LIFF 2012: Tim Burton & Helena Bonnham Carter To Receive BFI Fellowships

56th BFI London Film Festival is finally here and for the next 12 days some of the best films will entertain London’s cinephiles with a diverse range of films. Today the gala film will be Tim Burton‘s Frankenweenie (which we’ll bring you the review soon as it arrives) and BFI have announced the filmmaker and his partner Helena Bonham Carter (starring in closing gala Great Expectations) to receive fellowships.

The BFI Fellowship is given out to people who have  ‘gave recognition of their outstanding contribution to film or television culture’ the BFI’s highest honour. The couple have been together since 2001 with the couple saying they were ‘touched’ , ‘bewildered’ at the honour.

Tim Burton said “I feel very touched and grateful to the BFI for this tremendous honor.  It means more than I can put into words to receive the BFI Fellowship and to be included alongside the great directors who have received it before me”.

Helena Bonham Carter said “I am somewhat bewildered and not sure that I am deserving of such an honour as a Fellowship from the BFI, but shall accept it with deep gratitude”.

Also today BFI and American express announced the juries  for the 2012 Festival Awards which will take place at Banqueting House, Whitehall, Saturday 20^th.

The BFI London Film Festival Awards have undergone a significant change this year by introducing competitive sections that are given much more prominence in the Festival campaign and programme.  The Best Film Award in partnership with American Express will be presented to the winner of the Official Competition; the Sutherland Award will be presented to the winner of the Best First Feature and the Grierson will be presented to the winning film in the Documentary Competition. Each section is open to international and British films and 12 films have been shortlisted for each Competition. Swarovski continues its sponsorship of the Best British Newcomer Award for the third consecutive year, recognising new or breakthrough talent across a range of disciplines

Sir David Hare, Tom Hiddleston, David Yates, Olivia ColmanPablo Trapero, Nansun Shi & Sebastian Faulks are some of the judge who will pick the winners from the following selected list:

The Official Competition selection is:

After Lucia, Michel Franco, Mexico

End of Watch, David Ayer, USA

EVERYDAY, Michael Winterbottom, UK

Fill The Void, Rama Burshtein, Israel

Ginger and Rosa, Sally Potter, UK

In the House, François Ozon,

It Was The Son, Daniele Ciprì, Italy/

Lore, Cate Shortland, /Australia/UK

Midnight’s Children, Deepa Mehta, Canada/UK

No, Pablo Larraín, Chile/USA/Mexico

Rust and Bone, Jacques Audiard, /Belgium

Seven Psychopaths, Martin McDonagh, USA/UK

 

The First Feature competition selection is:

Beasts of the Southern Wild, Benh Zeitlin, USA

Clip, Maja Miloš, Serbia

The Comedian, Tom Shkolnik, UK

Eat Sleep Die, Gabriela Pichler, Sweden

My Brother The Devil, Sally EI Hosaini, UK

Neighbouring Sounds, Kleber Mendonça Filho, Brazil

The Samurai that Night, Masaaki Akahori, Japan

Shell, Scott Graham, UK

Ship of Theseus, Anand Gandhi, India

Sleeper’s Wake, Barry Berk, South Africa

Tomorrow, Andrey Gryazev, Russia

Wadjda, Haifaa Al Mansour, Saudi Arabia/

 

The Documentary Competition selection is:

Beware of Mr. Baker, Jay Bulger, USA/South Africa

Canned Dreams, Katja Gauriloff, Finland

The Central Park Five, Ken Burns, David McMahon, Sarah Burns, USA

The Ethnographer, Ulises Rosell, Argentina

For No Good Reason, Charlie Paul, UK

Free Angela and All Political Prisoners, Shola Lynch, USA/

Les Invisibles, Sébastien Lifshitz,

Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God, Alex Gibney, USA/Ireland

The Summit, Nick Ryan, Ireland/Switzerland

Turned Towards The Sun, Greg Olliver, UK//

Village at the End of the World, Sarah Gavron, UK/Denmark/Greenland

West of Memphis, Amy Berg, USA

 

 The Best British Newcomer selection is:

Fady Elsayed, Actor, MY BROTHER THE DEVIL

Sally EI Hosaini, Director/Screenwriter, MY BROTHER THE DEVIL

Rufus Norris, Director, BROKEN

Eloise Laurence, Actor, BROKEN

Chloe Pirrie, Actor, SHELL

Scott Graham, Director/Screenwriter, SHELL

Tom Shkolnik, Director/Screenwriter, THE COMEDIAN

Rowan Athale, Director/Screenwriter, WASTELAND