BAFTAs: How the iconic trophy mask is made

Written by CNN StaffLondon

The very first BAFTA mask, cast in bronze, was awarded in 1976 to Charlie Chaplin. Since then, it has become one of the most recognizable and distinctive awards in the film and television industry, and cemented its role as the UK's equivalent of an Oscar.

Its design originated in 1955, when Andrew Miller-Jones of the Guild of Television Producers in the UK commissioned a trophy mask from American artist Mitzi Cunliffe, who had moved to the UK in 1949.

She based her design on the theatrical tragicomic mask, but she cleverly also added some symbols to the inside of the mask: an atom around one eye and a screen around the other, to symbolize the nascent link between drama and TV technology.

JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP/AFP/Getty Images

Later, in 1958, the Guild of Television Producers merged with the British Film Academy to form the Society of Film and Television Arts, which then became the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, or BAFTA, in 1976.

The same foundry in West Drayton, in the London borough of Hillingdon, has been producing the masks since then. Today they make around 270 annually, in batches of ten, using a phosphor bronze alloy.

2019 BAFTA nominations announced

The 2019 BAFTA nominations have seen "The Favourite," a 18th century period comedy-drama, lead the pack with 12 nods, including one for each of the three actresses starring in the film, Emma Stone, Rachel Weisz and Olivia Colman.

"A Star is born," with Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper, and the Freddy Mercury biopic "Bohemian Rhapsody" follow with seven nominations each.

The ceremony, which is seen as an indication of what might happen at the Oscars, will take place in London on Feb. 10, 2018.

Watch the video above to discover how the BAFTA masks are made.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

from CNN.com - RSS Channel https://cnn.it/2TyH4cn