Dear Frankie
Encyclopedia
Dear Frankie is a 2004 British drama film
directed by Shona Auerbach
. The screenplay
by Andrea Gibb
focuses on a young single mother whose love for her son prompts her to perpetuate a deception designed to protect him from the truth about his father.
town of Greenock
, she accepts a job at the local fish and chips
shop owned by a friendly woman named Marie, and enrolls Frankie in school.
Through a Glasgow
post office box
, Frankie maintains a regular correspondence with someone he believes to be his father Davey, who allegedly is a merchant seaman working on the MS Accra. In reality, the letters he receives are written by his mother, who prefers maintaining this charade to telling her son the reason she fled her marriage.
In a panic when the boat docks at Greenock port, Lizzie concocts a scheme to hire a man to impersonate Davey, the abusive father. When her effort to find someone at the local pub fails, she enlists Marie's assistance. Marie arranges for her to meet an acquaintance of hers who coincidentally is passing through town at the same time the Accra will be in port. He doesn't tell Lizzie his name (and is cast as "The Stranger"). He agrees to spend a day with Frankie in exchange for the meager payment Lizzie can offer him. When he arrives at their home to pick up the boy, he brings him a book about marine life, one of Frankie's passions, and a bond is forged immediately.
A touching bond also develops between The Stranger and Lizzie. When he leaves to join his ship she finds he has returned her payments. We learn that the real Davey is dying. Lizzie reluctantly visits the hospital (without Frankie) and experiences her husband's violent fury because he can't see his son again. Frankie's deafness, Lizzie has explained, was "a present from his Daddy".
Frankie's last letter shows that he realises the true situation - that The Stranger was not his father - and the film's final long shot suggests that some kind of resolution has been achieved.
submitted to producer Caroline Wood, who had requested writing samples from potential screenwriters for what would be Auerbach's film debut after several years of directing commercials
. Auerbach was so enamored with Andrea Gibb's work she convinced her to expand it to feature
length.
The production design by Jennifer Kernke and palette of colors used throughout the film were inspired by paintings created by the Glasgow Boys and Glasgow Girls, Glasgow School
collectives whose artwork featured prosaic scenes of the Scottish countryside.
Jack McElhone
was among the first group of boys Auerbach auditioned for the role of Frankie. She continued to see about one hundred more but was unable to find any who captured the essence of the character, as she perceived it, more impressively than he did. The role of the character listed as The Stranger in the credits, although he is addressed as Louis in one scene, still had not been cast just prior to the scheduled start of filming. When Auerbach met Gerard Butler
, she instinctively knew he was perfect for the role and immediately offered it to him without having him read for her.
The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival
in May 2004. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard
section at the Cannes Film Festival
, where it received a fifteen-minute standing ovation. It was also shown at the Copenhagen International Film Festival
, the Edinburgh Film Festival, the Toronto Film Festival, the Bordeaux International Festival of Women in Cinema, the Aubagne Film Festival, the Dinard Festival of British Cinema, the Austin Film Festival
, the Chicago International Film Festival
, the Heartland Film Festival
, the Milwaukee International Film Festival, and the Scottsdale Film Festival before going into limited release in the UK and US.
The film grossed $1,341,332 in the US and $1,638,804 in foreign markets for a total worldwide box office of $2,980,136.
Roger Ebert
of the Chicago Sun-Times
said, "The filmmakers work close to the bone, finding emotional truth in hard, lonely lives . . . What eventually happens, while not entirely unpredictable, benefits from close observation, understated emotions, unspoken feelings, and the movie's tact . . . The bold long shot near the end of Dear Frankie allows the film to move straight as an arrow toward its emotional truth, without a single word or plot manipulation to distract us."
In the San Francisco Chronicle
, Ruthe Stein called the film "deeply moving" and added, "Dear Frankie takes time weaving its magic . . . Director Shona Auerbach doesn't rush anything in her remarkably accomplished first feature film. [She] has resurrected Butler's career . . . and gotten an unforgettable performance from Mortimer . . . . Jack McElhone seems to be a natural, the kind of child actor you can't wait to have grow up to see what he'll be able to do then."
