The 68th BFI London Film Festival was a film festival that took place from 9–20 October 2024. The competition films were announced on 29 August 2024 while the films for the galas and the strands were revealed on 4 September 2024.[1][2]
Steve McQueen's historical drama Blitz opened the festival on 9 October 2024, being the third film by McQueen to do so after Widows in 2018 and Mangrove in 2020.[3] Morgan Neville's animated documentary film Piece by Piece closed the festival on 20 October 2024.[4]
Juries
The jury members were as follows:[5]
Main Competition
Documentary Competition (Grierson Award)
- June Givanni, Guyanese-British curator, archivist, and founder of the June Givanni Pan-African Cinema Archive – Jury president
- Ella Glendining, British writer and director
- Raul Niño Zambrano, creative director of Sheffield DocFest
Short Film Competition
- Chloe Abrahams, Sri Lankan-British writer and director – Jury president
- Simisolaoluwa Akande, British director
- George Jaques, British filmmaker
Venues
The partner venues for the festival included:[6][7]
London cinemas
Expanded venues
|
UK-wide cinemas
|
Official Selection
Galas
The following films were selected for the Galas section, which screens world, European, and British premieres:[8]
| English Title
|
Original Title
|
Director(s)
|
Production Country
|
| Opening Night Gala
|
| Blitz
|
Steve McQueen
|
United Kingdom, United States
|
| Closing Night Gala
|
| Piece by Piece
|
Morgan Neville
|
United States
|
| American Express Gala
|
| Elton John: Never Too Late
|
R.J. Cutler, David Furnish
|
United States
|
| Mayor of London's Gala
|
| We Live in Time
|
John Crowley
|
United Kingdom, France
|
| Cunard Gala
|
| Joy
|
Ben Taylor
|
United Kingdom
|
| BFI Patron's Gala
|
| Hard Truths
|
Mike Leigh
|
United Kingdom, Spain
|
| Family Gala
|
| That Christmas
|
Simon Otto
|
United Kingdom
United States
|
| Headline Gala
|
| Anora
|
Sean Baker
|
United States
|
| The Apprentice
|
Ali Abbasi
|
Canada, Denmark, Ireland
|
| Bird
|
Andrea Arnold
|
United Kingdom, France, Germany, United States
|
| Conclave
|
Edward Berger
|
United Kingdom, United States
|
| Emilia Pérez
|
Jacques Audiard
|
France
|
| Maria
|
Pablo Larraín
|
Italy, Germany, United States
|
| Nightbitch
|
Marielle Heller
|
United States
|
| The Room Next Door
|
La habitación de al lado
|
Pedro Almodóvar
|
Spain
|
Special Presentations
The following films were selected for the Special Presentations section:
| English Title
|
Original Title
|
Director(s)
|
Production Country
|
| All We Imagine As Light
|
Payal Kapadia
|
France, India, Netherlands, Luxembourg
|
| The Ballad of Suzanne Césaire
|
Madeleine Hunt-Ehrlich
|
United States
|
| Dahomey
|
Mati Diop
|
France, Senegal, Benin
|
| Endurance
|
Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, Jimmy Chin, Natalie Hewit
|
United Kingdom, United States
|
| Harvest
|
Athina Rachel Tsangari
|
United Kingdom, Germany, Greece, France, United States
|
| I’m Still Here
|
Ainda Estou Aqui
|
Walter Salles
|
Brazil, France
|
| A Nice Indian Boy (BFI Flare Special Presentation)
|
Roshan Sethi
|
United States, Canada
|
| Nickel Boys
|
RaMell Ross
|
United States
|
| The Piano Lesson
|
Malcolm Washington
|
| Queer
|
Luca Guadagnino
|
Italy, United States
|
| A Real Pain
|
Jesse Eisenberg
|
United States, Poland
|
| The Seed of the Sacred Fig
|
دانهی انجیر معابد
|
Mohammad Rasoulof
|
Iran, Germany, France
|
| Silent Sherlock (1921–1923)
|
Maurice Elvey, George Ridgwell
|
United Kingdom
|
| The Summer Book
|
Charlie McDowell
|
Finland, United Kingdom
|
| The Wild Robot
|
Chris Sanders
|
United States
|
In Competition
There were four competition sections, each with a different selection of films and different juries.
