Time’s Up Descends on Baftas as ‘Three Billboards’ Wins 5 Awards

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/18/arts/baftas-three-billboards-times-up.html

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LONDON — “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri” picked up five awards at the EE British Academy Film Awards, known as the Baftas, on Sunday at a ceremony eclipsed by the Time’s Up movement, which seeks to address sexual misconduct in the workplace.

The movie, which was directed by Martin McDonagh, won best film; outstanding British film; best original screenplay; best actress, for Frances McDormand’s performance; and best supporting actor, for Sam Rockwell’s.

Guillermo del Toro won best director for his dark fantasy “The Shape of Water.” The film, which led with 12 nominations, also won best production design and best original music at the awards ceremony, held at the Royal Albert Hall in London.

Continuing his season sweep, Gary Oldman scooped up another best actor award for his portrayal of Winston Churchill in “Darkest Hour.” The movie, directed by Joe Wright, also won best makeup and hair.

Denis Villeneuve’s “Blade Runner 2049” also won two awards: best cinematography and best special visual effects. Ridley Scott, the British director who made the original “Blade Runner,” was awarded the academy’s highest honor, the Bafta Fellowship.

The best supporting actress award went to Allison Janney, who also won a Golden Globe for her role as the mother of Tonya Harding, the disgraced Olympic figure skater, in “I, Tonya.”

This year’s Baftas, which are widely considered the British equivalent of the Oscars, were dominated by Time’s Up, the campaign begun by Hollywood stars on Jan. 1 to combat sexual harassment.

Taking the lead from the Golden Globes, Bafta attendees wore black and Time’s Up pins in solidarity with victims of sexual misconduct. One notable exception from the red carpet blackout was Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge, who wore a deep green gown. Protocol prohibits the royal family from making political stands.

Sisters Uncut, a feminist advocacy group, held a protest on the red carpet. In a statement, the group said the demonstration was intended to draw attention to Prime Minister Theresa May’s domestic violence policies, which it called a “dangerous distraction” that will result in the arrests of more people who were abused.

Many female celebrities brought feminist activists as their dates to the Baftas, using their platform to amplify the voice of others. The English actress Gemma Arterton, who was presenting an award, was accompanied on the red carpet by Eileen Pullen and Gwen Davis, former sewing machinists who staged a 1968 strike over pay disparity at a Ford plant in Dagenham, England. Ms. Arterton performed in “Made in Dagenham,” a West End musical about the strike.

Other activists invited to the ceremony by stars included Laura Bates, founder of the Everyday Sexism Project, which collects testimonies from women about sexual violence; Phyll Opoku-Gyimah, executive director of U.K. Black Pride; and Afua Hirsch, a human rights advocate and author.

Joanna Lumley, the British actress and activist, debuted as the ceremony’s host, replacing the actor and comedian Stephen Fry, who had hosted 12 times. Dressed in black, she nodded to the suffragist and Time’s Up movements in her short opening speech.

Before the ceremony, prominent British actresses published an open letter in The Observer calling out sexual harassment and abuse. Emma Watson, Carey Mulligan and Saoirse Ronan — who was nominated for best actress for “Lady Bird” — were among the 190 women who signed the letter.

“As we approach the Baftas — our industry’s time for celebration and acknowledgment, we hope we can celebrate this tremendous moment of solidarity and unity across borders by coming together and making this movement international,” the letter said.

“There is no question that Time’s Up should be and will be a global movement,” it added. “A movement that is defined and led by those affected by the problem, not by those in power.”

Accompanying it was a second letter signed by activists and women’s rights organizations, which read, “As activists, we welcome the call from our entertainment industry sisters to unite to call time on harassment and abuse.”