Peter Travers
of Rolling Stone
rated the film three out of a possible four stars and commented, "What could have been a sentimental train wreck emerges as a funny and touching portrait of three bruised people . . . The film is unhurried, unslick and easy to hold dear."
In Variety
, David Rooney observed, "Material that might have turned to standard dysfunctional family treacle in other hands is given stirring poignancy, warmth and emotional insight in Shona Auerbach's assured first feature . . . [She has] a firm command of the visual medium and an equally strong rapport with actors . . . Auerbach and screenwriter Andrea Gibb spin a touching story that never descends into schmaltz despite ample potential. The film is anchored in part by its setting in the kind of milieu more common to classic British kitchen-sink dramas
or the films of Ken Loach
than to anything this emotionally tender. Enriched by subtle notes of humor, the intimate story is powered by well-drawn relationships and finely shaded characters. Not only the family bonds but also those of friendship and tentative romance are traced with delicate economy and nuance."
Carina Chocano of the Los Angeles Times
stated the film "nestles comfortably in that Scottish-Celt
ic niche of cozy, overcast, working-class
fairy tale
s that seem to smell faintly of fried fish and beer . . . Not that Dear Frankie aspires to any kind of hardened realism. On the contrary, it caters to a particular type of Anglophile fantasy, the kind where the china doesn't match and the chintz is dingy, but people look out for one another and love sprouts easily in the humidity . . . [Its] surprises are few and low-key, but the story wraps up nicely. In that way, the movie is not unlike the fish dinners Frankie . . . procures from Marie - slightly soggy and bland, but as warm, starchy and satisfying as a box of fries."
In the St. Petersburg Times
, Steve Persall graded the film B and added, "Auerbach and screenwriter Andrea Gibb handle these circumstances with such understated grace that sap becomes special. Not perfect, but deeper, more affecting than U.S. moviegoers are accustomed to seeing. It's easy to guess what happens, but we're hooked anyway. A last-reel twist almost spoils the effect; we're waiting for something to go wrong with such a delicate story. Then, almost magically, the performances pull us through the cumbersome moments, resulting in a pat finale that honestly feels good."
In the UK, Radio Times
awarded the film four out of a possible five stars and commented, "This simple story is rich with precise observation and it tugs at the heartstrings without being maudlin or manipulative . . . With its sincere and perceptive script, the beautifully shot film vividly captures the raw emotions of its complex characters . . . Despite occasional flickers of a fairy-tale ending, Auerbach ultimately resists the temptation, maintaining the realism and integrity that give this thoughtful feature its bittersweet charm." Philip French of The Observer
described it as "a well-meaning but almost totally unconvincing tale . . . [that's] a sentimental mess," while Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian
stated, "This film struck me as sucrose and false when it premiered at last year's Cannes film festival. A second viewing certainly points up the presence of good actors doing an honest job, but they cannot do anything about something so mawkish and fundamentally unconvincing."
The film holds an 80% "certified fresh" rating on rotten tomatoes
.
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
directed by Shona Auerbach
Shona Auerbach
Shona Auerbach is a British film director and cinematographer.Auerbach began her career as a stills photographer. She studied film at Manchester University and cinematography at Leeds before completing her Master of Arts at the Polish National Film School in Lodz...
. The screenplay
Screenplay
A screenplay or script is a written work that is made especially for a film or television program. Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of writing. In them, the movement, actions, expression, and dialogues of the characters are also narrated...
by Andrea Gibb
Andrea Gibb
Andrea Gibb, born in Greenock, Scotland, is a Scottish screenwriter and actress.She studied drama and sociology at Glasgow University and then did a post-graduate teaching degree at Manchester Polytechnic before going on to do an acting course at the Drama Studio in London.Gibb acted regularly in...
focuses on a young single mother whose love for her son prompts her to perpetuate a deception designed to protect him from the truth about his father.
Plot synopsis
Lizzie Morrison, her opinionated, chain-smoking mother Nell, and nine-year-old deaf son Frankie frequently move to keep one step ahead of her abusive ex-husband and his family. Newly relocated in the ScottishScotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
town of Greenock
Greenock
Greenock is a town and administrative centre in the Inverclyde council area in United Kingdom, and a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, located in the west central Lowlands of Scotland...
