“I had a meeting with Eric Fellner from Working Title [the next day]. I was so hungover I fell asleep on his sofa midway through the meeting.”
Rich Peppiatt won outstanding British debut at the 2025 Baftas for band biopic Kneecap, shot partly in the Irish language. The Belfast-based former tabloid journalist is currently in pre-production on his second narrative feature Bad Bridgets, with Daisy Edgar-Jones and Emilia Jones attached to star. Peppiatt is also producing with his Kneecap partner Trevor Birney through their Coup d’Etat Films banner, alongside Margot Robbie’s LuckyChap Entertainment.
How did you feel when your name was called out?
Sober. I’d spent so long doing the red carpet, we were ushered very late into our seats, so we didn’t even get to swipe a glass of champagne. I also got pins and needles so was hobbling up the stairs.
What do you remember from giving your speech?
I don’t plan speeches – it always comes out a bit weird to me when you try to plan it. I have a vague idea of direction of travel and then open my mouth and see what comes out. I was at the IFTAs [Irish Film and TV Awards] two nights before and I made a terrible rambling speech that made no fucking sense. I’m glad I didn’t at the Baftas. The speech gods were looking down on me.
The only disappointment was the category I won was the only one [out of six nominations] that didn’t make sense for Kneecap to come on the stage with me. It was such a collaborative five-year journey, it would have meant a lot to be on the stage together. I felt a little guilty, in a way. Admittedly, they are now playing to 60,000 people at music festivals and aren’t inviting me on stage. It probably played out a little less controversially with just me up there.
What other memorable moments do you recall from the night?
I met Edward Norton on the red carpet. He came up to me and said he loved Kneecap. I thought, “No fucking way has Edward Norton seen my film.” As I was walking down the stairs [after accepting the Bafta], I saw Edward and winked at him for some reason. When you look at it on the telly, it looks like I’m winking at Kylie Jenner, who was sat next to him.
Where did you go post-ceremony?
I went to the Focus Features party and did a bit of party-hopping. I was keen to get back to Soho House where Curzon, which had been an amazing partner on the film, was hosting a party. A lot of my heads of department and key collaborators were there.
What did you do the next day?
I had a meeting with Eric Fellner from Working Title. I was so hungover I fell asleep on his sofa midway through the meeting. He had to wake me up. He hasn’t invited me back.
How did you juggle your day job with the awards circuit?
When you’re making an indie film, you’ve racked up so much debt to get the project made in the first place, by the time you actually make the film and get paid, that money goes back to pay off all the money you borrowed to get there, and then you find you’ve got zero money again. You have to duck and dive your way through films. Unless you’re from a place of means, it’s a challenge – and I’m certainly not from a place of means.
I picked up a couple of writing and rewriting jobs, which helped. I had started working on the Bad Bridgets script on an unpaid basis. I don’t need the world’s smallest violin, it’s just one of those challenges you have to work around.
How would you assess the impact on your career?
It was an honour, but it’s still too early to tell. Ultimately, as a filmmaker, the only award you want is being able to make your next film, and I feel lucky to get to do that.
Where do you keep your award?
It sits on our mantelpiece, my kids like to see it. I remember coming back through Heathrow airport with it and security stopping it on the x-ray machine. When they saw what it was, they wanted photos with it. I went through Heathrow a few weeks later, and one of the guys who took a photo saw me and whisked me through to an empty queue. That’s soft power.
How do you keep your Bafta clean?
Spit shine only.
Did you meet any heroes on the awards circuit?
No, but I met Hugh Grant. Hugh helped pay the deposit for my stand-up comedy show at Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2012. We had a moment on the red carpet where he said, “You’ve come a long way.”
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