BAFTA Makes Major Changes For 2023 Film Awards
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts, aka BAFTA, will be shaking things up for their Film Awards ceremony in 2023. Analogous to the Academy Awards, the British Academy of Film and Television Arts presents prestigious awards to the best in film for the year in various major categories. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the ceremony will be broadcasting the presentation of the final four awards of the night live for the first time in the ceremony’s history.
The BAFTA Film Awards for 2023 will be held on February 19 at the Royal Festival Hall in London’s Southbank Centre and feature various music performances. The ceremony is also set to have two hosts, with one in the auditorium and one in the new BAFTA Backstage Studios. The changes are part of CEO Jane Millichip’s efforts to give the Film Awards a broader appeal and drive ratings for the show.
The voting rounds for the BAFTA Film Awards begin on December 9 and the nominations for the awards will be announced via global live stream on January 19. The awards have many of the same categories as the Oscar, with the four biggest and most anticipated awards being Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor, and Best Actress. Presumably, these will be the awards that are aired live this year.
Last year’s BAFTA Film Awards featured a big music performance as well, with Dame Shirley Bassey performing a medley inspired by 60 years of James Bond. The success of that performance means that we’ll be seeing multiple artists this time around. Although the musical guests haven’t been revealed, they promise that the roster will include “music newcomers and legends alike.”
The 75th BAFTA Film Awards was hosted by Rebel Wilson and saw Denis Villeneuve’s epic Dune receive a whopping 11 nominations. The Power of the Dog and Belfast also received multiple nominations, with the former taking home Best Film and Best Director for Jane Campion and the latter taking home Best British Film. Dune ended up walking away with five wins but they weren’t in any major categories.
Some other notable wins at the 75th BAFTA Film Awards included Will Smith for Best Actor in King Richard, Joanna Scanlan as Best Actress in After Love, Troy Kotsur for Best Supporting Actor in CODA, and Ariana DeBose for Best Supporting Actress in West Side Story. We’ll have to wait until January 19 to find out who will be competing in these categories in the 76th Film Awards. There’s also no word yet on who will be the hosts, but presumably, it will be some big-name stars.
If you want to tune in to the live broadcast of the final four categories, BAFTA will be airing them on BBC One, BBC One HD, and BBC iPlayer. The ceremony will also be syndicated globally. Much like the Golden Globes, the BAFTA Film Awards are often a good indicator as to who might win and be nominated at the Academy Awards, so keep an eye out if you’re making any Oscar guesses this year.
