Leicester-based film organisation Midlands Movies has announced the nominations for its annual film awards across 16 hotly-contested categories with the participation of Midlands film legend Shane Meadows. Despite delays owing to the pandemic, Midlands Movies will again be rewarding the region’s movie-making talent across categories such as Picture, Best Actor/Actress, Best Director and many more. Even with the challenges experienced during the year, over 130 completed films were submitted and the awards will be a platform to honour the many amazing local films completed in difficult circumstances. The nominations and the eventual winners have been chosen by an experienced jury panel made up of a wide range of industry experts and are set to be announced at a forthcoming event in Summer.
The Awards Jury Panel
The Midlands Movies Awards 2021 panel is headed up by Shane Meadows (This Is England, Dead Man’s Shoes) who will be deciding the winner of the Best Short category.
It also comprises key industry representatives including Chief Executive of Northampton Filmhouse Jo Gordon, CineQ organizer and BAFTA voting member Rico Johnson-Sinclair, Script Sirens founder and RTS Award-nominee Scarlett Kefford, BFI Talent Executive and Short Cinema festival director Alexzandra Jackson and Midlands Movies editor Michael Sales.
Each year, the Midlands Movies Awards is brought to you by a group of film fans pooling the expertise of volunteers while celebrating the creativity of artists and actors, and a collective passion for the movie community in the region.
About Midlands Movies
Like many arts organisations, Midlands Movies was affected by the pandemic resulting in a 3-month setback to the Awards which previously took place each February. Yet despite 2021’s challenges, the Awards are positively moving forward with the support of the region’s film community and their passion for creative projects. Midlands Movies editor Mike Sales explains, “The last 12 months have been unbelievably difficult for filmmakers and we definitely wanted to ensure we still had a channel to recognize the hard work that’s being undertaken.
Building upon the previous years’ success, we have been lucky to have the backing of even more filmmakers and film fans to keep the awards a special place for everyone. And the feedback from the incredibly diverse and experienced jury panel has been fantastic with each one being incredibly excited to watch all the films involved”.
All Midlands Movies Awards 2021 nominations
The nominations for Best Short Film:
Pennywort by Rebekah Fortune
Judas by Adam Palmer
Swiped by Luke Collins
Trick Shot by Christopher Deans
Stranded by Tenisha White
Safekeeping by David Yorke
Ghosts by Joey Lever
Corrupt by Michael Ellis
The nominations for Best Costume & Makeup & Hairstyling:
Natalie Kay, The History Bunker and Khaki Devil for Divided We Stand
Joy Bott and her team for White Feather
Elfyn Round, Tracey Cooke, Laura Baines and Ivana Ivanova for Socks & Robbers
Nisaro Karim and his team for The Two
The nominations for Best Actor in a Leading Role:
Nick Preston for Judas
Simon Page for The Holes We Leave Behind
Sonny Michael Chohan for Corrupt
AJ Stevenson For What Happens at Sea
The nominations for Best Editing:
Arthur Harrison & Theo Vann-Leeds for Lepidopterist
Nathan Coetzee for Judas
Daniel Brock, Phee Simpson and Nuno Magalhaes for Red Light
Daniel Arbon for White Feather
The nominations for Best Music (Score or song):
Alex James Lewis for The Mysterious Button
Joel Fossard-Jones for Dreamlike
Joni Fuller for Lepidopterist
Veronica Sandwell for On 3…
The nominations for Best Actress in a Supporting Role:
Michelle Regis for Number 3
Olivia Rose Aaron for Pennywort
Patricia Hobday for A Past Tense
Sarah Feltham for On 3…
The nominations for Best Cinematography:
Calum Rhys for Divided We Stand
Aram Atkinson for Judas
Adam Whitehouse and Sam Bridges for Domestic Bliss
Rob Gurney for Open Up
The nominations for Best Feature:
Sam and Dan Get Lost by Lee Price
Morris by Jason Brown
Spider-Man: Another World by Joey Lever
The nominations for Best Documentary:
Shape, Refine by Dean Harris
No Fare: The Sian Green Story by Matt Holt
Women of Impact: Defying the Odds by Danielle Vassell and Christopher Bevan
Redt’Blue by Jay Martin
The nominations for Best Actress in a Leading Role:
Laura Fleming for Swiped
Elinor Machen Fortune for Pennywort
Lara Lemon for Chloe: Daily
Val Monk for One Day
The nominations for Best Animated Film:
Afro Goblin & Chums: Tea Break by Thomas Crook
Elevaterror by Lee Charlish
Dragonfly by Matt Williams
Blather – The Series: Rutger Hauer by James Pyle
The nominations for Best Director:
Michael Ellis for Corrupt
Idriss Assoumanou for Out on the Field
Rebekah Fortune for Pennywort
Georgie Cubin for Tell Me Who We Are
The nominations for Best Sound (Editing or Mixing):
Brad Sweetman for Divided We Stand
Michael B Clifford & his team for Number 3
Alex Stroud for Socks and Robbers
Sophie Simpson and India Picton for Red Light
The nominations for Best Actor in a Supporting Role:
Daemian Greaves for Stairwell
Sebastian Wegner for Divided We Stand
Paul Findlay for Corrupt
Darrell Amory for Stranded
The nominations for Best Visual Effects:
Nick Willett, Matt Burkey & Steve Askey for Socks and Robbers
Joey Lever and his SFX team for Spider-Man: Another World
Raquel Ballester for Pennywort
Matt Blakey and his team for Devoid
The nominations for Best Writing (Original/adapted):
Idriss Assoumanou for Out on the Field
Joey Lever for Ghosts: A Mockumentary
Christopher Deans for Trick Shot
Laura Turner for Pennywort
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