beasts of No Nation
Mark Ruffalo for Spotlight
Mark Rylance for Bridge of Spies

Best Supporting Actress

Alicia Vikander for Ex Machina
Jennifer Jason Leigh for The Hateful Eight
Julie Walters for Brooklyn
Kate Winslet for Steve Jobs
Rooney Mara for Carol

Best Original Music

Bridge of Spies
The Hateful Eight
The Revenant
Sicario
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Best Cinematography

Bridge of Spies
Carol
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant
Sicario

Best Editing

The Big Short
Bridge of Spies
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant

Best Production Design

Bridge of Spies
Carol
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Best Costume Design

Brooklyn
Carol
Cinderella
The Danish Girl
Mad Max: Fury Road

Best Make-Up and Hair

Brooklyn
Carol
The Danish Girl
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant

Best Sound

Bridge of Spies
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Best Special Visual Effects

Ant-Man
Ex Machina
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Best British Short Animation

Edmond
Manoman
Prologue

Best British Short Film

Elephant
Mining Poems or Odes
Operator
Over
Samuel-613

EE Rising Star

Bel Powley
Brie Larson
Dakota Johnson
John Boyega
Taron Egerton