'My Father's Shadow' Courtesy of Cannes Film Festival Share on Facebook Share on X Share to Flipboard Send an Email Show additional share options Share on LinkedIn Share on Pinterest Share on Reddit Share on Tumblr Share on Whats App Print the Article Post a Comment Akinola Davies Jr.'s Lagos-set coming-of-age tale My Father's Shadow and Harry Lighton's kinky queer romance Pillion are among the frontrunners at the 2025 British Independent Film Awards (BIFAs), which revealed its nominations on Monday. Unveiled by actors Ben Hardy and Saura Lightfoot-Leon at One Hundred Shoreditch in London, Davies' directorial debut leads the BIFA nominations with 12 nods, closely followed by Lighton's Pillion with 10. Both features premiered at this year's Cannes Film Festival to rave reviews. Davies and Lighton also scored best debut director nominations, as well as best screenplay and best debut screenwriter noms, among others. Related Stories TV 'The Good Place' and 'She-Hulk' Star Jameela Jamil Joins Cast of BBC Legal Drama 'The Split Up' Movies LGBTQ+ Campaigners, Murder and Neo-Nazis Feature in Lithuanian Crime Drama 'The Activist' (Exclusive Clips) In the performance categories, big-name nominees include the likes of Jennifer Lawrence for Die, My Love (which received eight BIFA nods in total), Cillian Murphy for Steve, as well as David Jonsson and Tom Blyth for Wasteman. Harry Melling and Alexander Skarsgard are nominated for best lead and best supporting performance, respectively, for Pillion, while Robert Aramayo will compete with fellow lead actors for his turn in Kirk Jones' I Swear, which received nine BIFA nominations in total. He'll go up against Frank Dillane, who is nominated for his turn in Harris Dickinson's Urchin. Elsewhere, Dickinson has netted best debut director and best British independent film nods for Urchin for a total of six. Tim Key and Tom Basden have been nominated for best joint lead performance in The Ballad of Wallis Island (five total), with Andrea Riseborough and Brenda Blethyn nominated in the same category for Paul Andrew Williams' Dragonfly. Ebada Hassan and Safiyya Ingar are, too, nominated in the best joint lead performance category for Nadia Fall's debut feature Brides, and both have secured a breakthrough performance nomination. In this category, they'll compete with Posy Sterling for Lollipop and Connor Tompkins for The Son and The Sea. Alex Garfield's boots-on-the-ground military drama Warfare has won best ensemble performance award, it was confirmed on Monday, with D'Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai, Will Poulter, Cosmo Jarvis, Kit Connor, Finn Bennett, Joseph Quinn, and Charles Melton honored among the film's six craft nominations. In the best international feature category, Jafar Panahi's It Was Just An Accident go up against Joachim Trier's Sentimental Value, Sirāt from Oliver Laxe, Eva Victor's Sorry, Baby and Mascha Schilinski's Sound of Falling. Breakthrough producer nominations go to Wyn Baptiste for activism documentary Shoot the People, Charlotte Knowles for cross-border doc Palestine Comedy Club, Joann Kushner for screenlife heist movie LifeHack and Dhiraj Mahey for social-realist coming-of-age drama Ish. Check out the full list of nominees for the 2025 BIFAs below. Best British Independent Film The Ballad of Wallis IslandI SwearMy Father's ShadowPillionUrchin Best Director Laura Carreira, On FallingAkinola Davies Jr., My Father's ShadowKirk Jones, I SwearHarry Lighton, PillionLynne Ramsay, Die, My Love Best Screenplay Tom Basden, Tim Key, The Ballad of Wallis IslandLaura Carreira, On FallingWale Davies, My Father's ShadowKirk Jones, I SwearHarry Lighton, Pillion Best Lead Performance Robert Aramayo, I SwearFrank Dillane, UrchinDavid Jonsson, WastemanJennifer Lawrence, Die, My LoveHarry Melling, PillionCillian Murphy, Steve Best Supporting Performance Tom Blyth, WastemanScott Ellis Watson, I SwearJay Lycurgo, StevePeter Mullan, I SwearMaxine Peake, I SwearAlexander Skarsgard, Pillion Best Joint Lead Performance Ebada Hassan, Saffiya Ingar, BridesTim Key, Tom Basden, The Ballad of Wallis IslandAndrea Riseborough, Brenda Blethyn, Dragonfly Best Ensemble Performance D'Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai, Will Poulter, Cosmo Jarvis, Kit Connor, Finn Bennett, Joseph Quinn, Charles Melton, Warfare (WINNER) The Douglas Hickox Award (Best Debut Director) Laura Carreira, On FallingAkinola Davies Jr., My Father's ShadowHarris Dickinson, UrchinHarry Lighton, PillionCal McMau, Wasteman Breakthrough Producer Wyn Baptiste, Shoot the PeopleCharlotte Knowles, Palestine Comedy ClubJoann Kushner, LifeHackDhiraj Mahey, IshArchie Pearch, Urchin Breakthrough Performance Scott Ellis Watson, I SwearEbada Hassan, BridesSafiyya Ingar, BridesPosy Sterling, LollipopConnor Tompkins, The Son and The Sea Best Debut Screenwriter Hunter Andrews, Eoin Doran, WastemanTom Basden, Tim Key, The Ballad of Wallis IslandLaura Carreira, On FallingWale Davies, My Father's ShadowHarry Lighton, Pillion Best Debut Director - Feature Documentar