, she accepts a job at the local fish and chips
Fish and chips
Fish and chips is a popular take-away food in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and Canada...
shop owned by a friendly woman named Marie, and enrolls Frankie in school.
Through a Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
post office box
Post Office box
A post-office box or Post Office box is a uniquely addressable lockable box located on the premises of a post office station....
, Frankie maintains a regular correspondence with someone he believes to be his father Davey, who allegedly is a merchant seaman working on the MS Accra. In reality, the letters he receives are written by his mother, who prefers maintaining this charade to telling her son the reason she fled her marriage.
In a panic when the boat docks at Greenock port, Lizzie concocts a scheme to hire a man to impersonate Davey, the abusive father. When her effort to find someone at the local pub fails, she enlists Marie's assistance. Marie arranges for her to meet an acquaintance of hers who coincidentally is passing through town at the same time the Accra will be in port. He doesn't tell Lizzie his name (and is cast as "The Stranger"). He agrees to spend a day with Frankie in exchange for the meager payment Lizzie can offer him. When he arrives at their home to pick up the boy, he brings him a book about marine life, one of Frankie's passions, and a bond is forged immediately.
A touching bond also develops between The Stranger and Lizzie. When he leaves to join his ship she finds he has returned her payments. We learn that the real Davey is dying. Lizzie reluctantly visits the hospital (without Frankie) and experiences her husband's violent fury because he can't see his son again. Frankie's deafness, Lizzie has explained, was "a present from his Daddy".
Frankie's last letter shows that he realises the true situation - that The Stranger was not his father - and the film's final long shot suggests that some kind of resolution has been achieved.
Principal cast
- Emily MortimerEmily MortimerEmily Kathleen A. Mortimer is an English actress. She began performing on stage, and has since appeared in several film and television roles, including Scream 3, Match Point, Lars and the Real Girl, and Shutter Island....
..... Lizzie - Gerard ButlerGerard ButlerGerard James Butler is a Scottish actor who has appeared on film, stage, and television. A trained lawyer, Butler turned to acting in the mid-1990s with small roles in productions such as the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies , which he followed with steady work on television, most notably in...
..... The Stranger - Jack McElhoneJack McElhoneJack McElhone is a Scottish actor. He is famous for his role as Frankie in the 2004 film Dear Frankie, for which he was nominated for a BAFTA Scotland Award. He also had roles in Young Adam, The Book Group, Stacked and Nowhere Boy....
..... Frankie - Sean BrownSean BrownSean P. Brown is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman who currently plays for EC KAC in the Austrian Hockey League.-Playing career:...
....Ricky - Mary RiggansMary RiggansMary Riggans is a Scottish actress.-High Road:She is best known for her role as Effie Macinnes in the Scottish Television soap opera Take the High Road from the early 80s until the last episode in 2003.-Balamory:...
..... Nell - Sharon SmallSharon SmallSharon Small is a Scottish actress acclaimed for her dramatic work in film, radio, theatre and television. Her best-known TV role is that of Detective Sergeant Barbara Havers in the BBC television adaptation of the Inspector Lynley Mysteries by Elizabeth George.-Education and personal life:Small...
..... Marie - Cal MacaninchCal MacaninchCal MacAninch is a Scottish actor, best known for portraying the character of DI John Keenan in police drama Holby Blue on BBC 1 during 2007-8....
..... Davey
Production notes
In The Story, a bonus feature on the DVD release of the film, director Shona Auerbach and some of her cast discuss the project. The screenplay originated as a script for a 15-minute shortShort subject
A short film is any film not long enough to be considered a feature film. No consensus exists as to where that boundary is drawn: the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes or less, including all...
submitted to producer Caroline Wood, who had requested writing samples from potential screenwriters for what would be Auerbach's film debut after several years of directing commercials
Television advertisement
A television advertisement or television commercial, often just commercial, advert, ad, or ad-film – is a span of television programming produced and paid for by an organization that conveys a message, typically one intended to market a product...