Official Competition
The following films competed for the Best Film Award:
| English Title
|
Original Title
|
Director(s)
|
Production Country
|
| April
|
Dea Kulumbegashvili
|
France, Italy, Georgia
|
| Bring Them Down
|
Christopher Andrews
|
Ireland, United Kingdom, Belgium
|
| The Extraordinary Miss Flower
|
Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard
|
United Kingdom
|
| Four Mothers
|
Colin Thornton, Darren Thornton
|
Ireland, United Kingdom
|
| Living in Two Worlds
|
ぼくが生きてる、ふたつの世界
|
Mipo O
|
Japan
|
| Memoir of a Snail
|
Adam Elliot
|
Australia
|
| On Becoming a Guinea Fowl
|
Rungano Nyoni
|
Zambia, United Kingdom, Ireland
|
| Thank You for Banking With Us
|
Laila Abbas
|
Palestine, Germany
|
| Under the Volcano
|
Pod wulkanem
|
Damian Kocur
|
Poland
|
| Vermiglio
|
Maura Delpero
|
Italy, France, Belgium
|
| The Wolves Always Come at Night
|
Чоно үүр шөнөөр ирдэг
|
Gabrielle Brady
|
Australia, Mongolia, Germany
|
- Highlighted title indicates the section winner.
First Feature Competition
The following films competed for the Sutherland Award, which is awarded to a directorial debut:
| English Title
|
Original Title
|
Director(s)
|
Production Country
|
| Crocodile Tears
|
Tumpal Tampubolon
|
Indonesia, France, Singapore, Germany
|
| Hanami
|
Denise Fernandes
|
Switzerland, Portugal, Cape Verde
|
| Happyend
|
Neo Sora
|
Japan, United States
|
| Last Swim
|
Sasha Nathwani
|
United Kingdom
|
| My Eternal Summer
|
Min evige sommer
|
Sylvia Le Fanu
|
Denmark
|
| Olivia & the Clouds
|
Olivia & Las Nubes
|
Tomás Pichardo Espaillat
|
Dominican Republic
|
| On Falling
|
Laura Carreira
|
United Kingdom, Portugal
|
| Santosh
|
Sandhya Suri
|
United Kingdom, France, Germany
|
| September Says
|
Ariane Labed
|
Ireland, United Kingdom, Germany
|
| To a Land Unknown
|
Mahdi Fleifel
|
United Kingdom, Palestine, France, Greece, Netherlands, Germany, Qatar, Saudi Arabia
|
| Who Do I Belong To
|
ماء العين
|
Meryam Joobeur
|
Tunisia, France, Canada, Norway, Qatar, Saudi Arabia
|
- Highlighted title indicates the section winner.
Documentary Competition
The following films competed for the Grierson Award, which is awarded to a feature-length documentary.
| English Title
|
Original Title
|
Director(s)
|
Production Country
|
| Collective Monologue |
Monólogo colectivo |
Jessica Sarah Rinland |
Argentina, United Kingdom
|
| Holloway |
Sophie Compton, Daisy-May Hudson |
United Kingdom
|
| Kamay |
Ilyas Yourish, Shahrokh Bikaran |
Afghanistan, Belgium, France, Germany
|
| Mother Vera |
Cécile Embleton, Alys Tomlinson |
United Kingdom
|
| Rising Up at Night |
Tongo Saa |
Nelson Makengo |
Democratic Republic of Congo, Belgium, Germany, Burkina Faso, Qatar
|
| Seeking Mavis Beacon |
Jazmin Renée Jones |
United States
|
| The Shadow Scholars |
Eloise King |
United Kingdom
|
| Witches |
Elizabeth Sankey
|
- Highlighted title indicates the section winner.
Short Film Competition
The following films competed for the Short Film Award.
| English Title
|
Original Title
|
Director(s)
|
Production Country
|
| Adura Baba Mi |
Juliana Kasumu |
United Kingdom
|
| Cold Snap |
Ellen Evans
|
| Dragfox |
Lisa Ott
|
| I Don't Want to Be Just a Memory |
Sarnt Utamachote |
Germany
|
| Magic Candies |
Amedama |
Nishio Daisuke |
Japan
|
| Mother's Day |
Emily Burnett |
United Kingdom
|
| See It, Say It |
Nez Khammal
|
| Stomach Bug |
Matty Crawford
|
| Two Refusals (Would We Recognize Ourselves Unbroken?) |
Suneil Sanzgiri |
United States
|
| Vibrations from Gaza |
Rehab Nazzal |
Palestine, Canada
|
- Highlighted title indicates the section winner.
Strands
Most of the out-of-competition films have been organised into strands, each based on a different mood or emotion.
