As Sense and Sensibility was nominated for 12 British Academy (BAFTA) awards, in the list of nominations announced last week, it might seem picky to wonder why it missed out on a nomination for Best British Film. That oversight, however, has prompted speculation that the Oscar favourite's status as a British film may be in dispute.
It is hard to think of a more quintessentially English combination than Jane Austen, Emma Thompson, Hugh Grant, Alan Rickman and picturesque Dorset, where the film was shot. But with a US producer and a Taiwanese director, not to mention the backing of a US studio, the film may not meet the rather arcane criteria set out in the UK's 1985 Films Act, administered by the Department of National Heritage.
The implications of this go beyond questions of patriotic flagwaving, however. Producers working with UK talent would expect to qualify for European status, and the funding opportunities and tax advantages that brings with it. Currently each film is treated as a separate case by the DNH. While Stallone's Judge Dredd qualified as British through directot Danny Cannon, and while Four Weddings and a Funeral, which was registered in Germany for tax purposes, counted as a UK film, it seems Emma Thompson et al will have to argue their case.
Nick Thomas
