All Of Us Strangers soared at the 2023 British Independent Film Awards

Share this Article:

Andrew Haigh’s touching new drama All Of Us Strangers was the big winner at the 2023 British Independent Film Awards (BIFA).

As the calendar year draws to a close, we’re also inching close toward the season that will see multiple prestigious awards bodies, in theory, hand the best films of the year a golden statuette. The season kicked off with the British Independent Film Awards, also known as BIFA 2023, which were held in London on the 3rd of December.

Lolly Adefope and Kiell Smith-Bynoe hosted the event which celebrated British cinema, especially the slightly lesser-seen films with budgets far smaller than that of Oppenheimer. There were some terrific films nominated this year, and the roster of winners was as surprising as it was satisfying.

Andrew Haigh’s All Of Us Strangers was the biggest winner of the night, taking home a total of four awards plus three previously announced ones. Haigh was named Best Director and the queer drama was also named Best British Independent Film.

Paul Mescal tied with How To Have Sex’s Shaun Thomas for Best Supporting Performance, while Mia McKenna-Bruce beat her fellow nominees such as Andew Scott, Tilda Swinton and Jodie Comer for Best Lead Performance for her fearless turn in Molly Manning Walker’s debut film.

BIFA abandoned gendered acting categories in 2022, replacing the traditional Best Actress, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress and Best Supporting actor categories with Best Lead Performance, Best Supporting Performance, Best Joint Lead Performance and Best Ensemble Performance.

Femme, which we were big fans of, took home Best Joint Lead Performance for George McKay and Nathan Stewart-Jarrett. Rye Lane’s Vivian Oparah’s vibrant performance was named this year’s Breakthrough Performance.

Here’s the full list of BIFA 2023 winners.

Best British Independent Film

All Of Us Strangers – Andrew Haigh, Graham Broadbent, Pete Czernin, Sarah Harvey

Femme – Sam H Freeman, Ng Choon Ping, Myles Payne, Sam Ritzenberg

How To Have Sex – Molly Manning Walker, Ivana MacKinnon, Emily Leo, Konstantinos Kontovrakis

Rye Lane – Raine Allen-Miller, Nathan Bryon, Tom Melia, Yvonne Isimeme Ibazebo, Damian Jones

Scrapper – Charlotte Regan, Theo Barrowclough

Best Joint Lead Performance

Lola Campbell, Harris Dickinson – Scrapper

David Jonsson, Vivian Oparah – Rye Lane

Nathan Stewart-Jarrett, George MacKay – Femme

Best Lead Performance

Jodie Comer – The End We Start From

Mia McKenna-Bruce – How To Have Sex

Tia Nomore – Earth Mama

Nabhaan Rizwan – In Camera

Andrew Scott – All Of Us Strangers

Tilda Swinton – The Eternal Daughter

Best Director

Raine Allen-Miller – Rye Lane

Sam H Freeman, Ng Choon Ping – Femme

Andrew Haigh – All Of Us Strangers

Molly Manning Walker – How To Have Sex

Charlotte Regan – Scrapper

Best Screenplay

Nathan Bryon, Tom Melia – Rye Lane

Sam H Freeman, Ng Choon Ping – Femme

Andrew Haigh – All Of Us Strangers

Molly Manning Walker – How To Have Sex

Charlotte Regan – Scrapper

Best Supporting Performance

Ritu Aryu – Polite Society

Jamie Bell – All Of Us Strangers

Samuel Bottomley – How To Have Sex

Alexandra Burke – Pretty Red Dress

Amir El-Masry – In Camera

Claire Foy – All Of Us Strangers

Paul Mescal – All Of Us Strangers (tie)

Alia Shawkat – Drift

Shaun Thomas – How To Have Sex (tie)

Katherine Waterston – The End We Start From

Best Feature Documentary

Another Body – Sophie Compton, Reuben Hamlyn, Isabel Freeman, Elizabeth Woodward

Bobi Wine: The People’s President – Moses Bwayo, Christopher Sharp, John Battsek

If The Streets Were On Fire – Alice Russell, Gannesh Rajah

Lyra – Alison Millar, Jackie Doyle

Occupied City – Steve Mcqueen, Bianca Stitger, Floor Onrust, Anna Smith-Tenser

Breakthrough Performance

Le’Shantey Bonsu – Girl

Lola Campbell – Scrapper

Priya Kansara – Polite Society

Mia McKenna-Bruce – How To Have Sex

Vivian Oparah – Rye Lane

Best Debut Screenwriter

Nathan Bryon, Tom Melia – Rye Lane

Sam H Freeman, Ng Choon Ping – Femme

Molly Manning Walker – How To Have Sex

Nida Manzoor – Polite Society

Charlotte Regan – Scrapper

The Douglas Hickox Award (Best Debut Director)

Raine Allen-Miller – Rye Lane

Sam H Freeman, Ng Choon Ping – Femme

Savanah Leaf – Earth Mama

Molly Manning Walker – How To Have Sex

Charlotte Regan – Scrapper

Breakthrough Producer

Theo Barrowclough – Scrapper

Georgia Goggin – Pretty Red Dress

Yvonne Isimeme Ibazebo – Rye Lane

[Also Produced By Damian Jones]

Gannesh Rajah – If The Streets Were On Fire

Chi Thai – Raging Grace

Best Debut Director – Feature Documentary

Chloe Abrahams – The Taste Of Mango

Sophie Compton, Reuben Hamlyn – Another Body

Ella Glendining – Is There Anybody Out There?

Alice Russell – If The Streets Were On Fire

Christopher Sharp – Bobi Wine: The People’s President [Also Directed By Moses Bwayo]

The Raindance Maverick Award

If The Streets Were On Fire – Alice Russell, Gannesh Rajah

Is There Anybody Out There? – Ella Glendining, Janine Marmot

Name Me Lawand – Edward Lovelace

Raging Grace – Paris Zarcilla, Chi Thai

Red Herring – Kit Vincent, Ed Owles

Best British Short Film

Christopher At Sea – Tom C J Brown, Laure Desmazières, Emmanuel-Alain Raynal, Pierre Baussaron, Amanda Miller, Hannah Stolarski, Nick Read, Emily-Jane Brown

Festival Of Slaps – Abdou Cissé, Cheri Darbon, George Telfer

Lions – Beru Tessema, Ama Ampadu

Muna – Warda Mohamed, Angela Moneke, Simon Hatton

The Talent – Thomas May Bailey, Emma D’arcy, Ellen Spence