Love
Debate
| English Title
|
Original Title
|
Director(s)
|
Production Country
|
| 2073 |
Asif Kapadia |
United Kingdom
|
| Black Box Diaries |
Shiori Itō |
Japan, United States, United Kingdom
|
| The Cats of Gokogu Shrine |
Gokōgu no Neko |
Kazuhiro Soda |
Japan, United States
|
| Families like Ours |
Familier som vores |
Thomas Vinterberg |
Denmark, France, Sweden, Czechia, Belgium, Norway, Germany
|
| I'm Nevenka |
Soy Nevenka |
Icíar Bollaín |
Spain
|
| The Invasion |
Sergei Loznitsa |
Netherlands, France, United States
|
| Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989 |
Göran Hugo Olsson |
Sweden, Finland, Denmark
|
| Julie Keeps Quiet |
Julie zwijgt |
Leonardo Van Dijl |
Belgium, Sweden
|
| The Listeners |
Jordan Tannahill |
United Kingdom
|
| Three Kilometres to the End of the World |
Trei kilometri până la capătul lumii |
Emanuel Pârvu |
Romania
|
| Youth (Homecoming) |
青春 |
Wang Bing |
France, Luxembourg, Netherlands
|
Laugh
| English Title
|
Original Title
|
Director(s)
|
Production Country
|
| Audrey |
Natalie Bailey |
Australia
|
| The Gutter |
Yassir Lester, Isaiah Lester |
United States
|
| The Other Way Around |
Volveréis |
Jonás Trueba |
Spain, France
|
| Rumours |
Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson, Galen Johnson |
Germany, Canada
|
| Sofa, So Good |
Kyle Thiele, Eli Thiele, Cole Thiele |
United States
|
| A Traveler's Needs |
여행자의 필요 |
Hong Sang-soo |
South Korea
|
| Triumph |
Триумф |
Kristina Grozeva, Petar Valchanov |
Bulgaria, Greece
|
| Universal Language |
Une langue universelle / آواز بوقلمون |
Matthew Rankin |
Canada
|
Dare
| English Title
|
Original Title
|
Director(s)
|
Production Country
|
| Bionico's Bachata |
La bachata de Bionico |
Yoel Morales |
Dominican Republic
|
| Caught by the Tides |
风流一代 |
Jia Zhangke |
China
|
| Cidade; Campo |
Juliana Rojas |
Brazil, Germany, France
|
| Diciannove |
Giovanni Tortorici |
Italy, United Kingdom
|
| Don't Cry, Butterfly |
Mu’a trên cánh bU’ó’m |
Dương Diệu Linh |
Vietnam, Singapore, Philippines, Indonesia
|
| Eight Postcards from Utopia |
Opt ilustrate din lumea ideală |
Radu Jude, Christian Ferencz-Flatz |
Romania
|
| Familiar Touch |
Sarah Friedland |
United States
|
| Fire of Wind |
Fogo do Vento |
Marta Mateus |
Portugal, Switzerland, France
|
| My Stolen Planet |
Sayyareye dozdide shodeye man |
Farahnaz Sharifi |
Germany, Iran
|
| The Nights Still Smell of Gunpowder |
As Noites Ainda Cheiram a Pólvora |
Inadelso Cossa |
Mozambique, France, Germany, Portugal, Netherlands, Norway
|
| Pepe |
Nelson Carlo De Los Santos Arias |
Dominican Republic, Namibia, Germany, France
|
| Formosa Beach |
Praia Formosa |
Julia de Simone |
Portugal, Brazil
|
| Sanatorium Under the Sign of the Hourglass |
Brothers Quay |
United Kingdom, Poland, Germany
|
| Soundtrack to a Coup d'Etat |
Johan Grimonprez |
Belgium, France, Netherlands
|
| Sugar Island |
Johanné Gómez Terrero |
Dominican Republic, Spain
|
| Việt and Nam |
Trong lòng đất |
Minh Quý Trương |
Vietnam, Philippines, France, Singapore, Netherlands, Italy, Germany
|
Thrill
| English Title
|
Original Title
|
Director(s)
|
Production Country
|
| Aïcha |
Mehdi M. Barsaoui |
Tunisia, France, Italy, Saudi Arabia, Qatar
|
| Architecton |
Viktor Kossakovsky |
Germany, France
|
| La cocina |
