Latest news with #JaneMillichip
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
BAFTA Chief Addresses British TV Crisis, Celebrates Creative Strength of Current Landscape: ‘There's No Silver Bullet'
Jane Millichip, CEO of BAFTA, has expressed confidence in the resilience of British television despite recent industry challenges, describing the creative and craft quality of U.K. TV as being at 'the highest it's ever been.' Speaking after the announcement of the BAFTA TV and Craft nominations, which saw Netflix's 'Baby Reindeer' leading with eight nods, Millichip addressed concerns about what some have labeled a crisis in British television production, especially in the scripted space. More from Variety 'Baby Reindeer' Dominates BAFTA TV and Craft Awards Nominations With Eight Nods Alan Cumming Set to Host 2025 BAFTA Television Awards 'Emmerdale' Removed From BAFTA TV Awards Soap Category After Writer Admits to Assault 'Notwithstanding the fact that we've had a tough market for the last year or so, this year's nominees show that creatively and craft wise, British TV is in rude health,' Millichip told Variety. 'The quality of the nominations is extraordinary, and a lot of brilliant TV didn't get nominated. We have 134 nominated programs out of 900 entries.' The BAFTA TV Awards nominations saw 'Baby Reindeer' dominate, while ITV's 'Mr. Bates vs. the Post Office,' Disney+'s Jilly Cooper adaptation 'Rivals,' and Apple TV+'s 'Slow Horses' tied for second place with six nominations each. Disney+ also earned four nominations for its IRA drama 'Say Nothing.' Millichip pointed to recent industry data suggesting potential improvement in the production landscape 'that seems to be showing green shoots of recovery. About a third of independent producers in the U.K. are seeing a little bit of an upside return to better commissioning landscape.' The BAFTA chief underscored the importance of maintaining control of the U.K.'s production value chain while acknowledging the benefits of international investment. 'I'm the first person to celebrate the fact that U.S. studios have been coming to the U.K. to produce both film and TV for many years now, and that's been brilliant,' she noted. 'What we need to ensure, however, is that we don't lose control of the value chain in the U.K.' Millichip highlighted the need for a multi-faceted approach to strengthening domestic production, including evaluating proposals related to tax credits, levies, and support for domestic freelancers. 'There's no silver bullet to this,' she said. 'The most important thing is to ensure that we have a strong domestic sector, and that we retain more of the IP value in our own productions.' She added that a robust domestic sector provides resilience when international investment fluctuates: 'When you have a strong domestic sector, if America has to pull the belt in for some reason, we have more resilience to continue with our own domestic sector. And that's really important for domestic storytelling, British storytelling as well.' Discussing the digital landscape, Millichip celebrated the success of streaming shows like Netflix's 'Adolescence,' which recently became the first streaming program to top the British weekly television chart. She praised the broad adoption of public service broadcasting values across the industry. 'I'm delighted to see fantastically British stories being told, not just across the U.K. PSBs, but also across the streamers,' she said, citing examples including 'Say Nothing' and 'Toxic Town,' both nominated at this year's BAFTAs. Millichip specifically praised 'Mr. Bates vs. the Post Office,' noting: 'The writers, the producers, ITV, took huge risks from that show in the knowledge that it probably wouldn't sell dramatically across the world. It is a story of fantastic human endeavor, and it's a story about justice, and that has absolute, universal appeal.' On the introduction of new children's categories to the BAFTA awards, Millichip explained this was part of an effort to better support a sector facing funding challenges. 'We want to support the children's sector, and we know it's been quite difficult for a few years now to fund children's programming,' she said. 'It's really important to us that we see it as a vital part of the TV landscape.' BAFTA has created scripted and non-scripted categories and a craft team category in the TV craft awards for children's programming. 'For us, it was really about putting children's TV on the main stage, metaphorically and literally,' Millichip concluded. Best of Variety New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week The Best Celebrity Memoirs to Read This Year: From Chelsea Handler to Anthony Hopkins Oscars 2026: First Blind Predictions Including Timothée Chalamet, Emma Stone, 'Wicked: For Good' and More
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
BAFTA Boss Celebrates British TV Industry In 'Rude Health' But Says 'Choppy Waters' Could Arise Amid Drama Funding Crisis
