English
Español
Oliver Laxe’s latest feature, Sirāt, continues its rise on the international awards circuit after being nominated for Best Film Not in the English Language at the BAFTA Film Awards 2026. The recognition places the Spanish production among the most acclaimed global releases of the year and reinforces its growing presence during awards season.
The nomination follows closely on the heels of Sirāt’s success at the Academy Awards, where the film is also competing for Best International Feature Film and Best Sound, positioning it as one of Spain’s most prominent cinematic exports of the year.
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) confirmed the nominations on Tuesday, naming Sirāt as one of five finalists in the non-English-language category. Oliver Laxe’s film will compete against a strong international lineup: 
- The Secret Agent (Brazil), directed by Kleber Mendonça Filho
- Sentimental Value (Norway), by Joachim Trier
- The Voice of Hind Rajab (Tunisia), by Kaouther Ben Hania
- It Was Just an Accident (France), by Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi
Notably, these same titles are also contending against Sirāt in the equivalent Oscar category, highlighting an unusually strong consensus among major international awards bodies this season.
For Laxe, the BAFTA nomination represents another milestone in a career marked by critical acclaim and a highly personal cinematic language. The Galician-born director is known for his austere visuals and spiritually charged narratives, qualities that have earned him sustained recognition at major international festivals. With Sirāt, he appears to have reached a new level of global visibility, resonating with critics and voters across Europe and the United States.
Although Sirāt secured its BAFTA nomination for Best Film Not in the English Language, it did not advance in a second category for which it had been longlisted: Best Casting. The film’s casting team, led by Nadia Acimi, had previously been honored at the European Film Awards, where Sirāt won the casting prize. This time, however, BAFTA voters favored casting directors behind several high-profile English-language productions.
Films nominated for Best Casting at the BAFTAs 2026:
- I Swear
- Marty Supreme
- One Battle After Another
- Sentimental Value
- Sinners
Despite missing out in that category, the outlook for Sirāt remains highly positive. Industry analysts note that a BAFTA nomination alone can significantly boost a film’s international profile, particularly in English-speaking markets, while sustaining momentum throughout the remainder of the awards season.
The BAFTA 2026 nominations were led by Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another, which topped the field with 14 nominations, including Best Film, Best Director, and multiple acting categories. Close behind was Ryan Coogler’s Sinners with 13 nominations, followed by Josh Safdie’s Marty Supreme with 11.
Other notable multiple nominees included:
- Frankenstein – 8 nominations
- Sentimental Value – 8 nominations
- I Swear – 5 nominations
- Bugonia – 5 nominations
BAFTA 2026 – Best Film nominees:
- Hamnet
- Marty Supreme
- One Battle After Another
- Sentimental Value
- Sinners
BAFTA 2026 – Best Director nominees:
- Yorgos Lanthimos (Bugonia)
- Chloé Zhao (Hamnet)
- Paul Thomas Anderson (One Battle After Another)
- Joachim Trier (Sentimental Value)
- Josh Safdie (Marty Supreme)
- Ryan Coogler (Sinners)
Although Sirāt does not appear in these headline categories, its inclusion among the international nominees underscores the continued importance of non-English-language cinema within the BAFTA framework. In recent years, the British Academy has made a concerted effort to broaden its global scope—both geographically and thematically—a shift clearly reflected in this year’s shortlist.
Among Sirāt’s competitors, The Voice of Hind Rajab documents the killing of a young girl in the Gaza Strip, while Sentimental Value has emerged as one of the strongest European films of the season, following its success at the European Film Awards. Against this backdrop, Laxe’s film stands out for its introspective tone and philosophical depth, qualities that have consistently drawn praise from critics and festival audiences alike.
The BAFTA Film Awards ceremony will be held on 22 February 2026 at London’s Royal Festival Hall, bringing together many of the filmmakers and performers who have defined the past cinematic year. For Oliver Laxe and his team, the event represents both a celebration of their work and another opportunity to introduce Sirāt to an even wider international audience.
As the Oscars and BAFTAs converge around the same shortlist of international titles, Sirāt’s sustained presence across both institutions suggests more than fleeting acclaim. It signals the emergence of a Spanish film that has successfully crossed cultural and linguistic boundaries—an achievement that already marks a significant success for Laxe and for contemporary Spanish cinema.
Information Source:
https://www.elconfidencial.com/cultura
Photo Attribution:
Photo of Oliver Laxe presenting the movie Sirāt at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival, by Martin Kraft, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0). Source: Wikimedia Commons — https://w.wiki/HdAb
British Academy Film Awards being set up on Bow Street, London, by Tom Morris, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported (CC BY-SA 3.0). Source: Wikimedia Commons — https://w.wiki/HdAh
