Prince William and his new bride Catherine will help kick off the inaugural “BAFTA Brits To Watch” black-tie event scheduled for July 9 at the Belasco Theater in Los Angeles. It’s on the itinerary of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s visit to California helping highlight the depth and range of British talent currently emerging in film, television and video games (Prince William was elected BAFTA president last year). The 42 emerging British talents have been selected by what’s described as an expert BAFTA panel. “They will generally not be complete beginners in their industry, and will have already begun to show real promise,” today’s statement explained. BAFTA will announce the names of those attending prior to the event, which has the support of the British Consulate-General in Los Angeles as well as American Idol executive producer Nigel Lythgoe, chairman of BAFTA in LA, who said: “Being given the opportunity of meeting Hollywood’s elite will provide a highly significant and beneficial moment for them, especially at such a formative stage of their careers.”

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