Alonso Ruizpalacios |
Mexico, United States
|
| Eat the Night |
Caroline Poggi, Jonathan Vinel |
France
|
| Ghost Trail |
Les Fantômes |
Jonathan Millet |
France, Germany, Belgium
|
| Maldoror |
Fabrice Du Welz |
Belgium, France
|
| Marco, the Invented Truth |
Marco, la verdad inventada |
Aitor Arregi, Jon Garaño |
Spain
|
| Misericordia |
Miséricorde |
Alain Guiraudie |
France, Spain, Portugal
|
| Skincare |
Austin Peters |
United States
|
| Stranger Eyes |
默視錄 |
Yeo Siew Hua |
Singapore, Taiwan, France, United States
|
| A Thousand Blows |
Steven Knight |
United Kingdom
|
Cult
Journey
| English Title
|
Original Title
|
Director(s)
|
Production Country
|
| After the Long Rains |
Baada Ya Masika |
Damien Hauser |
Kenya, Switzerland
|
| The Assessment |
Fleur Fortuné |
United Kingdom, Germany, United States
|
| Baby |
Marcelo Caetano |
Brazil
|
| Eephus |
Carson Lund |
France, United States
|
| Ellis Park |
Justin Kurzel |
Australia
|
| The End |
Joshua Oppenheimer |
Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Italy, United Kingdom, Sweden
|
| Flow |
Gints Zilbalodis |
Latvia, Belgium, France
|
| Good One |
India Donaldson |
United States
|
| Layla |
Amrou Al-Kadhi |
United Kingdom
|
| Look into My Eyes |
Lana Wilson |
United States
|
| My Everything |
Mon inséparable |
Anne-Sophie Bailly |
France
|
| Sebastian |
Mikko Mäkelä |
United Kingdom, Belgium, Finland
|
| Shambhala |
Min Bahadur Bham |
Nepal, France, Norway, Turkey, Hong Kong, Taiwan, United States, Qatar
|
| Sujo |
Astrid Rondero, Fernanda Valadez |
Mexico, United States, France
|
| Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story |
Ian Bonhôte, Peter Ettedgui |
United Kingdom, United States
|
| Treading Water |
Gino Evans |
United Kingdom
|
| The Village Next to Paradise |
Mo Harawe |
Austria, France, Somalia
|
Create
| English Title
|
Original Title
|
Director(s)
|
Production Country
|
| Abiding Nowhere |
Tsai Ming-liang |
Taiwan, United States
|
| Ernest Cole: Lost and Found |
Raoul Peck |
United States, France
|
| Grand Theft Hamlet |
Sam Crane, Pinny Grylls |
United Kingdom
|
| It's Not Me |
C'est pas moi |
Leos Carax |
France
|
| One to One: John & Yoko |
Kevin Macdonald |
United Kingdom
|
| Pauline Black: A 2-Tone Story |
Jane Mingay
|
| The Stimming Pool |
The Neurocultures Collective (Sam Chown Ahern, Georgia Bradburn, Benjamin Brown, Robin Elliott-Knowles, Lucy Walker, Steven Eastwood)
|
| Superboys of Malegaon |
Reema Kagti |
India
|
| Twiggy |
Sadie Frost |
United Kingdom
|
| Two Strangers Trying Not to Kill Each Other |
Jacob Perlmutter, Manon Ouimet |
United Kingdom, Denmark, United States
|
| The Way We Talk |
Adam Wong Sau-Ping |
Hong Kong
|
Experimenta
| English Title
|
Original Title
|
Director(s)
|
Production Country
|
| The Treasury of Human Inheritance |
Alexis Kyle Mitchell |
Canada, United Kingdom
|
| Notes: Remembered and Found |
Maria Anastassiou |
United Kingdom, Cyprus
|
| Direct Action |
Guillaume Cailleau, Ben Russell |
Germany, France
|
| A Fidai Film |
Kamal Aljafari |
Palestine
|
| A Night We Held Between |
Noor Abed
|
| + No Exorcism Film |
Komtouch Napattaloong |
Thailand
|
| Small Hours of the Night |
Daniel Hui |
Singapore
|
Family
Treasures
Shorts
The short film programme was divided into the following nine sections.
