Style: 21st-century talent-spotting

Who's going to make an impact in Y2K? The stars who shaped the Nineties predict the names to watch in the Zeros

Sam Taylor-Wood:

"Lara Belmont rose to the

challenge of starring in `The War Zone', her first film, with strength and

vulnerability. What I saw on the screen was

someone who had not been trained in any way. Who was totally open and natural. I'm looking forward to seeing a lot more of her on the big screen."

LARA BELMONT

Discovered at 13 by Isabella Blow, Lara Belmont spent her early teens modelling. At 18 she was spotted again, this time by a casting agent. Belmont went on to win the role of Jessie in Tim Roth's The War Zone, for which she won Best Newcomer at the 1999 British Independent Film Awards.

What are the five things most often said about you?

Lara Belmont: Spun-out, positive, moody, sympathetic, generous.

The reason you get out of bed every morning is...

I don't get out of bed, that's the reason why I want a job.

If you could take only one item into the next century, what would it be?

My sanity - it's not something I want to lose.

What's the first thing you'll do when you wake up in the 21st century?

Feel dazed and confused then take a paracetamol.

The person you'd most like to be stuck in a lift with...

Scarlet, my best mate, because we do everything together.

By this time next year...

I'll have joined CND, got my driving licence, achieved inner happiness and finished a pint.

Lynne Ramsay: "Morag is an exciting and innovative young director who I'm quite sure will be making a

big impact next year."

MORAG MCKINNON

A film and TV graduate of the Edinburgh College of Art and The Scottish Film School, Morag McKinnon has made several acclaimed short films. Fantoosh became the first Scottish short ever to be screened at the Venice Film Festival, while this year Home won a Bafta for Best Short Film. McKinnon has just completed work on a Channel 4 drama, Heart and Sole.

What are the five things most often said about you?

Morag McKinnon: "You look like Jimmy Kranky", "God, you're short", "What are you doing in my back garden?", "Why can't you be more confident?", "Can you really put your fist in your mouth?"

The reason you get up every morning is...

Because endless possibilities exist every day. OK, so

some days I don't achieve very much, but that's not

the point.

If you could take only one item into the next century, what would it be?

A Kalahari Bushman, because they valued their own stories and had a unique understanding of life

What's the first thing you'll do when you wake up in the 21st century?

Contact the mothership.

The person you'd most like to be stuck in a lift with...

A person who can fix lifts; I have a psychotic hatred

of lifts.

By this time next year...

I'll have shot my first feature and travelled to the Kalahari (with any luck).

Basement Jaxx: "Ronnie is a multi-talented songwriter and

musician who has been writing for the last 20 years. He has a voice like chocolate milk that sounds like a cross

between Horace Andy and Terry

Callier. He's

pure spiritual

positivity."

RONNIE RICHARDS

Formerly a painter and decorator from Brixton, London, reggae artist Ronnie Richards didn't start playing or singing music until he was in his twenties. While singing with friends in a south London rehearsal studio in 1997, Felix from Basement Jaxx stuck his head around the corner and asked him for some help with vocals. Richards and Basement Jaxx recorded "Missing You" together in 1997 on Atlantic Jaxx, went on a European tour and now Richards has just released his first solo single, "Jammin".

What are the five

things most often said about you?

Ronnie Richards: Stubborn

and a bit shy, actually

very shy, but generally a

pretty cool person. Some people also say I have

the potential with my

voice to go all the way

to the top.

The reason you get out of bed every morning is...

To try and reach perfection in my music.

If you could take only one item into the next century, what would it be?

My semi-acoustic Yamaha guitar, definitely.

What's the first thing you'll do when you

wake up in the 21st

century?

Oh man, I have no idea, but I do know that one place I won't be on 1 January is in the Millennium Dome.

The person (either dead or alive) who you would like to be stuck in a lift with is...

Either my partner or The Christ.

By this time next year ...

I would like to have achieved my goal of establishing myself worldwide as a reggae musician.

Bjork:

"Bara and Raven's

work welcomed me when I moved home. Make me feel the warmthest cord of care, they do!"

BARA AND RAVEN

Based in Reykjavik, Iceland, sisters Raven (28) and Bara (22) are about to launch their line of recycled, one-off fashion pieces. Formerly stylists on commercials, and fashion buyers, their business is driven by environmental issues - they vow never to use anything but recycled fabrics.

What are the five things most often said about you?

Bara and Raven: That we look like twins, that we are too honest, assertive, hard to please and that we're shopaholics.

The reason you get up every morning is...

Bara: To wake Raven up. Raven: Bara tells me to.

If you take only one item into the next

century, what will it be?

Bara: My hairdryer - I hate bad hair days.

Raven: Nothing - fresh start.

What's the first thing you'll do when you wake up in the 21st century? Enjoy our hangovers.

By this time next year...

We will have more money, more plans, more clothes, more ideas, more time, more everything.

A longer version of this article appears in the December issue of `Dazed & Confused', now on sale.