DP Ben Fordesman wins Best Cinematography BIFA Craft Award for Saint Maud

The British Independent Film Awards (BIFA) announced the first of this year’s award winners for its nine film craft categories. Director Rose Glass’s Saint Maud, which topped the BIFA nominations with 17, won Best Cinematography (sponsored by Dirty Looks) for the stunning work of cinematographer Ben Fordesman.

Commenting on the win, Fordesman said: “We just set out to make a film hoping some people would go to the cinema to watch. I am delighted to have won an award, but I genuinely think it’s one for the whole team, especially production design by Paulina Rzeszowska and director Rose Glass. Without good sets and a vision, we would be lost.”

Remi Weekes’ chilling debut His House, which received 16 BIFA nominations in total, won two awards: Best Effects (for Pedro Sabrosa and Stefano Pepin) and Best Production Design sponsored by Studio Juice, for Jacqueline Abrahams who was previously nominated for the award in 2017 for Lady Macbeth.

Philippa Lowthorpe’s Misbehaviour, a colourful portrait of the Woman’s Liberation Movement, won awards for its Costume Design and Make Up & Hair, for Charlotte Walter and Jill Sweeney respectively.

Lucy Pardee was awarded Best Casting sponsored by Casting Society of America and Spotlight for Rocks, which was cast through a collaborative process that involved workshopping with young untrained actors to explore their characters.

Yorgos Lamprinos was awarded Best Editing sponsored by Intermission for his work on The Father, a devastating portrayal of dementia, led by Sir Anthony Hopkins and Olivia Colman.

Mogul Mowgli, the high energy screenwriting debut from Riz Ahmed, won Best Music sponsored by Universal Music Publishing Group for composer Paul Corley.

Best Sound supported by Halo Post went to Nick Ryan, Ben Baird and Sara De OIiveira Lima for their work on The Reason I Jump, an immersive exploration of nonspeaking autism.

BIFA introduced these nine award categories in 2017 to better recognise the wealth of exceptional talent working on British independent films. The nominations and winners have been chosen by BIFA voters over the course of three rounds of viewing, discussion and voting.

BIFA 2020 CRAFT WINNERS & NOMINEES

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY SPONSORED BY DIRTY LOOKS

WINNER: BEN FORDESMAN – Saint Maud

NICK COOKE – Limbo

HÉLÈNE LOUVART – Rocks

ANNIKA SUMMERSON – Mogul Mowgli

JO WILLEMS – His House

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

WINNER: CHARLOTTE WALTER – Misbehaviour

MICHELE CLAPTON – The Secret Garden

RUKA JOHNSON – Rocks

TINA KALIVAS – Saint Maud

MICHAEL O’CONNOR – Ammonite

BEST EDITING SPONSORED BY INTERMISSION

WINNER: YORGOS LAMPRINOS – The Father

JULIA BLOCH – His House

MAYA MAFFIOLI – Rocks

BRENNA RANGOTT – Host

MARK TOWNS – Saint Maud

BEST EFFECTS

WINNER: PEDRO SABROSA, STEFANO PEPIN – His House

AGNES ASPLUND, MARTIN MALMQVIST – Undergods

SCOTT MACINTYRE, BARIŞ KARELI, KRISTYAN MALLETT – Saint Maud

BEST MAKE UP & HAIR DESIGN

WINNER: JILL SWEENEY – Misbehaviour

JACQUETTA LEVON – Saint Maud

SHARON A MARTIN – His House

IVANA PRIMORAC – Ammonite

NORA ROBERTSON – Rocks

BEST CASTING (SPONSORED BY CASTING SOCIETY OF AMERICA & SPOTLIGHT)

WINNER: LUCY PARDEE – Rocks

SHAHEEN BAIG – Calm With Horses

KHARMEL COCHRANE – Saint Maud

CARMEN CUBA – His House

DAN JACKSON – Limbo

BEST MUSIC SPONSORED BY UNIVERSAL MUSIC PUBLISHING GROUP

WINNER: PAUL CORLEY – Mogul Mowgli

ROQUE BAÑOS – His House

NAINITA DESAI – The Reason I Jump

CONNIE FARR, EMILIE LEVIENAISE-FARROUCH – Rocks

ADAM JANOTA BZOWSKI – Saint Maud

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN (SPONSORED BY STUDIO JUICE)

WINNER: JACQUELINE ABRAHAMS – His House

NOMINEES:

CRISTINA CASALI – Misbehaviour

PETER FRANCIS – The Father

MARKETA KORINKOVA, ELO SOODE – Undergods

PAULINA RZESZOWSKA – Saint Maud

BEST SOUND (SUPPORTED BY HALO POST)

WINNER: NICK RYAN, BEN BAIRD, SARA DE OLIVEIRA LIMA – The Reason I Jump

NOMINEES:

ADRIAN BELL, GLENN FREEMANTLE, FRANK KRUSE, BRENDAN NICHOLSON, RICHARD PRYKE – His House

PAUL DAVIES – Saint Maud

PAUL DAVIES, ROBERT FARR, NIGEL ALBERMANICHE, IAN MORGAN – Mogul Mowgli

CALUM SAMPLE – Host