12 Years A Slave is based on an incredible true story of one man's fight for survival and freedom. In the pre-Civil War United States, Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a free black man from upstate New York, is abducted and sold into slavery. Facing cruelty (personified by a malevolent slave owner, portrayed by Michael Fassbender) as well as unexpected kindnesses, Solomon struggles not only to stay alive, but to retain his dignity. In the twelfth year of his unforgettable odyssey, Solomon’s chance meeting with a Canadian abolitionist (Brad Pitt) forever alters his life.

_{Photography: Seton Davey/BAFTA New York}

On Sunday 4 August, a screening of Lee Daniels' The Butler took place at the School of Visual Arts followed by a Q&A session with members of the cast and crew. Hosted by Oprah Winfrey, the attending cast included Lenny Kravitz, Forest Whitaker, Terrence Howard, David Oyelowo and Cuba Gooding Jr alongside director Lee Daniels.

_{Photography: BAFTA New York/ Seton Davy}

Directed by acclaimed filmmaker Wong Kar Wai, The Grandmaster is an epic action feature inspired by the life and times of the legendary kung fu master, Ip Man. The story spans the tumultuous Republican era that followed the fall of China’s last dynasty, a time of chaos, division and war that was also the golden age of Chinese martial arts. Filmed in a range of stunning locations that include the snow-swept landscapes of Northeast China and the subtropical South, THE GRANDMASTER features virtuoso performances by some of the greatest stars of contemporary Asian cinema, including Tony Leung and Ziyi Zhang.

_{Photography: Seton Davey/BAFTA New York}

The first event in BAFTA's Brits to Watch: The Screenings series was a screening of The Selfish Giant at Soho House, Manhattan with writer/director Clio Barnard on July 23 2013.

Find out more about the event: Brits to Watch: The Screenings - The Selfish Giant >

_{Photography: BAFTA/New York}

Inside Llewyn Davis follows a week in the life of a young folk singer as he navigates the Greenwich Village folk scene of 1961. Llewyn Davis (Oscar Isaac) is at a crossroads. Guitar in tow, huddled against the New York City winter, he is struggling to make it as a musician against seemingly insurmountable obstacles - some of them of his own making. Living at the mercy of both friends and strangers, scaring up what work he can find, Llewyn's misadventures take him from the baskethouses of the Village to an empty Chicago club - on an odyssey to audition for a music mogul - and back again. Brimming with music performed by Isaac, Justin Timberlake, and Carey Mulligan (as Llewyn's married Village friends), as well as Marcus Mumford and Punch Brothers.

Screening of Inside Llewyn Davis was followed by a Q&A with Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, Oscar Isaac, John Goodman, T Bone Burnett, Bruno Delbonnel, Jess Gonchor, Mary Zophres, Susan Bode,Peter Kurland, Greg Orloff. Q&A was moderated by Peter Travers.

_{Photography: Seton Davey /BAFTA New York}

Academy Award® winners Sandra Bullock (“The Blind Side”) and George Clooney (“Syriana”) star in “Gravity,” a heart-pounding thriller that pulls you into the infinite and unforgiving realm of deep space. The film was directed/co-written by Oscar® nominee Alfonso Cuarón (“Children of Men”).

Bullock plays Dr. Ryan Stone, a brilliant engineer on her first shuttle mission, with veteran astronaut Matt Kowalski (Clooney). But on a seemingly routine spacewalk, disaster strikes. The shuttle is destroyed, leaving Stone and Kowalski completely alone—tethered to nothing but each other and spiraling out into the blackness.

The deafening silence tells them they have lost any link to Earth…and any chance for rescue. As fear turns to panic, every gulp of air eats away at what little oxygen is left.
But the only way home may be to go further out into the terrifying expanse of space.

The BAFTA New York screening of Gravity was followed by a Q&A session with director and co-writer Alfonso Cuarón, moderated by Brian Rose.

_{Photography: Van Stolatis /BAFTA New York}