BAFTA boss Jane Millichip has celebrated a British TV industry in 'rude health' but said 'choppy waters' could arise 'if we lose control of our value chain.' Speaking to Deadline as the likes of Baby Reindeer, Rivals and Mr Bates vs the Post Office were rewarded with multiple BAFTA TV noms, Millichip said the industry 'has to look at' options to address the UK drama funding crisis such as improved tax credits, streamer levies or more support for the freelance community. More from Deadline BAFTA TV Awards: 'Baby Reindeer', 'Slow Horses' & 'Rivals' Secure Multiple Noms Alan Cumming To Host The BAFTA TV Awards 'Rivals' & 'Baby Reindeer' Stars Scoop Broadcasting Press Guild Awards 'I'm the first one to celebrate studios opening up across Britain and big films coming here but the other vital factor is what sits under that and that is a strong domestic sector,' she said. 'I think we all need to pay some attention to that in the coming years. We have to really look at [all options] because if we lose control of our value chain then we could be in choppier and choppier waters.' Millichip stopped short of backing high-profile proposals for a streamer levy to help solve the scripted funding crisis but said 'the BFI [British Film Institute] is looking into this so we wait with interest to see what they come up with.' In recent weeks, storied British creatives including Jack Thorne, Peter Kosminsky and Jane Featherstone have raised concerns over the future of local British drama such as ITV's Mr Bates, which picked up six BAFTA noms. The barriers are breaking down between shows commissioned by the broadcasters and the streamers, Millichip noted, as she pointed to two local Netflix projects that could perform well at next year's BAFTAs – Toxic Town and Adolescence – both of which are dominating the global charts at present. 'What is interesting is you are seeing barnstorming commercial shows across linear but also some really strong British drama on the streamers,' she added. 'There is less of a distinction in terms of the shows we're seeing across the full piece.' Millichip said today's noms demonstrate that 'British TV is in absolute rude health' and cited diversity gains such as Baby Reindeer's Nava Mau, the first openly transgender acting nominee, and half the nominated directors being women. She also flagged that half of the performing categories are first-time nominees including Rivals' Danny Dyer and celebrated movie actor Jonathan Pryce, who picked one up for Slow Horses. When it comes to representation, Millichip said BAFTA has made improvements by opening up the diversity of its membership rather than taking a tick box approach to award submissions. 'The way we lean into this is publishing the diversity of our membership and we have set targets around membership so I think it's more of a systemic piece of work we are engaging in,' she added. 'This will lead to a more diverse play across the piece.' 'Life and Death in Gaza' One big winner from today is BBC doc Life and Death in Gaza, which has picked up four noms – impressive for a documentary. That show has been criticized after one of its most prominent voices was identified to have celebrated the murder of Jews in past social media posts, which was flagged in a recent report into the BBC's coverage of the Israel-Hamas War. BAFTA will clearly be keen to avoid a repeat of what happened at this month's Royal Television Society awards, which first canceled an award honoring journalists in Gaza and then reinstated the gong following backlash. Millichip stressed that Life and Death in Gaza 'has qualified through our criteria.' 'We are not aware of anything that would deem it not a credible entry,' she said. 'If that info arises then we will look at it.' Best of Deadline Which Colleen Hoover Books Are Becoming Movies? 'Verity,' 'Reminders Of Him' & 'Regretting You' Will Join 'It Ends With Us' Everything We Know About Amazon's 'Verity' Movie So Far Everything We Know About Paramount's 'Regretting You' Adaptation So Far
Yahoo
04-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Hellblade 2 leads the way at Bafta Games Awards
Senua's Saga: Hellblade II has picked up the most nominations at this year's Bafta Games Awards. The action-adventure game, developed by Cambridge-based studio Ninja Theory, is up for awards in 11 out of 14 categories at the annual ceremony. It's in the running for best game alongside 3D platformer Astro Bot - up for eight awards - which clinched top prize at the US-based Game Awards in December. The event, considered one of the most prestigious in the games industry calendar, will be held in London on 8 April. The other contenders in the best game category are: Balatro - a poker-inspired card game Black Myth: Wukong - an action-adventure made in China and inspired by a popular myth Helldivers II - a multiplayer co-operative shooter The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom - the first game in Nintendo's popular series to star the princess it's named after Thank Goodness You're Here! - a wacky cartoon adventure game developed by two friends from Barnsley Bafta hands out prizes each year in a range of categories, including acting, music and game design. Three of the six most-nominated games this year were made in the UK. Still Wakes the Deep, from Scottish studio The Chinese Room, is up for eight awards, while Thank Goodness You're Here! is up for seven. Lego: Horizon Adventures, based on the PlayStation series and largely developed by London-based Studio Gobo, is nominated in four categories. Indie hits Animal Well and Balatro, each have four nominations, as does Call of Duty: Black Ops 6. Senua's Saga: Hellblade II is a sequel to Senua's Sacrifice - which picked up five awards at 2018's gaming Baftas. Its 11 nominations might surprise some - the game was an impressive technical showcase and received positive if not outstanding reviews. However, like the first game, it was praised for its sensitive depiction of the main character's psychosis. Bafta Games committee chair Tara Saunders tells BBC Newsbeat