Family Ties
| English Title
|
Original Title
|
Director(s)
|
Production Country
|
| Trouble |
Sarah Blok |
United Kingdom
|
| Pigs |
Julia Jackman
|
| Us Four |
Alex Peake
|
| Space(s) |
Luke "Frsh" Fannin
|
| Two Minutes |
Jamie Benyon
|
Honouring Traditions
| English Title
|
Original Title
|
Director(s)
|
Production Country
|
| Midnight Rising |
Aileen Ye |
United Kingdom, Netherlands
|
| Iranian Yellow Pages |
Anna Snowball |
United Kingdom
|
| Irpinia |
Jameisha Prescod
|
| Travelling Home |
Juliet Klottrup
|
| Roots that Reach Toward the Sky |
Jess X. Snow |
United States, Canada
|
| Red Soil |
Joshua Ighodaro |
United Kingdom
|
| Salone Love |
Tajana Tokyo
|
I Don't Wanna Force a Smile
| English Title
|
Original Title
|
Director(s)
|
Production Country
|
| Not Surgery Hours |
Tia Salisbury |
United Kingdom
|
| The Nobody |
Razan Madhoon
|
| Happy Meat |
Matt Green
|
| Gender Reveal |
Mo Matton |
Canada
|
| Bob's Funeral |
Jack Dunphy |
United States
|
| The Real Thing |
Charlie Fink |
United Kingdom
|
Sleepless Nights
| English Title
|
Original Title
|
Director(s)
|
Production Country
|
| Sylvia |
Tárá Ayeni |
United Kingdom
|
| Mosquito Lady |
Kristine Gerolaga |
United States
|
| The Awakening |
Al Campbell |
United Kingdom
|
| Outside Noise |
Ethan Evans
|
| Dream Creep |
Carlos A. F. López |
United States
|
Trials and Tribulations
| English Title
|
Original Title
|
Director(s)
|
Production Country
|
| Hermit |
Daniel Raggett |
United Kingdom
|
| Karavidhe |
Eoin Doran
|
| Rhoda |
Alex Lawther
|
| Fierce-ish Grace |
Amaya Owen Rowlands
|
| In Heat |
Rory Fleck Byrne
|
Wondering, Wandering
| English Title
|
Original Title
|
Director(s)
|
Production Country
|
| And Granny Would Dance |
Maryam Mohajer |
United Kingdom
|
| A Short Film About Kids |
Ibrahim Handal |
Palestine
|
| Dawn Every Day |
Amir Youssef |
Egypt
|
| Liminal Roots |
Aliyah Harfoot |
United Kingdom
|
| What’s the Film About? |
Poorva Bhat
|
Animated Shorts for Younger Audiences
| English Title
|
Original Title
|
Director(s)
|
Production Country
|
| Coo-rage |
Alina Milkina |
Netherlands
|
| Love at First Waf |
Louise Le Toullec, Helene Gouil |
France
|
| Who’s Wrong? |
Vems Fel? |
Stina Wirsén, Linda Hambäck |
Sweden
|
| The Brave Locomotive |
Andrew Chesworth |
United States
|
| The Odd Carrot |
Inese Pavēne |
United Kingdom
|
| Freelance |
Luciano A. Muñoz Sessarego, Magnus I. Møller, Peter Smith |
Denmark
|
| Yuck! |
Loïc Espuche |
France
|
| The Child of the Waves |
L'Enfant des vagues |
Valentine Hilarin, Gaelle Bejjani, Yuhan Wang, Martin Gross, Noam Szwarc, Sofian Pourquery-de-Boisserin
|
| Hello Summer |
Ahoj leto |
Martin Smatana, Veronika Zacharová |
Slovakia, Czechia, France
|
A Stream of Echoes
| English Title
|
Original Title
|
Director(s)
|
Production Country
|
| File No. 2304 |
A.S.M. Kobayashi |
Canada, United States
|
| At the Verge of Wordlessness |
Alaa Abu Asad |
Netherlands
|
| Before Seriana |
Avant Seriana |
Samy Benammar |
Canada, Algeria
|
| Crocodile Nest |
Nido de Cocodrilo |
Jazmin Rojas Forero |
Colombia, Germany
|
Right in the Substance of Them a Trace of What Happened
| English Title
|
Original Title
|
Director(s)
|
Production Country
|
| Non/Living |
Müge Yildiz |
Turkey, Finland
|
| Two Stones |
Rua Kōhatu |
Noel Meek |
New Zealand
|
| Hexham Heads |
Chloë Delanghe, Mattijs Driesen |
Belgium
|
| The Flesh of Language |
Amanda Rice |
Ireland
|
| Hemel |
Danielle Dean |
United Kingdom
|
| Our Lady Who Burns |
Nossa Senhora Que Queima |
Alice dos Reis |
Portugal
|
Surprise Film
Saturday Night, dir. Jason Reitman
Awards
The following awards were presented:[9]
In competition
Audience awards
Voting for the audience awards closes on 23 October. Winners will be announced later in October.
References
- ^ Ntim, Zac (29 August 2024). "London Film Festival: Dea Kulumbegashvili's 'April' And Barry Keoghan Pic 'Bring Them Down' To Play In Competition". Deadline. Retrieved 6 September 2024.
- ^ "Full programme announced for 68th BFI London Film Festival". BFI. 2024-09-04. Archived from the original on 2024-09-04. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
- ^ Ntim, Zac (July 1, 2024). "Steve McQueen's 'Blitz' To Open London Film Festival As World Premiere". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on July 11, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
- ^ Ramachandran, Naman (2024-09-04). "Angelina Jolie, Daniel Craig, