LONDON , England -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Despite the rain , `` Slumdog Millionaire '' shone brightly at the British Academy Awards Sunday , scooping a clutch of honors . `` Slumdog Millionaire '' director Danny Boyle shields composer A.R. Rahman from the rain as they arrive Sunday at the BAFTA awards in London . Not even the drizzle could dampen Danny Boyle 's spirits as `` Slumdog , '' his Mumbai-set rags to riches movie phenomenon won a remarkable seven awards at the glitziest night in the UK film calendar . `` You make a film like this and you just hope and pray it will be seen by a few people , '' the British director told CNN . `` And the journey it 's been on , the reception it 's had around the world , has just been extraordinary . '' Watch Danny Boyle , Dev Patel and Freida Pinto talking about `` Slumdog '' on the red carpet . As was widely expected , following its haul of four Golden Globes last month including Best Motion Picture , `` Slumdog '' took the Best Film award . `` I 'd like to acknowledge the blood , sweat and tears of our cast , '' said the film 's producer , Christian Colson who accepted the award . `` The film you saw is the film Danny Boyle imagined and it 's very rare you can say that . He dreamed the dream , 24-hours a day , seven days a week for two and a half years . '' Boyle 's labors were recognized by the Academy , handing him the Director award , which he can add to the BAFTA he won for debut feature `` Shallow Grave '' in 1995 . `` Slumdog '' has touched audiences and critics alike . Boyle thinks the film 's extraordinary effect is down to its universal message of hope . `` It 's the contrast I think between where the kid comes from and what he achieves , '' said Boyle . `` And he achieves everything on his own terms , and that gives you a kind of hope , really , which we all , no matter how romantic it is , we all need that . '' Watch Bollywood legend and `` Slumdog '' star Anil Kapoor talking about the `` Slumdog '' phenomenon . `` Slumdog '' also won the Cinematography , Adapted Screenplay , Music , Sound and Editing awards . Closest rival David Fincher 's `` The Curious Case of Benjamin Button , '' which was up for 11 awards , bagged only three . These included a richly-deserved Make Up & Hair award for the feat of transforming Brad Pitt into an octogenarian baby to tell the curious story of a man who is born old and gets younger as he ages . Actress Kate Winslet also continued her success streak , scoring the Leading Actress honor for her powerful portrayal of a former-Nazi concentration camp guard in Stephen Daldry 's `` The Reader . '' Conversely , Winslet both won and lost the award having been nominated twice in the same category , which included Meryl Streep for `` Doubt , '' and Kristin Scott Thomas for `` I 've Loved You So Long . '' But most eyes were on the actress to see if there would be a repeat performance of the breathlessly incoherent acceptance speech she made at the Golden Globes last month after winning two awards . `` These are really special moments . And I do n't want to waste them , '' Winslet told CNN on the red carpet before going on to accept her award with no tears or obvious emotion . Instead she simply thanked her parents and the late Anthony Minghella and the late Sydney Pollack , two of the film 's producers . Watch Kate Winslet talking about her `` amazing year '' on the red carpet . Reformed Hollywood badboy Mickey Rourke provided the only mild controversy of the night with a few expletives in his acceptance speech for the Best Actor award . `` Thank you Darren Aronofsky who gave me a second chance after I 'd f *** ed up my career for 15 years . Such a pleasure to be here , and be out of the darkness , '' he told the audience . Earlier , the actor told CNN how things have changed for him since the accolades started pouring in for his extraordinary performance in Aronofsky 's `` The Wrestler . '' `` I got a whole bunchy of new friends that I do n't need , '' Rourke said . `` But I 've also heard from some people that I 'd worked with years ago that I 'd burned bridges with that have come around . `` It 's taken me a long time to change and come back and do things the right way . I 'm just grateful for the second chance . '' There were also gongs for Spain 's Penelope Cruz , who took home Supporting Actress for her fiery scene-stealing performance as an unhinged artist in Woody Allen 's `` Vicky Cristina Barcelona , '' and the late Heath Ledger whose chilling reinvention of the Joker in Christopher Nolan 's `` The Dark Knight '' was recognized with the Supporting Actor award . Now , as attention turns to the upcoming Oscars , `` Slumdog 's '' BAFTA wins will only increase the momentum behind the Best Picture nominee . After success at both the Golden Globes and the BAFTAs , Kate Winslet could also be justified in looking forward to the Oscars with confidence .