. Auerbach was so enamored with Andrea Gibb's work she convinced her to expand it to feature
Feature film
In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...
length.
The production design by Jennifer Kernke and palette of colors used throughout the film were inspired by paintings created by the Glasgow Boys and Glasgow Girls, Glasgow School
Glasgow School
The Glasgow School was a circle of influential modern artists and designers who began to coalesce in Glasgow, Scotland in the 1870s, and flourished from the 1890s to sometime around 1910. Representative groups were: The Four , the Glasgow Girls and the Glasgow Boys...
collectives whose artwork featured prosaic scenes of the Scottish countryside.
Jack McElhone
Jack McElhone
Jack McElhone is a Scottish actor. He is famous for his role as Frankie in the 2004 film Dear Frankie, for which he was nominated for a BAFTA Scotland Award. He also had roles in Young Adam, The Book Group, Stacked and Nowhere Boy....
was among the first group of boys Auerbach auditioned for the role of Frankie. She continued to see about one hundred more but was unable to find any who captured the essence of the character, as she perceived it, more impressively than he did. The role of the character listed as The Stranger in the credits, although he is addressed as Louis in one scene, still had not been cast just prior to the scheduled start of filming. When Auerbach met Gerard Butler
Gerard Butler
Gerard James Butler is a Scottish actor who has appeared on film, stage, and television. A trained lawyer, Butler turned to acting in the mid-1990s with small roles in productions such as the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies , which he followed with steady work on television, most notably in...
, she instinctively knew he was perfect for the role and immediately offered it to him without having him read for her.
The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival
Tribeca Film Festival
The Tribeca Film Festival is a film festival founded in 2002 by Jane Rosenthal, Robert De Niro and Craig Hatkoff in a response to the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and the consequent loss of vitality in the TriBeCa neighborhood in Lower Manhattan.The mission of the festival...
in May 2004. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard
Un Certain Regard
Un Certain Regard is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's Official Selection. It is run at the Salle Debussy, parallel to the competition for the Palme d'Or.This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob...
section at the Cannes Film Festival
2004 Cannes Film Festival
The 2004 Cannes Film Festival started on May 12 and ran until May 23. The Palme d'Or went to the American film Fahrenheit 9/11 by Michael Moore.-Jury:* Quentin Tarantino, President * Emmanuelle Béart * Edwidge Danticat * Tilda Swinton...
, where it received a fifteen-minute standing ovation. It was also shown at the Copenhagen International Film Festival
Copenhagen International Film Festival
Copenhagen International Film Festival is a film festival held in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was first held in 2003, and is held annually. The main award at the Copenhagen International Film Festival is the Golden Swan, which will be awarded for Best Film, Best Director, Best Actress, Best Actor, Best...
, the Edinburgh Film Festival, the Toronto Film Festival, the Bordeaux International Festival of Women in Cinema, the Aubagne Film Festival, the Dinard Festival of British Cinema, the Austin Film Festival
Austin Film Festival
The Austin Film Festival was started in 1994 in Austin, Texas and is claimed to be "the first organization of its kind to focus on the writer’s unique creative contribution to the film and television industries"...
, the Chicago International Film Festival
Chicago International Film Festival
The Chicago International Film Festival is an annual film festival held every fall. Founded in 1964, it is the longest-running competitive film festival in North America....
, the Heartland Film Festival
Heartland Film Festival
The Heartland Film Festival is a film festival held each October in Indianapolis, Indiana. First held in 1992, its goal is to "recognize and honor filmmakers whose work explores the human journey by artistically expressing hope and respect for the positive values of life."In May 2007, Heartland...
, the Milwaukee International Film Festival, and the Scottsdale Film Festival before going into limited release in the UK and US.
The film grossed $1,341,332 in the US and $1,638,804 in foreign markets for a total worldwide box office of $2,980,136.
