'The Lobster' Leads British Independent Film Awards Nominations

The English-language debut of Greek director Yorgos Lanthimos , whose Dogtooth won Cannes' Un Certain Regard in 2009, The Lobster stars Colin Farrell , Ben Whishaw , John C. Reilly , Lea Seydoux and Rachel Weisz . The offbeat plot is set in a dystopian near-future in which singles are required to find mates within 45 days or else they are turned into animals and set loose in the wild. (Sales: Protagonist Pictures)

Marion Cotillard, Alicia Vikander, Helena Bonham Carter, Tom Hardy, Tom Hiddleston, Michael Fassbender and Colin Farrell are among the nominees in the acting categories.

Just weeks after launching across U.K. cinemas and getting its British premiere at the BFI London Film Festival, Yorgos Lanthimos' comedy-romance The Lobster has picked upthe biggest haul of nominations for this year's British Independent Film Awards.

The nominations were announced Tuesday.

The Lobster – which first bowed in Cannes – earned seven nominations, including in the categories best British independent film, best director, best screenplay and producer of the year, with Colin Farrell up for best actor and Olivia Colman and Ben Whishaw for their supporting roles.

Elsewhere, Berlinale winner 45 Years earned six nominations, the same amount as Macbeth. Asif Kapadia's Amy Winehouse documentary Amy – already the most successful British doc of all time – picked up five nominations alongside Alex Garland's sci-fi movie Ex Machina and Brooklyn.

Last year saw father and son acting duo Timothy Spall and Rafe Spall pick up nominations in the best actor and best supporting actor categories. The