BRITISH ACADEMY OF FILM AND TELEVISION ARTS/LOS ANGELES
TO HOST 15TH ANNUAL AWARDS SEASON TEA PARTY
CELEBRATING 2008 FILM AWARDS NOMINEES

Los Angeles, CA, January 8, 2009 -- The British Academy of Film and Television Arts/Los Angeles (BAFTA/LA) will host its 15th Annual Awards Season Tea Party on Saturday, January 10 at the Beverly Hills Hotel from 2-5pm. American Airlines and Volvo are the presenting sponsors, with additional sponsors of the event including Mikimoto, Ciroc Vodka, British Airways and Bombardier Global.

In what has become a time-honored tradition, BAFTA/LA will celebrate the 2008 Film Awards nominees on the Saturday prior to the Golden Globe Awards. Invited guests include past winners, current nominees, industry executives, and other top international talent.

Peter Morris, BAFTA/LA's Chairman of the Board, remarked "The Tea Party is a wonderful and exciting prelude to an awards weekend, and we are thrilled to celebrate the achievements of many members and friends from around the world."

Serving as the bridge between the American and British entertainment communities, BAFTA/LA is a professional non-profit organization founded in California in 1987 to promote and advance original work in film, television and interactive media.

BAFTA/LA's outreach programs benefit members and other professionals working within the entertainment industry, as well as the Los Angeles community at large. BAFTA/LA provides exclusive access to screenings, Q&A's with talent and filmmakers, conversations with leading UK-based film and television executives, and the Heritage Archive, featuring broadcast-quality interviews with distinguished British members of the film and television industries. Educational outreach for students and the Los Angeles community includes an after-school screening program for inner-city youth at the Helen Keller Park Recreation Center, and a recent partnership with FilmAid to mentor young filmmakers. Additional programs include seminars in association with local universities and festivals, scholarships for post-graduate programs, and recognizing professional and student talent with awards at film festivals throughout the U.S.

Maintaining a long tradition of recognizing the finest filmmaking and television talent, BAFTA/LA hosts a series of social networking events, including the Annual BAFTA/LA Britannia Awards, the BAFTA Film Awards Brunch, the Annual Garden Party, the BAFTA/LA Comedy Awards, and the Awards Season Film and Television Tea Parties in January and September. BAFTA/LA is affiliated with BAFTA in London, and members vote annually for the prestigious BAFTA Film Awards. BAFTA/LA also presents its annual Britannia Awards every November, where it has honored such luminaries as Denzel Washington, Clint Eastwood, Tom Cruise, Tom Hanks, Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Anthony Hopkins, Helen Mirren, Elizabeth Taylor, Michael Caine, and Martin Scorsese with the Stanley Kubrick Britannia Award for Excellence in Film.



For more information on BAFTA/LA, visit www.baftala.org.