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Bella Ramsey in The Last of Us© HBO/Warner Media

The Last of Us and Time star Bella Ramsey leads BAFTA's 2023 Breakthrough talent list

Alumni include Florence Pugh, Jessie Buckley and Tom Holland

Nicky Morris
TV and film writer
November 30, 2023
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The Last of Us and Time star Bella Ramsey is among the 42 names announced as this year's BAFTA Breakthrough cohort, supported by Netflix, which features creatives working in film, games and television in the UK, the US and India.

The initiative identifies the most exciting talent on the cusp of the breakthrough moment of their careers and awards them with a year's worth of access to professional coaching, industry introductions and BAFTA membership.

This year's participants have been selected by a jury comprised of leading cross-industry figures led by BAFTA sector committee chairs and members including Ade Rawcliffe, Sara Putt, Emily Stillman, Emma Morgan and Anisa Sanusi in the UK, Aadip Desai in the US, and Guneet Monga in India. 

Alumni of the scheme, which is in its tenth year, include Hollywood stars such as Florence Pugh, Jessie Buckley and Tom Holland. 

Included in this year's list is 20-year-old Bella Ramsey, who most recently appeared on our screens in the second series of the BBC's hit drama, Time. Rye Lane director Raine Allen-Miller and Rain Dogs creator Cash Carraway are also listed in the cohort. See the full list below. 

WATCH: Bella Ramsey stars in HBO's The Last of Us

UK BREAKTHROUGHS:

● Adjani Salmon, writer/performer/exec producer – Dreaming Whilst Black

● Bella Ramsey, performer – The Last of Us

● Cash Carraway, creator/writer/exec producer – Rain Dogs

Bella Ramsey in The Last of Us© HBO/Warner Media
Bella Ramsey in The Last of Us

● Charlotte Regan, writer/director – Scrapper

● Cynthia De La Rosa, hair & makeup artist – Everyone Else Burns

● Ella Glendining, director – Is There Anybody Out There?

● Funmi Olutoye, lead producer – ‘Black History Makers’ (Good Morning Britain)

● Georgia Oakley, writer/director – Blue Jean

Rain Dogs creator Cash Carraway is named© James Pardon
Rain Dogs creator Cash Carraway is named

● Holly Reddaway, voice and performance director – Baldur’s Gate 3

● Joel Beardshaw, lead designer – Desta: The Memories Between

● Kat Morgan, hair & makeup designer – Blue Jean

● Kathryn Ferguson, writer/director – Nothing Compares

Bella Ramsey, Funmi Olutoye, Michael Anderson, Joel Beardshaw, BAFTA Breakthrough UK participants for 2023-2024© BAFTA/Vivek Vadoliya
Bella Ramsey, Funmi Olutoye, Michael Anderson, Joel Beardshaw are among the BAFTA Breakthrough UK participants for 2023-2024

● Kitt (Fiona) Byrne, 2D artist/game designer – Gibbon: Beyond the Trees

● Michael Anderson, producer – Desta: The Memories Between

● Pete Jackson, writer/creator – Somewhere Boy

● Raine Allen-Miller, director – Rye Lane

● Rosy McEwen, performer – Blue Jean

Lewis Gribben in Somewhere Boy© Channel 4
Lewis Gribben in Somewhere Boy

● Samantha Béart, performer – The Excavation of Hob’s Barrow

● Talisha ‘Tee Cee’ Johnson, writer/director/presenter – Too Autistic for Black

● Vivian Oparah, performer – Rye Lane

US BREAKTHROUGHS:

● Amanda Kim, documentary director – Nam June Paik: Moon Is The Oldest TV

● Aminah Nieves, performer – 1923

● Apoorva Charan, producer – Joyland

Aminah Nieves as Teonna in 1923© Emerson Miller/Paramount+
Aminah Nieves as Teonna in 1923

● Cheyenne Pualani Morrin, senior games writer – Star Wars Jedi: Survivor

● Edward Buckles Jr. documentary director – Katrina Babies

● Gary Gunn, composer – A Thousand and One

● Jingyi Shao, writer & director – Chang Can Dunk

Cheyenne Morrin, Edward Buckles Jr., Vuk Lungulov-Klotz, Maria Altamirano, Santiago Gonzalez, Aminah Nieves, Gary Gunn, Jingyi Shao and Apoorva Charan is photographed by Monica Schipper for the BAFTA Breakthrough US 2023-24 initiative © Getty Images for BAFTA
Cheyenne Morrin, Edward Buckles Jr., Vuk Lungulov-Klotz, Maria Altamirano, Santiago Gonzalez, Aminah Nieves, Gary Gunn, Jingyi Shao and Apoorva Charan are listed as the BAFTA Breakthrough US cohort

● Maria Altamirano, producer – All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt

● Santiago Gonzalez, cinematographer – Shortcomings

● Shelly Yo, writer & director – Smoking Tigers

Shelly Yo and Ji-young Yoo at 2023 Tribeca Festival, © Stephen Lovekin/Shutterstock
Smoking Tigers writer and director Shelly Yo with actress Ji-young Yoo

● Sing J Lee, writer & director – The Accidental Getaway Driver

● Vuk Lungulov-Klotz, writer & director – Mutt

INDIA BREAKTHROUGHS:

● Abhay Koranne, writer – Rocket Boys

● Abhinav Tyagi, editor – An Insignificant Man

● Don Chacko Palathara, director/writer – Joyful Mystery

● Kislay, director – Soni

BAFTA Breakthrough India Photoshoot© BAFTA/Vikas Gotra
BAFTA Breakthrough India cohort, Shardul Bhardwaj, Lipika Singh Darai, Kislay, Sanal George, Satya Rai Nagpaul, Miriam Chandy Menacherry, Abhay Koranne and Abhinav Tyagi

● Lipika Singh Darai, director/writer – Some Stories Around Witches

● Miriam Chandy Menacherry, producer – From the Shadows and The Leopard’s Tribe

● Pooja Rajkumar Rathod, cinematographer – Secrets of the Elephants

● Sanal George, sound editor/mixer/designer – Gangubai Kathiawadi

● Satya Rai Nagpaul, cinematographer – Ghoomketu

● Shardul Bhardwaj, performer – Eeb Allay Ooo!

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