BAFTA Expands Outstanding British Film Longlist, Updates AI Rules for 2027 Awards
The British Academy has tweaked its voting rules, inviting casting members to vote in performance categories and clarifying its stance on artificial intelligence.
“We just wanted to widen the pool for consideration and to get more members watching more British films and voting on them.”
The British Academy has updated its film awards eligibility and voting rules for the 2027 ceremony, according to a report from Variety. The changes include expanding the Outstanding British Film longlist and providing new guidance on artificial intelligence.
What are the key rule changes?
Among the major alterations is the expansion of the Outstanding British Film category longlist from 15 films to 20. The category will retain 10 nominations, with half chosen by the membership vote and half by a nominating jury. "We just wanted to widen the pool for consideration and to get more members watching more British films and voting on them," BAFTA’s executive director of awards and content Emma Baehr told Variety. "For us, it’s a celebration — it’s our flagship category."
In the performance categories, members of BAFTA’s casting chapter will now be invited to vote alongside the acting chapter during the longlisting and nominations rounds. Baehr said the decision was to help "increase the expertise" given the volume of performance candidates.
How is BAFTA handling AI use?
The British Academy has also updated its rulebook to clarify its approach to AI. It has added a paragraph stating the awards are for "outstanding human achievement in originating, shaping and realising the final artistic outcome, regardless of the tools used." The new rules give BAFTA the right to request additional information on the use of generative AI and the extent of human creative involvement in a submission. Baehr confirmed that it "would always be a human that picks up a BAFTA."
BAFTA has also made its bullying and harassment measures policies mandatory for British categories and is requesting information from all submitted productions, with the expectation it will become a requirement in future years.
When are the key dates for the 2027 awards?
Entries for the 2027 BAFTA Film Awards open on July 22.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did BAFTA expand the Outstanding British Film longlist?
According to BAFTA executive Emma Baehr, the change from 15 to 20 films was made to widen the pool for consideration and encourage more members to watch and vote on British films, calling it the Academy's "flagship category."
Can a film created entirely by AI win a BAFTA?
The new rules emphasize that awards are for "human achievement." While the use of AI tools is permitted, BAFTA reserves the right to investigate the extent of human creative involvement. Baehr stated that a BAFTA "would always be a human that picks up."
What is different about voting in the performance categories?
For the first time, members of BAFTA's casting chapter will be invited to vote alongside the acting chapter in the longlisting and nominations rounds. This aims to bring more expertise to the process of evaluating hundreds of performance candidates.
Has BAFTA followed the Oscars in allowing multiple nominations in one category?
No. BAFTA has explicitly banned the practice, which it had allowed in the past. "That was one our key rule changes — that is not allowed," said Baehr, adding the goal is to level the playing field in performance categories.
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