The Irish-produced films Pillion and My Father's Shadow triumphed at the British Independent Film Awards on Sunday, while Donegal filmmaker Myrid Carten recieved three awards for her acclaimed debut feature A Want In Her.
Pillion, produced and developed by the Dublin based Element Pictures, won four prizes - Best British Independent Film, Best Debut Screenwriter for Harry Lighton, Best Costume for Grace Snell and Best Hair and Make Up for Diandra Ferreira.
It follows Colin, a reserved young gay man played by Harry Potter’s Harry Melling, as he becomes entangled in an unconventional relationship with the enigmatic biker Ray, played by Swedish actor Alexander Skarsgård.
Among a raft of other nominations, Melling and Skarsgård had also been shortlisted for Best Lead Performance and Best Supporting Role, respectively.
"I think it’s really incredible that a movie like Pillion can get made in 2025," Skarsgård said before the award ceremony.
"I love it when I come across scripts that are unique. Often, the bigger the budget, the more people involved, the more executives involved, the more anxiety it is, the less risk-taking is often involved because everyone wants a return on their money."
The Element Pictures film My Father's Shadow, which was the most nominated film of the year at the BIFAs with 12 nominations, took home the award for Best Director for Akinola Davies Jr.
The family drama was co-written with his brother Wale Davies and is set during the 1993 Nigerian election.
Co-CEOs and founders of Element Pictures, Ed Guiney and Andrew Lowe, said: "We are so thrilled with these BIFA wins for My Father's Shadow and Pillion.
"What a tribute to Harry Lighton, Akinola Davis Jnr, and the incredibly talented cast and crew of both films. These awards are a recognition of the creativity and hard work that went into bringing these stories to life.
"We are also immensely grateful to our financiers and partners, and the team here at Element Pictures, particularly Emma Norton, who produced on Pillion, and Rachel Dargavel, who produced on My Father’s Shadow."
Myrid Carten's A Want in Her took home three awards at the BIFAs - Best Feature Documentary, Best Debut Director - Feature Documentary and The Raindance Maverick Award.
The acclaimed documentary sees the Donegal visual artist turn the lens on her fractured family, torn apart by grief, a contested inheritance and her mother Nuala's struggle with alcoholism and mental illness.
Irish cinematographer Seamus McGarvey won the award for Best Cinematography for the Jennifer Lawrence and Robert Pattinson-starring drama Die My Love.
The Ballad of Wallis Island – a comedy-drama about a faded folk duo who reluctantly reunite for a wealthy fan on a remote Welsh island – won two awards, with co-stars and writers Tim Key and Tom Basden taking home Best Screenplay and Joint Lead Performance.
The film also won the previously announced original music prize.
Meanwhile, Robert Aramayo earned the award for Best Lead Performance for his role as Tourette’s campaigner in Kirk Jones in I Swear.
Posy Sterling won Best Breakthrough Performance for her role as Molly in Lollipop, portraying a mother striving to regain custody of her children after being released from prison.
Other big names in attendance on the night included Carey Mulligan, Billy Crudup, Academy Award nominee Andrea Riseborough and Traitors star Celia Imrie.
Elsewhere, Emily Watson received the Richard Harris Award for her outstanding contribution to British film, an honour named after the late Limerick-born actor.
Damian, Jared and Jamie Harris, in whose father’s memory the award is presented, said in a statement: "Emily is too young to be called a national treasure, but any performance of hers is a cultural event and she enhances the quality of everything in which she appears.
"She rightly takes her place alongside the past recipients of the Richard Harris Award."
The ceremony was hosted by comedians Lou Sanders and Harriet Kemsley at London's Roundhouse.
Additional reporting: Press Association
Read more: Donegal filmmaker Myrid Carten confronts family truths in new film