it represents "a strong year for British-made games". She says the voting panel is made up of members across the world who take the awards "very seriously" and vote based on a range of features. "It's all about excellence," she says. "Excellence in the crafts and maybe some of those games have nailed all of those craft areas." Bafta CEO Jane Millichip agrees, and wants to embrace the fact they have a British game category. "Our members are international and they're the people who choose," she says. Arranged by number of categories: Senua's Saga: 11 Astro Bot and Still Wakes the Deep - eight Thank Goodness You're Here! - seven Black Myth: Wukong - five Read more about the nominees: 'Dead reyt': The love letter to Yorkshire making gamers cry laughing Mind games: Hellblade returns to explore psychosis Astro Bot: Could the old-school hit reshape PS5's future? The Bafta Games Awards are no stranger to the odd upset. In 2023, Vampire Survivors - made by a tiny British studio - beat Sony's God of War: Ragnarök to the top prize. This year's best game field has a similar mix of big-budget blockbusters and indie hits. "I love that Bafta can surprise, I love that it's not a given and we can get to that night and we don't know what's going to come out on top," Tara says. "It's putting a spotlight on some really tiny games that might have slipped by." Metaphor: Refantazio and Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth, two games that featured prominently in nominations elsewhere, only picked up three nominations between them. Times remain tough for people working in the games industry worldwide, with mass layoffs, studio closures and cancelled projects continuing to make headlines. Tara says awards like the Baftas are "a beacon of light in the dark times". "It's really important to pause and celebrate the teams and individuals that have crafted these standout games experiences," she says. And Jane, who also oversees Bafta's events across film, TV and other creative industries, says the gaming awards are a place for people to support each other. "I've never seen a community cheer so much when they lose, it's a brilliant thing to behold," she says. "It's so wonderful to see the whole games community being so supportive of each other and there to celebrate the sector, not themselves. "It's kind of devoid of ego and that's great." You can find a full list of Bafta Games Awards nominations for 2025 here. Listen to Newsbeat live at 12:45 and 17:45 weekdays - or listen back here.
Yahoo
04-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘Extraordinary' and ‘wide open' Bafta Games Awards field hailed
British-made action-adventure game Senua's Saga: Hellblade II leads the way with 11 nominations at this year's Bafta Games Awards, with the head of Bafta calling the range of nominees 'extraordinary'. A total of 41 games have been nominated across 17 categories for the awards, which take place in April. Made by Cambridge-based studio Ninja Theory, Senua's Saga: Hellblade II's nominations include in the animation, artistic achievement, audio achievement and British game categories, while Sony's Astro Bot and indie horror game Still Wakes The Deep each have eight nominations. The nominations feature a host of independent and first-time nominees as well as big name franchises and well-known series such as Call Of Duty, Star Wars and Final Fantasy, which Bafta chief executive Jane Millichip said showed the gaming industry was 'really healthy'. 'I think it's a wide open field,' she told the PA news agency. 'That's what is extraordinary this year, it's the range of genres, the size of games – indie, big studio, multiplayer – it's a bewildering variety. 'It's really interesting to see how broad it is, and great to see so many British studios represented – 11 British studios from the length and breadth of the country, from Yorkshire to Brighton. 'It's a kind of mesmerising variety and certainly in the short time I've been involved in Bafta, it seems more than ever that that is the distinguishing factor this year, which is really exciting, and with a really open field of 41 games nominated it's really, really healthy.' Tara Saunders, chair of the Bafta Games Committee, said the nominees were a 'beacon of light' following some 'dark times' for the gaming industry in recent years, which has seen widespread job cuts in the wake of an economic downturn. 'It's a huge testament, and I think it shows the resilience of the teams and individuals that are making this content – it takes a lot of effort to make a fun product, and I think they're channelling all their energy into that,' she told PA. 'I think it's really important that we take this moment to celebrate the teams and the individuals that have crafted these standout games experiences. 'I really love that in the best game (category) we've got some indie games going shoulder to shoulder with some really big budget games. 'And I love that Bafta gives that platform for that to happen, to really shine a light on some of the smaller teams that are out there.' Comedy game Thank Goodness You're Here – made by independent Yorkshire studio Coal Supper – has seven nominations for this year's awards, including for best game, British game and debut game. In the best game category, it will compete alongside titles from industry giants Sony, the makers of the PlayStation, and Nintendo, for whom The Legend Of Zelda: Echoes Of Wisdom, the latest instalment in the hugely popular, long-running fantasy series, has been nominated.