Critical reception
In his review in the New York Times, Stephen Holden called the film "a heaping bowl of Scottish blarney," a "manipulative tearjerker," and "a fraudulent yarn riddled with plot holes and improbabilities and topped by a cynical final twist that pulls the rug out from under the story."Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
of the Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times
The Chicago Sun-Times is an American daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois. It is the flagship paper of the Sun-Times Media Group.-History:The Chicago Sun-Times is the oldest continuously published daily newspaper in the city...
said, "The filmmakers work close to the bone, finding emotional truth in hard, lonely lives . . . What eventually happens, while not entirely unpredictable, benefits from close observation, understated emotions, unspoken feelings, and the movie's tact . . . The bold long shot near the end of Dear Frankie allows the film to move straight as an arrow toward its emotional truth, without a single word or plot manipulation to distract us."
In the San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle
thumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
, Ruthe Stein called the film "deeply moving" and added, "Dear Frankie takes time weaving its magic . . . Director Shona Auerbach doesn't rush anything in her remarkably accomplished first feature film. [She] has resurrected Butler's career . . . and gotten an unforgettable performance from Mortimer . . . . Jack McElhone seems to be a natural, the kind of child actor you can't wait to have grow up to see what he'll be able to do then."
Peter Travers
Peter Travers
Peter Travers is an American film critic, who has written for, in turn, People and Rolling Stone. Travers also hosts a celebrity interview show called Popcorn on ABC News Now and ABCNews.com.-Career:...
of Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
rated the film three out of a possible four stars and commented, "What could have been a sentimental train wreck emerges as a funny and touching portrait of three bruised people . . . The film is unhurried, unslick and easy to hold dear."
In Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
, David Rooney observed, "Material that might have turned to standard dysfunctional family treacle in other hands is given stirring poignancy, warmth and emotional insight in Shona Auerbach's assured first feature . . . [She has] a firm command of the visual medium and an equally strong rapport with actors . . . Auerbach and screenwriter Andrea Gibb spin a touching story that never descends into schmaltz despite ample potential. The film is anchored in part by its setting in the kind of milieu more common to classic British kitchen-sink dramas
Kitchen sink realism
Kitchen sink realism is a term coined to describe a British cultural movement which developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s in theatre, art, novels, film and television plays, whose 'heroes' usually could be described as angry young men...
or the films of Ken Loach
Ken Loach
Kenneth "Ken" Loach is a Palme D'Or winning English film and television director.He is known for his naturalistic, social realist directing style and for his socialist beliefs, which are evident in his film treatment of social issues such as homelessness , labour rights and child abuse at the...
than to anything this emotionally tender. Enriched by subtle notes of humor, the intimate story is powered by well-drawn relationships and finely shaded characters. Not only the family bonds but also those of friendship and tentative romance are traced with delicate economy and nuance."
Carina Chocano of the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
stated the film "nestles comfortably in that Scottish-Celt
Celt
The Celts were a diverse group of tribal societies in Iron Age and Roman-era Europe who spoke Celtic languages.The earliest archaeological culture commonly accepted as Celtic, or rather Proto-Celtic, was the central European Hallstatt culture , named for the rich grave finds in Hallstatt, Austria....
ic niche of cozy, overcast, working-class
Working class
Working class is a term used in the social sciences and in ordinary conversation to describe those employed in lower tier jobs , often extending to those in unemployment or otherwise possessing below-average incomes...
fairy tale
Fairy tale
A fairy tale is a type of short story that typically features such folkloric characters, such as fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, dwarves, giants or gnomes, and usually magic or enchantments. However, only a small number of the stories refer to fairies...
s that seem to smell faintly of fried fish and beer . . . Not that Dear Frankie aspires to any kind of hardened realism. On the contrary, it caters to a particular type of Anglophile fantasy, the kind where the china doesn't match and the chintz is dingy, but people look out for one another and love sprouts easily in the humidity . . . [Its] surprises are few and low-key, but the story wraps up nicely. In that way, the movie is not unlike the fish dinners Frankie . . . procures from Marie - slightly soggy and bland, but as warm, starchy and satisfying as a box of fries."
In the St. Petersburg Times
St. Petersburg Times
The St. Petersburg Times is a United States newspaper. It is one of two major publications serving the Tampa Bay Area, the other being The Tampa Tribune, which the Times tops in both circulation and readership. Based in St...
