The Cornwall-based filmmaker didn’t hit a wall that night, but his actress partner did walk into a road sign on the way to the Netflix party
Director Mark Jenkin, together with producers Linn Waite and Kate Byers, won the award for outstanding British debut at the 2020 Baftas for Bait, a black-and-white tale of Cornish fishing folk that he shot on hand-processed, post-synced 16mm film. His follow-up Enys Men premiered in Directors’ Fortnight at Cannes in 2022, while his new film Rose Of Nevada, an ethereal mystery about a time-travelling fishing trawler that stars George MacKay and Callum Turner, played at Venice, Toronto and London this year ahead of its UK release next spring. He lives in Cornwall with his actress partner Mary Woodvine, who has appeared in all his features to date.
How did you feel when your name was called?
My mum hadn’t been well a few weeks before the ceremony, and we weren’t sure if she was going to come. So my first thought was being glad that we’d won, because my mum had come along. To start with, everybody just stood around hugging. And then Kate or Linn said, “Come on, we’ve got to go down there.” It was at the Royal Albert Hall and I remember there being endless stairs to walk; it just took forever. I remember walking past [Robert] De Niro, [Al] Pacino and [Quentin] Tarantino, all looking at me and clapping. At that point it gets very surreal and anxiety-inducing. But I remember being distracted by how shiny the floor was, which took my mind off it.
What do you remember from your speech?
I had some stuff written on a piece of paper and I went to take it out of my pocket, but I never did. I’ve watched the clip back and there’s a weird thing where my hand is half in and half out of my suit pocket. I hadn’t realised you have a big clock that counts down from 45 seconds, so there’s a mad panic to thank everybody. I think I managed everyone, except for my agent.
You said thank you in Cornish.
Yes, it was nice to get that in and it got a huge amount of attention. Just saying “meur ras” was a big deal. In the press conference afterwards, I was asked if I was waving a flag for British film. I said, “No, I’m waving a flag for Cornish film,” which got a cheer and a round of applause.
Where did you go after your win?
We went to the meal at the Grosvenor but I don’t remember if I ate; everybody wants to chat. Then Mary and I, and the Bafta, went to the Netflix party at the Chiltern Firehouse. We were on the pavement trying to get a cab and Mary walked into a road sign. So the first thing we did at the party was get some ice for her split lip to try and stop it bleeding.
What did you do the next day?
I had to get up at six in the morning to do an interview on the [BBC] Radio Cornwall breakfast show, which I did on the street outside our hotel, still holding the Bafta. I should be cooler about this, but I didn’t put it down for a long time! Later we went to [the BBC’s] Broadcasting House and a studio in Millbank to do the news for the BBC and ITV. Stacey Guthrie, who’s in the film, sent me a message saying, “Great to see you on the local news, but you really do need to get some sleep.”
What are your tips for surviving awards season?
I don’t think there’s anything to survive, really. My advice would be to enjoy it because it may never happen again. That was brought into stark relief for me because we went into lockdown so soon afterwards. We did the Baftas and then just sat at home for three or four months, so I was very grateful I had been through it.
Where do you keep your award?
Bait won a lot of awards at various festivals, and they were all just in my studio. But when we won the Bafta, it was like, “Right, we’ve got to have an awards shelf.” It’s in the front room, lined up so people see it when they come through the door – I’m not shy about showing it off. And I have this little tic where I kind of flick it, because the sound resonates beautifully if you flick it with your nail.
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