Affleck named best director at Britain's Oscars

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    George Clooney, left, and Ben Affleck arrive for the BAFTA Film Awards at the Royal Opera House on Sunday, Feb. 10, 2013, in London. (Photo by Ki Price/Invision/AP)

    LONDON (AP) — Ben Affleck has won the best-director prize at the British Academy Film Awards for his Iran-hostage drama "Argo."

    Emmanuelle Riva, the 85-year-old French film legend, was named best actress Sunday for "Amour."

    The directing win gives Affleck's crowd-pleaser more momentum heading into the Hollywood Oscars on Feb. 24.

    The British Academy Film Awards, known as BAFTAs, are ever-more scrutinized as an indicator of likely success at the Hollywood Academy Awards. In recent years they have prefigured Academy Awards triumph for word-of-mouth hits including "Slumdog Millionaire," ''The King's Speech" and "The Artist."