‘1917’ which was up for 9 awards at the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), won 7 out of its 9 nominations on Sunday, at the Royal Albert Hall, London.
The sweep at the BAFTA comes just a week ahead of the Academy Awards, to be held on February 9 at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. The World War I movie by Sam Mendes has received 10 Oscar nominations, including for Best Picture.
Mendes won the Best Director trophy at the BAFTAs, while the film scooped up the coveted Best Film as well as the trophies for cinematography, production design, sound and special visual effects.
1917 follows two British soldiers on a perilous mission across no man's land and is set in the period just before the end of World War I.
The movie, hailed as a groundbreaking piece of cinema, for its technical brilliance and innovative one-shot-take, has already won the Golden Globe for Best Drama along with a host of other awards.
Sam Mendes is the first British winner of the Best Director BAFTA since Danny Boyle won in 2009 for Slumdog Millionaire.
Joaquin Phoenix won the Best Actor award for his widely acclaimed performance in ‘Joker’. Renee Zellweger claimed the Best Actress award for her portrayal of Judy Garland in ‘Judy’.
The ceremony was hosted by TV chat show presenter Graham Norton and the event was graced by the royal couple, Prince William, in his 10th year as BAFTA president, and Kate Middleton.
Prince William presented the Academy Fellowship, BAFTA’s highest accolade, to American Kathleen Kennedy, the boss of Lucasfilm. Lucasfilm is the producer of some of the biggest-grossing movies such as the Star Wars sequels, ‘Jurassic Park’, ‘E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial’ and the ‘Back to the Future’ trilogy.
