The British Academy Film Awards, commonly known as the BAFTA Awards, are an annual award ceremony hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to honour the best British and international contributions to film. Established in 1949, these awards are internationally recognized as the highest honour in British cinema and are considered equivalent to the Academy Awards. BAFTA's charitable objective is to "support, develop and promote the art forms of the moving image, by identifying and rewarding excellence, inspiring practitioners, and benefiting the public." The recipients are awarded a statue depicting a theatrical mask.