# British Independent Film Awards 1998

The inaugural British Independent Film Awards (BIFA) were held on 29 October 1998 to recognise the best in British independent cinema and filmmaking talent from United Kingdom.
The awards were the brainchild of Elliot Grove and Suzanne Ballantyne of the Raindance Film Festival, with the aim of celebrating merit and achievement in independently funded British filmmaking, honouring new talent and promoting British films and filmmaking to a wider public audience.
To be eligible for consideration, films needed to have been produced, or majority co-produced by a British company, or in receipt of at least 51% of their budget from a British source. In addition they could not be solely funded by a single studio.
The awards ceremony was held at the Café Royal in London's West End and hosted by Keith Allen. Winners in ten categories were determined from shortlists and a further three were awarded entirely at the jury's discretion. The jury for 1998 included Bobby Allen, Grace Carley, Kay Mellor, Kirk Jones, Lora Fox Gamble, Mark Shivas, Martin Myers, Paul Webster, Steve Kenis, Tim Bevan and Wendy Palmer.

## Winners and nominees

| Best British Independent Film | Best Director |
| My Name Is Joe – Ken Loach Elizabeth – Shekhar Kapur Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels – Guy Ritchie Nil by Mouth – Gary Oldman Twenty Four Seven – Shane Meadows | Ken Loach – My Name Is Joe Carine Adler – Under The Skin Gillies MacKinnon – Regeneration Gary Oldman – Nil by Mouth Guy Ritchie – Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels |
| Best Actor | Best Actress |
| Ray Winstone – Nil by Mouth as Raymond John Hurt – Love and Death on Long Island as Giles De'Ath Peter Mullan – My Name Is Joe as Joe Kavanagh Jonathan Pryce – Regeneration as William Rivers David Thewlis – Divorcing Jack as Dan Starkey | Kathy Burke – Nil by Mouth as Valerie Louise Goodall – My Name Is Joe as Sarah Downie Rachel Griffiths – My Son The Fanatic as Bettina / Sandra Samantha Morton – Under The Skin as Iris Kelly Emma Thompson – The Winter Guest as Frances |
| Most Promising Newcomer | Best Screenplay |
| Laila Morse – Nil by Mouth as Janet James Breese – My Funny Valentine (director) Enda Hughes – Flying Saucer Rock 'n' Roll (director) Jim Pilkington – Pocket (director) Simon Rumley – Strong Language (director / writer) | Paul Laverty – My Name Is Joe Hanif Kureishi – My Son The Fanatic Peter Mullan – Orphans Gary Oldman – Nil by Mouth Guy Ritchie – Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels |
| Best International Independent Film (English Language) | Best International Independent Film (Foreign Language) |
| Boogie Nights – Paul Thomas Anderson Broken Vessels – Scott Ziehl Chasing Amy – Kevin Smith Left Luggage – Jeroen Krabbé The Castle – Rob Sitch | The Apartment – Gilles Mimouni Airbag – Juanma Bajo Ulloa Live Flesh – Pedro Almodóvar Marquise – Véra Belmont Men with Guns – John Sayles |
| Douglas Hickox Award (Best Debut Director) | Best Achievement in Production |
| Shane Meadows – Twenty Four Seven Genevieve Joliffe – Urban Ghost Story Peter Mullan – Orphans Andrew Piddington – The Fall Guy Ritchie – Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels | Matthew Vaughn – Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels Jake West and Robert Mercer – Razor Blade Smile Allan Scott and Peter R. Simpson – Regeneration Simon Rumley and Alex Tate – Strong Language Chris Jones, Jagjit Singh Banwait, David Hardwick and Ian Hierons – Urban Ghost Story |
| Producer of the Year ||
| Philippa Braithwaite for her work on Sliding Doors ||
| Special Jury Prize | Lifetime Achievement Award |
| Nik Powell | Ken Loach |

### Films with multiple nominations

| Nominations | Film |
| 6 | Nil by Mouth |
| 5 | My Name is Joe |
| 5 | Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels |
| 3 | Regeneration |
| 2 | Twenty Four Seven |
| 2 | Under The Skin |
| 2 | My Son The Fanatic |
| 2 | Orphans |
| 2 | Strong Language |
| 2 | Urban Ghost Story |