February 14, 2005

FINE LINE FEATURE’S VERA DRAKE COLLECTS THREE BAFTA AWARDS

LONDON  (Feb. 14, 2005) – Fine Line Feature’s Vera Drake received three honors at this year’s  British Academy Film Awards, the BAFTAs, including best director for Mike Leigh.  Fine Line is a division of New Line Cinema.

Imelda Staunton won best actress for her performance as a 1950s English housewife who performs illegal abortions. The film also took the costume design prize for Jacqueline Durran’s work.

"Mike Leigh is a genius, and working on this film was a dream come true," Staunton said.

"It's an immense privilege to have been allowed the freedom to make as uncompromising a film as I think we've made, and to make such an epic film with such a small budget," Leigh said.

The British awards, known as BAFTAs, have become an essential pre-Oscars stop since they were moved in 2000 from April to a February date, preceding the Academy Awards, for which Vera Drake has three nominations.

About New Line Cinema Corporation
New Line Cinema is the oldest and most successful independent film company in the world.  In addition to the production, marketing and distribution of theatrical motion pictures, the fully-integrated studio has divisions devoted to home entertainment, television, music, theater, licensing, merchandising and international marketing and distribution. New Line is a pioneer in franchise filmmaking and its Oscar-winning The Lord of the Rings trilogy is the most successful film franchise in history. Together with its subsidiary, Fine Line Features, New Line is a unit of Time Warner.