At the 73rd EE British Academy Film Awards, Andy Serkis will be presented with the Oustanding Contribution to Cinema Award.
The household name has been awarded this due to his work in championing performance capture in his performances in Planet of the Apes and Lord of the Rings among others. Alongside his work as an actor, Serkis has also contributed his craft as a producer and a director to British cinema. In 2011, he became a pioneer when he founded The Imaginarium with Jonathan Cavendish – the production company is dedicated to performance capture.
[Serkis widens] the parameters of what it means to be an actor in the 21st century. As a leading actor in performance capture, Andy Serkis has been integral to the development of this remarkable digital technology, which allows filmmakers to bring to life amazing characters that would otherwise have been almost impossible to accurately recreate onscreen. – The British Academy of Film and Television Arts.
The chair of the BAFTA Film Committee, Marc Samuelson also added that Serkis’ work was ‘revolutionary’ and says that the impact that he has made will change cinematic history for years to come.
Serkis has been alerted of the recognition and has said that he was ‘deeply honoured and thrilled’ by the prospect. He shows no sign of stopping, either, as he is currently directing the sequel to Venom and will be playing Alfred Pennyworth in The Batman alongside Robert Pattinson.
[I am] extremely lucky to be on such a continually fascinating journey in visual storytelling, one that has given me the opportunity to collaborate with many of the world’s greatest artists, technologists and craftspeople, with whom I’d like to share this wonderful accolade. – Andy Serkis
The BAFTAs will be taking place on the 2nd of February in London.
