This week, Directors UK attended a ceremony at the House of Lords to celebrate the winners of the annual Film the House Awards, and to present the Directors UK Award for Best Film Direction.
Directors UK Board members Abigail Dankwa and Zoe Hines presented Stephen Gallacher with the Directors UK Award for Best Film Direction, for his film Harold and Mary, which the jury described as “Pitch perfect – a moving and intimate film from an accomplished director. Inventive and surprising.” Director Hector Bell was also specially commended for the direction of his film, First Timers.
As well as being a fantastic way to celebrate filmmaking talent, Film the House also allows our team and Board to make the case for directors’ copyright and IP directly to lawmakers and decision-makers. The parliamentary sponsors of this year’s competition were Lord Clement-Jones, Ellie Reeves MP and Giles Watling MP, and the event was attended by several legislators with briefs in Intellectual Property, Culture and the Arts. It was in front of this audience that Abigail and Zoe made their case for protecting directors’ rights, in their award presentation speech:
“Payment for the use of copyright, IP, through royalty payments, is how most creators earn their living – whether they’re directing your favourite soap, your favourite quiz show, your favourite fly-on-the-wall doc series, or your favourite box set. Without this, many wouldn’t be able to afford to sustain a creative career. We need to work together to ensure a strong IP system, which will secure the future of the UK’s creative talent.”
Other winners on the night included Luke Bradford, who took home the award for Best Short Film – 19 or Over with Grace, and Miro Alleyne-McCarthy who won for Best Short Film – under 19 with Slay The Beast from A State of Peace. The awards for Best Film Script – under 19 and Best Film Script – 19 or Over were won by Miguel Mellinger (Lye) and Laurie Barraclough (Knaves) respectively.
Congratulations to all of this year’s winners and nominees.
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