Midlands Movies 2020 Awards

The Midlands Movies Awards

Our Midlands 'Oscars' are a platform to honour the local films released in the previous 12 months – whether they be shorts, features, animation, documentaries and more. We reward the region’s talent across 16 categories such as ‘Best Picture’, ‘Best Actor / Actress’, ‘Best Director’ and many others. Midlands Movies supports and is pleased to recognise the fantastic movie-making talent in the area each year. The 2024 Midlands Movies Awards are now closed for submissions


Our jury panel

Every season the nominations and eventual winners are chosen by an experienced jury made up of a wide-range of industry experts. Previous jury panel members include Shane Meadows (This Is England director), Steve Oram (actor/writer), Richard Billingham (Turner prize nominee & director of Ray & Liz), James Luxford (Radio Times film critic), Becky Adams (CEO Screen Northants), Dharmesh Rajput (Head of Birmingham Indian Film Festival) and Pin Cushion director Deborah Haywood. See below for the full 2024 panel line-up!


The event ceremony
The 2024 event will place at the Y Theatre in Leicester on Saturday 8th June 2024.

The 2024 Jury Panel

PARMINDER NAGRA

VIP JURY PANEL MEMBER

PARMINDER WILL CHOOSE THE WINNER OF 2024 BEST SHORT FILM CATEGORY


Parminder is a British actress best known for her star-making role as ‘Jess Bhambra’ in the film BEND IT LIKE BECKHAM, as well as ‘Dr Neela Rasgotra’ in the Emmy Award-winning TV drama series, ER. Born and raised in Leicester, Parminder got her start after joining the theatre company, Hathi Productions, which led to various roles in theatre, television, and film. She is also well known for her appearances in THE BLACKLIST for NBC, J.J Abrams’ ALCATRAZ, and more recently, her starring role in the female driven medical series, MATERNAL, for ITV. Other notable credits include Netflix’s BIRD BOX, Marvel’s AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D., and 13 REASONS WHY for Netflix. This past July, Parminder completed the second installment as the titular character of the ITV series, DI RAY. 

Sophie Ivanova (Birmingham Film & TV Market) is an award-winning producer, actor, multi-platform businesswoman and owner of Inspirit Productions Ltd. She is one of three filmmakers that launch the Birmingham Film & TV Market, an industry event that connects commissioners and distributors with writers and producers at any stage of their career. Over the years, she has worked closely with several film bodies in the Midlands towards the mutual goal of strengthening the film infrastructure in the region.

Peter Munford (Derby Quad & Satori Screen) has been a member of staff at the Derby QUAD Arts Centre for over a decade. In that time, he has worked in various capacities including a key role in the delivery of Paracinema Cult Film Festival and Derby Film Festival. Since 2012 he has programmed and provided introductions for Satori Screen, a night devoted to putting East Asian cinema on the big screen. He is now QUAD’s Film & Marketing Officer and 2024 will see him taking on a new role as Derby Film Festival director.

Michael Ellis (Award-winning filmmaker) is a Birmingham filmmaker who has written and directed a range of short films, including Corrupt which won Best Short Film (chosen by Shane Meadows) at the Midlands Movies Awards 2021. He also won Best Thriller Short for his film Breakdown at the Padova 4th Wall Indie Filmmaker Festival. Michael graduated Birmingham City University and immerses himself in world cinema and sees film as a tool for highlighting social issues and positive change.

Lee Nabbs (Mockingbird Cinema) is the Cinema Programmer at The Mockingbird Cinema in Birmingham & responsible for scheduling films to ensure a diverse line-up for movie-goers. His experience and for film has established the cinema as a main hub for independent film in the Midlands. Lee is also a founding member of the Birmingham Youth Film Network & Reel Brum – networks which support local filmmaking talent by providing resources and opportunities to creatives.

Poppy Abbott (Nexus Cast & Crew Network) is an actor and writer based in Birmingham and her debut play Blackout was performed at The Old Joint Stock and The Old Rep Theatre in Brum before being adapted into a short film (supported by the Birmingham Short Film Fund). Poppy is also Head of Marketing for Nexus Cast & Crew Network CIC as well as the co-founder of Untamed, a community supporting creatives and performers. And she also works as an acting tutor and facilitator.

Michael Sales (Midlands Movies) is the founder and editor of Midlands Movies. Set up in 2013, Midlands Movies is a hub which showcases a wide variety of talent from the region’s film industry. Mike has regularly appeared on BBC Radio Leicester and Derby and has provided support for filmmakers on the BACK IN programme in Birmingham. Based in Leicester, Mike is passionate that the Midlands Movies Awards are once again a place to honour and celebrate the best local film-making creatives in the region.

Photo gallery

Please check out the guests, filmmakers, cast, crew, nominees & winners from our 2023 Awards below.

All photos courtesy of POYNER & MEE PHOTOGRAPHY (click for link)

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