iFeatures Actress Nominated By London Critics Circle

The lead actress in one of South West Screen's iFeatures has been nominated as Young British Performer of the Year by the London Critics' Circle for her role in Stephen Frears' recent hit, Tamara Drewe.
Jessica Barden plays Marie in The Dark Half, a chilling ghost story set in south Bristol and the first of three feature films to be made under BBC Films and Bristol City Council-basked microbudget filmmaking initiative.
The Dark Half is an emotional story about love, grief and redemption, which follows the haunting of the teenage Marie.
Its production team includes the former writer-in-residence at Bristol Old Vic, Lucy Catherine, who has also written for Being Human and director Alastair Siddons, whose debut feature-length break-dancing documentary Turn it Loose, premiered at the 2009 Edinburgh International Film Festival, attracting strong commercial and critical acclaim. The highly experienced Margaret Matheson (Skin and Sleep Furiously) produces for Bard Entertainments.
Jessica's nomination as Young British Performer of the Year is for the part of Jody Long in Tamara Drewe, Stephen Frears' comedy based on the Post Simmonds comic strip, which was shot last year in and around Dorset.
Jessica will face competition for the award from Conor McCarron for his role in NEDs, Will Poulter for The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, Saoirse Ronan in The Way Back and Thomas Turgoose for his role in The Scouting Book for Boys.
The nominations for the London Critics' Circle's 31st Film Awards were announced yesterday and will be held on February 10, 2011.
Jessica, 18, previously appeared in Joe Wright's Hanna and in the TV series Coronation Street, where she played the role of Kayleigh Morton.
Chris Moll, iFeatures Executive Producer, said: "Following on from (Flying Blind director) Kasia Klimkiewicz's award for Best Short Film at the EFA, this nomination for Jessica underlines the fact that iFeatures has succeeded in attracting the best national and international talent to Bristol. We wish Jessica the best of luck with the awards when they are announced next year."
(KMcA)