, Steve Persall graded the film B and added, "Auerbach and screenwriter Andrea Gibb handle these circumstances with such understated grace that sap becomes special. Not perfect, but deeper, more affecting than U.S. moviegoers are accustomed to seeing. It's easy to guess what happens, but we're hooked anyway. A last-reel twist almost spoils the effect; we're waiting for something to go wrong with such a delicate story. Then, almost magically, the performances pull us through the cumbersome moments, resulting in a pat finale that honestly feels good."
In the UK, Radio Times
Radio Times
Radio Times is a UK weekly television and radio programme listings magazine, owned by the BBC. It has been published since 1923 by BBC Magazines, which also provides an on-line listings service under the same title...
awarded the film four out of a possible five stars and commented, "This simple story is rich with precise observation and it tugs at the heartstrings without being maudlin or manipulative . . . With its sincere and perceptive script, the beautifully shot film vividly captures the raw emotions of its complex characters . . . Despite occasional flickers of a fairy-tale ending, Auerbach ultimately resists the temptation, maintaining the realism and integrity that give this thoughtful feature its bittersweet charm." Philip French of The Observer
The Observer
The Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-Origins:The first issue,...
described it as "a well-meaning but almost totally unconvincing tale . . . [that's] a sentimental mess," while Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
stated, "This film struck me as sucrose and false when it premiered at last year's Cannes film festival. A second viewing certainly points up the presence of good actors doing an honest job, but they cannot do anything about something so mawkish and fundamentally unconvincing."
The film holds an 80% "certified fresh" rating on rotten tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
.
Awards and nominations
- BAFTA Award for Best NewcomerBAFTA Award for Best Newcomer-Best British Director, Producer or Writer in the First Film:*2006 - Red Road - Andrea Arnold**Black Sun – Gary Tarn**Pierrepoint – Christine Langan**London to Brighton – Paul Andrew Williams...
(Shona Auerbach, nominee) - BAFTA ScotlandBAFTA ScotlandBAFTA in Scotland is the Scottish branch of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts. Formed in 1997, the branch holds an annual awards ceremony, the British Academy Scotland Awards , to recognise achievement by performers and production staff in Scottish film, television and video games...
Award for Best Director (Auerbach, nominee) - BAFTA Scotland Award for Best First Time Performance (Jack McElhone, nominee)
- European Film Awards Jameson People's Choice Award for Best European Actress (Emily Mortimer, nominee)
- London Film Critics Circle Award for Best ActressLondon Film Critics Circle Award for Best ActressThe London Film Critics Circle Award for Actress of the Year in an annual award given by the London Film Critics Circle.-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:...
(Mortimer, nominee) - Heartland Film FestivalHeartland Film FestivalThe Heartland Film Festival is a film festival held each October in Indianapolis, Indiana. First held in 1992, its goal is to "recognize and honor filmmakers whose work explores the human journey by artistically expressing hope and respect for the positive values of life."In May 2007, Heartland...
Crystal Heart Award (Auerbach, winner) - High Falls Film FestivalRochester-High Falls International Film FestivalThe 360 | 365 Film Festival is an annual film festival held each spring in Rochester, New York. The executive director of the festival was Rosie Taravella from 2006-2009...
Audience Award for Best Feature Film (winner) - Jackson Hole Film Festival Cowboy Award for Best Feature Film (winner)
- Los Angeles IFP/West Film Festival Audience Award for Best International Feature Film (winner)
- Montreal World Film FestivalMontreal World Film FestivalThe Montreal World Film Festival , founded in 1977, is one of Canada's oldest international film festivals and the only competitive film festival in North America accredited by the FIAPF...
Golden Zenith Award (winner) - Seattle International Film FestivalSeattle International Film FestivalThe Seattle International Film Festival , held annually in Seattle, Washington since 1976, is among the top film festivals in North America. Audiences have grown steadily; the 2006 festival had 160,000 attendees...
Women in Cinema Lena Sharpe Award (Auerbach, winner) - WinFemme Film Festival Award for Best Film or TV Show Directed by a Woman (winner)