Bafta nominations out

Frothy silent movie The Artist and moody spy saga Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (pictured) are among the leading contenders for the British Academy Film Awards, Britain's equivalent of the Oscars.

The Artist has 12 nominations and Tinker Tailor 11, including best picture and director nods, and best actor nominations for leading men Jean Dujardin and Gary Oldman.

The other best-film nominees are The Descendants, Drive and The Help.

In a diverse field not dominated by any single film, there are also multiple nominations for My Week With Marilyn, The Iron Lady, The Help and We Need to Talk About Kevin.

The best actor contest pits Oldman and Dujardin against Brad Pitt for Moneyball, George Clooney for The Descendants and Michael Fassbender for Shame.

Best-actress nominees are The Artist's Berenice Bejo, Meryl Streep for The Iron Lady, Michelle Williams for My Week With Marilyn, Tilda Swinton for We Need to talk About Kevin and Viola Davis for The Help.

Nominations were announced yesterday and the prizes will be awarded at a ceremony at London's Royal Opera House on February 12. They are considered an important indicator of prospects at the Academy Awards in Los Angeles two weeks later.