ANDY SERKIS, SADIE FROST AND MICHELLE DOCKERY JOIN THE BAFTA EE RISING STAR AWARD JURY PANEL TO SELECT THE COVETED AWARD’S 2022 SHORTLIST

• BAFTA-winner Andy Serkis joined filmmaker and actress Sadie Frost and Downton Abbey star Michelle Dockery to select the EE Rising Star Award shortlist for the 2022 EE British Academy Film Awards
• Chaired by BAFTA Chair, Krishnendu Majumdar, the esteemed jury panel also included casting directors Lucy Bevan (Belfast) and Leo Davis (The Queen) who all met at the recently redeveloped BAFTA headquarters to select this year’s shortlist of young and up-and-coming talent
• The EE Rising Star Award 2022 celebrates its 17^th anniversary with previous winners including Bukky Bakray, Micheal Ward, Letitia Wright, Daniel Kaluuya, John Boyega, and Tom Hardy
• The shortlist will be announced 1^st February when voting will open to the British public at ee.co.uk/BAFTA
• Nominations for all categories at the EE British Academy Film Awards will be announced on 3^rd February 2022, with the ceremony being broadcast on Sunday 13^th March on BBC One

Wednesday 1^st December, London: BAFTA-winner Andy Serkis (War for the Planet of the Apes and Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker), who was honoured at the 2020 EE British Academy Film Awards for Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema, joined actresses Sadie Frost (Waiting for Anya) and Michelle Dockery (Downton Abbey), alongside a host of other industry experts, to select the EE Rising Star Award shortlist for the 2022 EE British Academy Film Awards.

Now in its seventeenth year, it is the only EE British Academy Film Awards category to be voted for by the British public. Celebrating new and up-and-coming talent within the industry, past recipients of the EE Rising Star Award have gone on to achieve some of cinema’s highest accolades and become household names. The prestigious list of previous winners includes James McAvoy, Eva Green, Juno Temple, Tom Hardy, Kristen Stewart, Jack O’Connell, Will Poulter, John Boyega, Tom Holland, Daniel Kaluuya, Letitia Wright, Micheal Ward, and last year’s winner Bukky Bakray.

Accompanying Andy Serkis, Sadie Frost and Michelle Dockery on the jury panel were an outstanding line-up of industry experts, gathered to debate the merits of the emerging talent longlist. The jury meeting took place at BAFTA’s headquarters 195 Piccadilly that has just experienced a major redevelopment. The winner will be revealed at the ceremony on Sunday 13^th March 2022.

Chaired by EMMY-winning and BAFTA-nominated television producer and BAFTA Chair, Krishnendu Majumdar, the panel also included casting directors, Lucy Bevan (Cruella and Belfast), Leo Davis (The Queen and A Very English Scandal), producer Uzma Hasan (FirstBorn) and senior talent agent Ikki El-Amriti (Identity Agency Group). The jury was completed by prominent film, entertainment, and arts journalists.

Andy Serkis said: “I’m thrilled to be a part of the process in selecting this year’s hugely talented candidates, and it’s been incredibly hard to just pick five actors, but I have no doubt I will enjoy watching their performances for a long time to come. It’s been such a challenging time in the film industry but it’s reassuring to know that in its 17th year, the EE Rising Star Award is still just as exciting and more relevant than ever. What’s so wonderful is that EE is empowering film fans to cast their vote, and I can’t wait to see who the recipient for 2022 will be.”

Sadie Frost said: “When I was asked to join this year’s EE Rising Star Award panel, I was delighted. The level of talent within the film industry continues to surprise me so it will be very interesting to see who has made the shortlist. It’s such a fantastic opportunity to put some incredible young talent in the spotlight and I can’t wait to watch these fresh new faces go on to achieve magnificent things.”

Michelle Dockery said: “It’s been a huge honour for me to deliberate alongside the impressive panel of jurors. The industry is bursting with such incredible talent and watching the films over the past few weeks has been such a joy. I’ve really enjoyed getting in the room and discussing the performances with the other jurors and can’t wait to see who will go on to win the public vote.”

