American blockbusters slug it out for the Baftas

The battle for prizes at next month's Baftas will be fought between two American giants: the musical Chicago and Martin Scorsese's epic Gangs of New York.

Each garnered 12 nominations yesterday for the British Academy of Film and Television Arts awards, including best film and best direction.

British actors, writers and directors still have a strong chance of winning a Bafta. Close behind the frontrunners is The Hours. Adapted by the British writer David Hare from a novel by Virginia Woolf and directed by Stephen Daldry, the man behind Billy Elliot, it was filmed at Pinewood Studios.

Despite widespread comment on the poor showing by British films this year, Mr Daldry said yesterday that he was "thrilled" at the 11 nominations for The Hours. "We fought very hard for it to be made at Pinewood with a British crew. It was filmed entirely here and is officially a British film," he said.

Nicole Kidman, nominated for best actress, said: "It's wonderful that four of the actors from the film were nominated. This acknowledges the tremendous talent of Stephen Daldry and David Hare. It was a joy to work with all of them on such rich material."

Chicago, Gangs of New York and The Hours are joined by the second part of Peter Jackson's monumental The Lord of the Rings trilogy for best film honours, along with The Pianist, from the director Roman Polanski. The same films will also compete for the David Lean award for achievement in direction. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers picked up a total of nine nominations yesterday, with The Pianist earning seven.

But a wider range of movies get a chance in other categories. Dirty Pretty Things, a thriller about illegal immigrants in Britain, wins an original screenplay nomination for Steven Knight, one of the co-creators of television's Who Wants to be a Millionaire?, with Peter Mullan also in the running with his screenplay for The Magdalene Sisters, about unmarried mothers and the Catholic church.

British writers also gain credit for screenplay adaptations, with David Hare and Ronald Harwood nominated for The Hours and The Pianist respectively. About a Boy, the Hugh Grant film adapted from Nick Hornby's book, is also in the running.

The British stars Michael Caine and Daniel Day-Lewis will slug it out against Nicolas Cage and Jack Nicholson for best actor with a relative unknown, Adrien Brody, the fifth nominee. Catherine Zeta-Jones's venture into song and dance in Chicago earns her a best supporting actress nomination against competition from Julianne Moore and Meryl Streep, while Alfred Molina faces Ed Harris and Paul Newman for best supporting actor.

The Baftas (officially the Orange British Academy Film Awards) will be presented on 23 February at the Odeon cinema in Leicester Square. Stephen Fry will host the ceremony.

The Orange British Academy Film Awards The Nominations

Best Film: Chicago; Gangs of New York; The Hours; The Two Towers; The Pianist.

Outstanding British Film: Bend It Like Beckham; Dirty Pretty Things; The Hours; The Magdalene Sisters; The Warrior.

Best Debut by a Director, Screen Writer or Producer: Simon Bent (Christie Malry's Own Double-Entry); Lucy Darwin (Lost In La Mancha); Asif Kapadia (The Warrior); Duncan Roy (AKA).

Best Director: Rob Marshall (Chicago); Martin Scorsese (Gangs of New York); Stephen Daldry (The Hours); Peter Jackson (The Two Towers); Roman Polanski (The Pianist).

Best Original Screenplay: - Y Tu Mama Tambien; Dirty Pretty Things; Gangs of New York; The Magdalene Sisters; Hable Con Ella.

Best Adapted Screenplay: About A Boy; Adaptation; Catch Me If You Can; The Hours; The Pianist.

Best Actress: Halle Berry (Monster's Ball); Salma Hayek (Frida); Nicole Kidman (The Hours); Meryl Streep (The Hours); Renee Zellweger (Chicago).

Best Actor: Adrien Brody (The Pianist); Nicolas Cage (Adaptation); Michael Caine (The Quiet American); Daniel Day-Lewis (Gangs of New York); Jack Nicholson (About Schmidt).

Best Supporting Actress: Toni Collette (About A Boy); Queen Latifah (Chicago); Julianne Moore (The Hours); Meryl Streep (Adaptation); Catherine Zeta-Jones (Chicago).

Best Supporting Actor: Chris Cooper (Adaptation); Ed Harris (The Hours); Alfred Molina (Frida); Paul Newman (Road To Perdition); Christopher Walken (Catch Me If You Can).

Best Music: Catch Me If You Can; Chicago; Gangs of New York; The Hours; The Pianist.

Best Foreign Language Film: Y Tu Mama Tambien; Cidade de Deus; Devdas; Hable Con Ella; The Warrior.

Cinematography: Chicago; Gangs of New York; The Two Towers; The Pianist; Road To Perdition.

Production Design: Chicago; Gangs of New York; Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets; The Two Towers; Road To Perdition.

Costume Design: Catch Me If You Can; Chicago; Frida; Gangs of New York; The Two Towers.

Editing: Chicago; Cidade de Deus; Gangs of New York; The Hours; The Two Towers.

Sound: Chicago; Gangs of New York; Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets; The Two Towers; The Pianist.

Special Effects: Gangs of New York; Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets; The Two Towers; Minority Report; Spider-Man.

Hair and Make-up: Chicago; Frida; Gangs of New York; The Hours; The Two Towers.

Best Short Film: Bouncer; Candy Bar Kid; Good Night; The Most Beautiful Man In The World; My Wrongs 8245-8249 and 117; Rank.

Best Short Animation: The Chub Chubs; The Dog Who Was A Cat Inside; Fish Never Sleep; Sap; Wedding Espresso.