Bfi finalists

Luxury watch brand launches 60 limited edition Spitfire collectables

Swiss luxury watch manufacturer IWC Schaffhausen has unveiled its exclusive Pilot’s Watch Spitfire Chronograph Edition, a limited edition of just 60 timepieces in stainless steel on a blue strap.

Each model is numbered on the case back, alongside the inscription, ‘BFI Film Forever’, in order to increase their collectability. The watch features an IWC in-house 89365 calibre movement alongside a chronograph and flyback function.

The launch comes as the manufacturer and the BFI revealed the four finalists vying for the first ever IWC Filmmaker Bursary Award, worth £50,000 – the most significant bursary of its kind in the UK film industry.

The Award was created by IWC Schaffhausen and experts from the BFI. The watch firm has been a sponsor of the BFI and the Official Time Partner of the BFI London Film Festival since 2014.

The four finalists are Joseph A Adesunloye, writer/director of White Colour Black, Hope Dickson Leach, writer/director of The Levelling, Alice Lowe, writer/director of Prevenge and Paul Anton Smith, director of Have You Seen My Movie?

The winner will be announced on the evening of the October 4, which is the night before the opening of the London Film Festival 2016.

Georges Kern, CEO of IWC Schaffhausen, said: “IWC proudly supports film through our many film festival partnerships across the world and we are delighted to have so many talented directors and writers selected as the finalists.”

The IWC Filmmaker Bursary Award is presented in recognition of outstanding British talent and is designed to support a writer and/or director at the beginning of their career, bringing them financial stability and time to develop their creativity and focus on future projects without the pressure of deadlines or the distraction of taking paid work.

To be eligible for the Bursary Award, a writer and/or director must be UK based and have their first or second film in the Official Selection at the BFI Film Festival. Drawn from a list of 15 entries, the final four work across different genres and styles.

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