EE Rising Star Award jury chair and BAFTA Chair, Krishnendu Majumdar, said: “At BAFTA, supporting and showcasing new talent is integral to everything we do, and the EE Rising Star Award is a fantastic opportunity to put some first class up-and-coming talent in the spotlight. This is the only film award category voted for by the public and I’m delighted to say the calibre of this year’s talent is outstanding. I’m looking forward to revealing the five nominees next year and seeing who will take home the award on March 13^th.”

Pete Jeavons, Marketing Communications Director at BT and EE said: “Celebrating its 17^th year, the EE Rising Star Award is the only category to be voted for by the British public and remains one of the most talked about accolades at the EE British Academy Film Awards. We are proud to work alongside BAFTA to provide film fans with a voice. Over the years, EE Rising Star Award nominees and winners have achieved enviable industry success and have provided us with some breath-taking performances in some of the world’s most recognisable films.

“There has never been a more important time to celebrate the film industry with the year we have just had. We are as grateful as ever to the panel of experts who have spent hours watching films, debating, discussing and providing their professional opinion on who will go on to be named our 2022 EE Rising Star.”

The EE Rising Star award was created in honour of the late Mary Selway. A highly respected and BAFTA award-winning casting director whose 36-year career saw her work on more than ninety films and work with leading directors such as Steven Spielberg and Clint Eastwood.

Mary’s work contributed to the creation of some of the silver screen’s most memorable characters and in 2001 she received BAFTA’s Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema Award.

The EE Rising Star Award shortlist will be announced on 1^st February 2022, at which point public voting will open and be available to all UK residents at ee.co.uk/BAFTA.

The nominations for the EE British Academy Film Awards will be announced 3^rd February 2022, with the ceremony being broadcast on Sunday 13^th March 2022 on BBC One.

EE has been a long-standing partner of the BAFTA Film Awards, working to bring film fans closer to the BAFTAs through the magic of technology. Since the partnership began, EE has not only worked with BAFTA to introduce the EE Rising Star Award which is now in its 17^th year, but also used its award-winning network to create new and exciting opportunities for film fans to be part of the action on the red carpet.

For more information visit: ee.co.uk/BAFTA #EERisingStar

- ENDS –

For more information, please contact M&C Saatchi Talk on eebafta@mcsaatchi.com

About EE

EE runs the UK's biggest and fastest mobile network, offering superfast connections in more places than any other operator. EE brought the first 4G network to the UK in October 2012 and launched the UK’s first 5G network in May 2019.

EE has received extensive independent recognition, including being named the UK’s no.1 5G network by RootMetrics® in 2020 and being named the UK's best network every year since 2014 for the following awards: The Mobile Choice Awards, The Mobile Industry Awards and by RootMetrics®.

As well as offering mobile services to consumers and small and medium businesses, EE also provides home and business broadband using both 4G and fixed line connections.

EE is committed to being number one for service in the industry and has nearly 600 shops across the UK. EE remains the only mobile provider to answer 100% of customer calls in the UK and Ireland and was recognised as the UK’s Best Large Contact Centre by the UK Customer Experience Awards 2018 and Welsh Contact Centre Awards 2019. EE was awarded The Sunday Times’ Best 100 Companies to Work for in 2018 and 2019, as well as being named Best Employer 2018 by the European Contact Centre & Customer Service awards.

EE is part of BT’s Consumer business unit which provides products and services to all of BT’s consumer customers in the UK. Follow us on:

Facebook at: www.facebook.com/ee

Twitter at: www.twitter.com/ee

YouTube at: www.youtube.com/ee

LinkedIn at: www.linkedin.com/company/ee-uk

About BAFTA

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) is a world-leading independent arts charity that brings the very best work in film, games and television to public attention and supports the growth of creative talent in the UK and internationally. Through its Awards ceremonies and year-round programme of learning events and initiatives – which includes workshops, masterclasses, scholarships, lectures and mentoring schemes in the UK, USA and Asia – BAFTA identifies and celebrates excellence, discovers, inspires and nurtures new talent, and enables learning and creative collaboration. For advice and inspiration from the best creative minds working in film, games and television, visit www.bafta.org/guru

For more, visit www.bafta.org.