Danny Boyle in the context of "Academy Award for Best Director"

The Silicon Imaging (SI-2K) was a 2K digital video camera built on a single 16 mm sized CMOS sensor manufactured by Altasens. It was able to record direct to disk in the compressed CineForm RAW format, and was notable for its tiny detachable camera head, which can be positioned up to 100m from the recording unit through an ethernet cable. Danny Boyle and his director of photography Anthony Dod Mantle used the camera on the films Slumdog Millionaire (Academy Award for Best Cinematography) and 127 Hours. The head and the recording unit together cost (c.a. 2011) $23,000. The head by itself costs $13,750, and could be used to record to a laptop that had appropriate specifications and software.

Anthony Dod Mantle (born 14 April 1955) is an English cinematographer, known as a pioneer of digital filmmaking through his collaborations with directors Lars von Trier, Thomas Vinterberg, Danny Boyle, and Kevin Macdonald.

During the 1990s, he was a figure in the Dogme 95 movement.

Slumdog Millionaire is a 2008 British drama film that is a loose adaptation of the novel Q & A (2005) by Indian author Vikas Swarup. It narrates the story of 18-year-old Jamal Malik from the Juhu slums of Mumbai. Starring Dev Patel in his film debut as Jamal, and filmed in India, it was directed by Danny Boyle, written by Simon Beaufoy, and produced by Christian Colson, with Loveleen Tandan credited as co-director. As a contestant on Kaun Banega Crorepati, a Hindi Indian version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, Jamal surprises everyone by answering every question correctly so far, winning ₹1 crore ($USD210,000, equivalent to around $300,000 in 2023), and he is one question away from winning the grand prize of ₹2 crore ($USD420,000, equivalent to around $590,000 in 2023). Accused of cheating, he recounts his life story to the police, illustrating how he was able to answer each question.

After its world premiere at the Telluride Film Festival and later screenings at the Toronto International Film Festival and the London Film Festival, Slumdog Millionaire had a nationwide release in United Kingdom on 9 January 2009, in India on 23 January 2009, and in the United States on 25 January 2009. Regarded as a sleeper hit, Slumdog Millionaire was widely acclaimed, praised for its plot, soundtrack, cinematography, editing, direction, and performances (especially Patel's). It was nominated for 10 Academy Awards in 2009 and won 8—the most of any 2008 film—including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay. It won seven BAFTA Awards including Best Film, five Critics' Choice Awards and four Golden Globes. However, reception in India and among Indian diaspora was mixed, and the film was the subject of controversy over its depiction of poverty in India and other issues. The Hindustan Times called it "an assault on Indian self-esteem".

127 Hours is a 2010 biographical drama film co-written, produced, and directed by Danny Boyle. The film mainly stars James Franco, with Kate Mara, Amber Tamblyn, and Clémence Poésy appearing in brief supporting roles. In the film, canyoneer Aron Ralston must find a way to escape after he gets trapped by a boulder in an isolated slot canyon in Bluejohn Canyon, southeastern Utah, in April 2003. It is a British and American venture produced by Pathé, Everest Entertainment, Film4 Productions, HandMade Films and Cloud Eight Films.

The film, based on Ralston's memoir Between a Rock and a Hard Place (2004), was written by Boyle and Simon Beaufoy, co-produced by Christian Colson and John Smithson, and scored by A. R. Rahman. Beaufoy, Colson, and Rahman had all previously worked with Boyle on Slumdog Millionaire (2008). 127 Hours premiered at the Telluride Film Festival on 4 September 2010, and was released in the United States on 5 November 2010 and in the United Kingdom on 7 January 2011. It was acclaimed by critics and audiences and grossed $60.7 million worldwide. It was selected by the American Film Institute as one of the top 10 films of 2010 and was nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Actor for Franco and Best Picture. The film also received nominations for eight British Academy Film Awards and three Golden Globe Awards.

28 Days Later (sometimes stylised with ellipses as 28 Days Later...) is a 2002 British post-apocalyptic horror film directed by Danny Boyle and written by Alex Garland. It stars Cillian Murphy as a bicycle courier who awakens from a coma to discover that the accidental release of a highly contagious, aggression-inducing virus has caused the breakdown of society. Naomie Harris, Christopher Eccleston, Megan Burns, and Brendan Gleeson appear in supporting roles.

Garland took inspiration from George A. Romero's Night of the Living Dead film series and John Wyndham's 1951 novel The Day of the Triffids. Filming took place in various locations in the United Kingdom in 2001. The crew filmed for brief periods during early mornings and temporarily closed streets to capture recognisable and typically busy areas when they were deserted. John Murphy composed an original soundtrack for the film, with other instrumental songs by Brian Eno, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, and other artists.

The opening ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics took place on the evening of Friday 27 July 2012 in the Olympic Stadium, London, during which the Games were formally opened by Queen Elizabeth II. As mandated by the Olympic Charter, the proceedings combined the ceremonial opening of this international sporting event (including welcoming speeches, hoisting of the flags and the parade of athletes) with an artistic spectacle to showcase the host nation's culture. The spectacle was entitled Isles of Wonder and directed by the Academy Award-winning British film director Danny Boyle, with Paulette Randall as associate director.

Prior to London 2012, there had been considerable apprehension about Britain's ability to stage an opening ceremony that could reach the standard set at the Beijing Summer Games of 2008. The 2008 ceremony had been noted for its scale, extravagance and expense, hailed as the "greatest ever", and had cost £65m. In contrast, London spent an estimated £27m (out of £80m budgeted for its four ceremonies), which was nevertheless about twice the original budget. Nonetheless, the London opening ceremony was immediately seen as a tremendous success, widely praised as a "masterpiece" and "a love letter to Britain".