Felicity Jones attend the 2018 British Independent Film Awards

Actresses took the center stage at the British Independent Film Awards on Sunday, Dec. 02 with Dame Judi Dench receiving the Richard Harris Award and Felicity Jones winning the Variety Award.

Dench was especially excited that the award was a British accolade:

"Well it is brilliant, we do things very very well and we always have, and it is terrific and it is wonderful to be celebrating the work and the quality of work that we turn out," she smiled.

Dame Judi Dench at the British Independent Film Awards 2018 in London, Sunday, Dec. 2, 2018. [Photo: AP]

Nominated for her role in "Funny Cow," actress Maxine Peake admitted that she was just content that the movie got made in the first place:

"The fact that I've been nominated is enough for me because the film, it took us a long time to get it made, it took us 9 years, nobody wanted to finance it early on so just the fact that Richard Hawley is up for Best Soundtrack and I'm up for Best Actress is enough so we have a little bit of a recognition so that will do for me this evening."

Actress Maxine Peake poses for photographers upon arrival at the British Independent Film Awards in central London, Sunday, Dec. 2, 2018. [Photo: AP]

Felicity Jones was the recipient of the Variety Award and joked it was good to get a bit of advanced warning she was the winner:

"Yes it is nice to have a little bit of a heads up I have to say," she said smiling.

Actress Felicity Jones with the Variety Award at the British Independent Film Awards in central London, Sunday, Dec. 2, 2018. [Photo: AP]

The winners of the British Independent Film Awards are announced Sunday.