London, 10 November 2015: The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) has announced the 18 talented newcomers selected by members of the film, television and games industries as the 2015 BAFTA Breakthrough Brits, in partnership with Burberry. The honourees were revealed this evening at a reception at the global Burberry flagship, 121 Regent Street.
The Breakthrough Brits were chosen by a jury of industry experts after a UK-wide open call for applications and nominations. At the reception, hosted by BBC Radio 1 presenter Greg James, actors Julie Walters, Jessica Hynes, James Norton, Noel Clarke and Alice Eve introduced the successful honourees as: writer/actress Charlie Covell; games developer Christopher Davis; producers Lauren Dark and Jenny Saunders; writer/director Stephen Fingleton; producer/director Daisy-May Hudson; actors Aysha Kala, Alex Lawther, Martin McCann and Letitia Wright; screenwriters Regina Moriarty, Tess Morris and Laura Wade; director Ed Perkins; games sound designer Jessica Saunders; cinematographer Anna Valdez Hanks; Games Creative Director Luke Whittaker; and Senior Games Designer Catherine Woolley. More details about the honourees can be found at: http://bit.ly/Breakthrough-Brits.
During the reception the new Breakthrough Brits mingled with influential industry figures, including commissioners, agents and game studio heads, as well as well-known creatives and performers. Guests included: Amanda Berry OBE, Chief Executive of BAFTA; Christopher Bailey, Burberry Chief Creative and Chief Executive Officer; film producers Nik Powell (The Crying Game, Little Voice) and Duncan Kenworthy OBE (Four Weddings and a Funeral, Notting Hill); Downton Abbey actors MyAnna Buring and Michael Fox; and radio and television presenter Edith Bowman.
BAFTA and Burberry share a vision of celebrating British talent and giving them the tools to develop their skills at the start of their careers, wherever they are in the world. The annual Breakthrough Brits initiative, which was launched in partnership with Burberry in 2013, celebrates and supports the UK’s future stars of film, television and games. Honourees receive one-to-one mentoring, guidance sessions and networking opportunities, as well as free access to BAFTA events, for 12 months.
Previous Breakthrough Brits have gone on to be recognised at BAFTA’s awards ceremonies, including four BAFTA winners: games producer Daniel Gray and game designer Rex Crowle (as part of the development teams for Monument Valley and Tearaway respectively), screenwriter Dominic Mitchell (In The Flesh), and producer Marc Williamson (The Last Chance School). Actor Tom Holland, a Breakthrough Brit in 2014, has since been named the new Spider-Man in the film franchise.
Amanda Berry OBE, Chief Executive of BAFTA, said: “We’re thrilled to announce the 2015 BAFTA Breakthrough Brits, in partnership with Burberry. Now in its third year, Breakthrough Brits showcases exciting new talent across film, television and games, and supports them – with mentoring and inspiration from leading industry figures – as they take the next steps in their career. I’m particularly pleased there are so many female Breakthrough Brits this year, and from a variety of specialisms including cinematography, games design and sound where women are often underrepresented.”
Christopher Bailey, Burberry Chief Creative and Chief Executive Officer, said: “Celebrating British culture and creativity is at the heart of everything we do at Burberry which is why we are so proud to be partnering with BAFTA for the third year running on this wonderful initiative supporting the next generation of talent in British film, television and gaming.”
This year’s initiative is also supported by Rosewood London and Audi UK.
Full list of BAFTA Breakthrough Brits in 2015:
- Charlie Covell – Writer/Actress
- Christopher Davis – Games Developer
- Lauren Dark – Producer
- Stephen Fingleton – Writer/Director
- Daisy-May Hudson – Producer/Director
- Aysha Kala – Actress
- Alex Lawther – Actor
- Martin McCann – Actor
- Regina Moriarty – Writer
- Tess Morris – Writer
- Ed Perkins – Director
- Jenny Saunders – Producer
- Jessica Saunders – Games Sound Designer
- Anna Valdez Hanks – Cinematographer
- Luke Whittaker – Games Creative Director
- Laura Wade – Writer
- Catherine Woolley – Senior Games Designer
- Letitia Wright – Actress
BAFTA Breakthrough Brits jury members:
- John Willis (Jury Chair) – Chief Executive of Mentorn Media, Group Creative Director of Tinopolis plc, and former Chair of BAFTA
- Lee Schuneman (Games Sub-Committee Chair) – Studio Head of Microsoft’s Lift London
- Emma Morgan (Film and TV Sub-Committee Co-Chair) – Producer and Deputy Chair of BAFTA Television Committee
- Marc Samuelson (Film and TV Sub-Committee Co-Chair) – Producer, owner of Samuelson Productions and Deputy Chair of BAFTA Film Committee
- Sam Bickley – Creative Director, BBC Production
- Chris Chibnell – Screenwriter
- Simon Chinn – Producer, founder of Red Box Films and co-founder of Lightbox
- Noel Clarke – Actor, writer and director
- Natalie Dormer – Actress
- Jamal Edwards MBE – Founder of SBTV
- Tim Hincks – President of Endemol Shine Group
- Ian Livingstone CBE – Creative Industries Champion at Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, and former Executive Chairman of Edios plc
- James Norton – Actor
- Rhianna Pratchett – Game writer and narrative designer
- Sara Putt – Agent, Managing Director of Sara Putt Associates, and Chair of BAFTA’s Learning & New Talent Committee
- Siobhan Reddy – Co-founder and studio director at Media Molecule
- Eve Stewart – Production designer
- Maxine Watson – BBC Commissioning Editor, Documentaries
- Haris Zambarloukos – Cinematographer
For more information about BAFTA Breakthrough Brits, in partnership with Burberry, go to: http://bit.ly/Breakthrough-Brits.
Notes to Editors:
Biographies of the Breakthrough Brits are available at http://bit.ly/BTB-bios and downloadable here.
Portraiture of all Breakthrough Brits is available through Camera Press:
www.camerapress.com
For further information, please contact:
Emma Welby / Hannah Golanski at freuds
T: 0203 003 6413 / 020 3003 6623
E: [email protected] / [email protected]