Award ShowsUK

BAFTA 2021 Breakthrough Participants Announced

Entertainment junkies, get ready! Awards Season is almost here. On December 8th, BAFTA 2021 announced the newest UK and US ‘Breakthrough’ honors. The 36 ‘up and coming’ film talent were selected by an industry jury comprised of leading professionals, including Afua Hirsch, Niamh Algar and Tim Renkow alongside breakthrough Jury Chairs Ade Rawcliffe, Maria Ishak and Karl Stewart.

Bafta nominees 2021

If you’re not familiar with the BAFTA 2021 Awards, aka the British Academy of Film and Television Arts Awards they are annual awards to honor the best British and International contributions to film. The actual awards show isn’t held until March 13th, 2022 and the Oscars are held only a few short weeks after!

We had the pleasure of speaking with BAFTA Breakthrough Honorees Stephanie Economou (Composer), Orlando Perez Rosso (Composer), Cheyenne Ford (Production Designer), and Anna Franquesa-Solano (Cinematographer).  All four honorees had one thing in common that was certain: they are all extremely passionate and in love with their work!

The 2021 BATFA Breakthrough (US Cohort) L-R: Orlando Perez Rosso, Stephanie Economou, Joshua Grier, Anna Franquesa-Solano, Siqi Song, Hunter Schmidt, Hikari, Mike Grier, Bao Nguyen, Cheyenne Ford, Dominique Nieves & Sarah Lampert

The 2021 BATFA Breakthrough (US Cohort) L-R: Orlando Perez Rosso, Stephanie Economou, Joshua Grier, Anna Franquesa-Solano, Siqi Song, Hunter Schmidt, Hikari, Mike Grier, Bao Nguyen, Cheyenne Ford, Dominique Nieves & Sarah Lampert; Photo credit BAFTA

Anna Franquesa-Solano

NYC-based cinematographer, expressed some concern over the recent tragic death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on an Alec Baldwin indie film set New Mexico. However, Franquesa-Solano made it clear that accidents like this will not stop her from doing what she loves; the industry must do better as a whole. Her breakthrough project was the film, ‘ The Farewell,’ which we absolutely loved (starring Awkafina)!

Cheyenne Ford

Spunky Production Designer shared with us that some of her favorite production designs may not even come from award winning films-sometimes films like the ‘Blade’ franchise can inspire! Funny enough, her Breakthrough project almost didn’t happen. She reluctantly declined the role of Production Designer on Emma Seligman’s sleeper hit ‘Shiva Baby’ because she had committed to something else, but was rehired on day three of filming when their first Production Designer had to back out!

Composers Stephanie Economou and Orlando Perez Rosso joined us on a Zoom together and expressed their excitement and how grateful they were to have been selected for this honor. Economou was selected for her Netflix score, ‘Jupiter’s Legacy.’ Rosso may be the only participant of this program whose Breakthrough project is over 100 years old. His original score for the newly restored Universal silent film ‘20,000 Leagues Under The Sea’ impressed the jury beyond belief!

The BAFTA Awards will be held in London; March of 2022. To learn more, visit here.

About author

Articles

Lauren is a New York City based reporter, podcaster and host, with a focus on pop culture news and true crime. She is currently a writer and reporter for Pop Style TV, NickiSwift.com, and Grunge.com. Lauren is also the host and producer of the investigative podcast titled, “Corruption: What Happened to Grant Solomon.” She hopes to reveal the truth behind an alleged cover-up and accidental death of an 18-year-old boy in Tennessee. Lauren is the creator and host of the pop culture, news & crime podcast, “Lauren Interviews.” She has featured interviews with public figures like Joe Exotic, actors like Kyra Sedgwick and Alec Baldwin, plus real housewives like Luann de Lesseps. Lauren previously worked for WABC RADIO, writing news briefs and articles pertaining to entertainment, crime, and politics while also serving as on-air talent. Lauren also hosted a wellness show on WOR Radio in NYC, and then teamed up with 98 Degrees’ Jeff Timmons for a podcast called “Millennials Revealed.” Some true crime highlights in Lauren's orbit: After a woman named Julia Wandelt came forward claiming to be missing child Madeline McCann in 2023, Lauren went viral for getting the first video interview with her spokesperson, Fia Johansson; discussing whether or not a DNA test was underway. Lauren also revealed brand new interviews and information regarding the deaths of actor Brittany Murphy and her husband Simon Monjack in 2020, which lead to her also being featured on VICE TV and Law & Crime. Lauren also made headlines after an exclusive interview with the fiancé of Aaron Carter just days after his tragic death, while also covering Carter’s death as breaking news on Lawrence Jones Cross Country (Fox News). Lauren also reported on the tragic death of Matthew Perry as both breaking news, then as a tribute while on Fox News as a guest. Her interviews and reporting have been covered by People, EW, The Today Show, Perez Hilton, Page Six, Elle Magazine and more.
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