Four Bafta Cymru awards for Patagonia

Welsh film Patagonia was the big winner at the 21st Bafta Cymru awards.

The film, which follows a young Welsh couple to Argentina, won four awards including best director for Marc Evans.

BBC Wales' Newyddion won the news award for its coverage of the 10-year anniversary of 9/11, while ITV Wales took the Current Affairs prize for its documentary on killer John Cooper.

Television producer John Hefin was given a special award for outstanding contribution to television drama.

The list of winners also included Craig Roberts as best actor for his role as 15-year-old Oliver Tate in Submarine, which was set in Swansea.

Among the winners were Eddie Butler's programme about the '71 Lions tour of New Zealand which won two awards as well as the best sport programme going to BBC Wales' Sport Wales: A Tribute to Gary Speed.

The ceremony at Cardiff's Wales Millennium Centre on Sunday night, hosted by The One Show presenter Alex Jones, celebrated the best of the television and film industry in Wales.

It was Evans's film, which stars Matthew Rhys and Duffy, that dominated the event, winning for its director, editor, sound, and hair and make up.

Evans told the audience: "I would just like to thank everybody who went on the journey with us - it was an amazing journey.

"I would like to thank the Welsh, the Argentinians, the Irishman, the Brazilian, a couple of Poles, the Scottish lady, the Kiwi, and a couple of English people too.

"We were a ramshackle bunch and it was a fantastic journey through Wales and through Patagonia.

"Making films is quite tough in Wales and making films in Welsh is even tougher."

Rewarded

Hefin, of Borth, near Aberystwyth, a former head of drama at BBC Wales, was rewarded for his work as director and producer on classics including The Life and Times of David Lloyd George, and Grand Slam.

He was also the creator of long-running Welsh soap opera Pobol y Cwm.

Hefin said his award was for all those people he had worked with who had said "yes" to requests rather than the jobsworths.

"It was, and still is, better sometimes to ask for forgiveness than ask for permission," he said.

"This award is for cast and crews that said 'yes' and I'm deeply grateful."

Sharon Morgan won the best actress award for playing Maggie Jones in the small budget film Resistance.

The film was "absolutely awash with artistic integrity", she said.

"On a miniscule budget, the team created a beautifully passionate, extremely emotional, beautifully poetic film and it was an honour and a privilege indeed to be a part of it," she said.