The British Independent Film Award for Best Director is an annual award given by the British Independent Film Awards (BIFA) to recognize the best directing in a British independent film. The award was first presented in the 1998 ceremony being Ken Loach the first recipient of this award for his work in the film My Name is Joe.
Andrea Arnold and Rungano Nyoni are the only directors who have received this award more than once, with two wins each. Ken Loach holds the record of most nominations for this category with five, followed by Mike Leigh, Shane Meadows, and Michael Winterbottom, all with four each.
Winners and nominees 1990s YearDirector(s)Film 1998 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 1999 Anand Tucker Hilary and Jackie Bill Condon Gods and Monsters Shane Meadows A Room for Romeo Brass Tim Roth The War Zone Michael Winterbottom Wonderland
2000s YearDirector(s)Film 2000 Stephen Daldry Billy Elliot Nigel Cole Saving Grace Terence Davies The House of Mirth Mike Leigh Topsy-Turvy Paweł Pawlikowski Last Resort 2001 Jonathan Glazer Sexy Beast Michael Apted Enigma Ken Loach Bread and Roses Michael Winterbottom The Claim 2002 Paul Greengrass Bloody Sunday Neil Hunter and Tom Hunsinger Lawless Heart Ken Loach Sweet Sixteen Lynne Ramsay Morvern Callar 2003 Stephen Frears Dirty Pretty Things Danny Boyle 28 Days Later David Mackenzie Young Adam Jim Sheridan In America Michael Winterbottom In This World 2004 Mike Leigh Vera Drake Kevin Macdonald Touching the Void Shane Meadows Dead Man's Shoes Roger Michell Enduring Love Paweł Pawlikowski My Summer of Love 2005 Neil Marshall The Descent Laurence Dunmore The Libertine Stephen Frears Mrs Henderson Presents Fernando Meirelles The Constant Gardener Michael Winterbottom A Cock and Bull Story 2006 Kevin Macdonald The Last King of Scotland Michael Caton-Jones Shooting Dogs Stephen Frears The Queen Ken Loach The Wind That Shakes the Barley Shane Meadows This Is England 2007 Anton Corbijn Control David Cronenberg Eastern Promises Sarah Gavron Brick Lane David Mackenzie Hallam Foe Anand Tucker And When Did You Last See Your Father? 2008 Danny Boyle Slumdog Millionaire Mark Herman The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas Garth Jennings Son of Rambow Steve McQueen Hunger Shane Meadows Somers Town 2009 Andrea Arnold Fish Tank Jane Campion Bright Star Armando Iannucci In the Loop Duncan Jones Moon Lone Scherfig An Education
2010s YearDirector(s)Film 2010 Gareth Edwards Monsters Tom Hooper The King's Speech Mike Leigh Another Year Mark Romanek Never Let Me Go Matthew Vaughn Kick-Ass 2011 Lynne Ramsay We Need to Talk About Kevin Tomas Alfredson Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy Paddy Considine Tyrannosaur Steve McQueen Shame Ben Wheatley Kill List 2012 Peter Strickland Berberian Sound Studio Bart Layton The Imposter John Madden The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel Rufus Norris Broken Ben Wheatley Sightseers 2013 Sean Ellis Metro Manila Jon S. Baird Filth Clio Barnard The Selfish Giant Jonathan Glazer Under the Skin David Mackenzie Starred Up 2014 Yann Demange '71 Lenny Abrahamson Frank Mike Leigh Mr. Turner John Michael McDonagh Calvary Matthew Warchus Pride 2015 Alex Garland Ex Machina Andrew Haigh 45 Years Asif Kapadia Amy Justin Kurzel Macbeth Yorgos Lanthimos The Lobster 2016 Andrea Arnold American Honey Babak Anvari Under the Shadow Ken Loach I, Daniel Blake James Spinney and Pete Middleton Notes on Blindness Ben Wheatley Free Fire 2017 Rungano Nyoni I Am Not a Witch Armando Iannucci The Death of Stalin Francis Lee God's Own Country Martin McDonagh Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri William Oldroyd Lady Macbeth 2018 Yorgos Lanthimos The Favourite Andrew Haigh Lean on Pete Bart Layton American Animals Michael Pearce Beast Lynne Ramsay You Were Never Really Here 2019 Waad Al-Kateab and Edward Watts For Sama Oliver Hermanus Moffie Joanna Hogg The Souvenir Mark Jenkin Bait Asif Kapadia Diego Maradona
2020s YearDirector(s)Film 2020 Remi Weekes His House Sarah Gavron Rocks Rose Glass Saint Maud Nick Rowland Calm with Horses Florian Zeller The Father 2021 Aleem Khan After Love Philip Barantini Boiling Point Clio Barnard Ali & Ava Sean Durkin The Nest Joanna Hogg The Souvenir Part II 2022 Charlotte Wells Aftersun Oliver Hermanus Living Sophie Hyde Good Luck to You, Leo Grande Sebastián Lelio The Wonder Georgia Oakley Blue Jean 2023 Andrew Haigh All of Us Strangers Raine Allen-Miller Rye Lane Sam H. Freeman and Ng Choon Ping Femme Molly Manning Walker How to Have Sex Charlotte Regan Scrapper 2024 Rungano Nyoni On Becoming a Guinea Fowl Andrea Arnold Bird Nora Fingscheidt The Outrun Rose Glass Love Lies Bleeding Rich Peppiatt Kneecap 2025 Akinola Davies Jr. My Father's Shadow Laura Carreira On Falling Kirk Jones I Swear Harry Lighton Pillion Lynne Ramsay Die My Love
Multiple nominations
5 nominations Ken Loach 4 nominations Mike Leigh Shane Meadows Lynne Ramsay Michael Winterbottom 3 nominations Andrea Arnold Stephen Frears Andrew Haigh David Mackenzie Ben Wheatley
2 nominations Clio Barnard Danny Boyle Sarah Gavron Jonathan Glazer Oliver Hermanus Joanna Hogg Armando Iannucci Asif Kapadia Yorgos Lanthimos Bart Layton Kevin Macdonald Steve McQueen Rungano Nyoni Paweł Pawlikowski Anand Tucker
Multiple wins
2 wins Andrea Arnold Rungano Nyoni
References
External links Official website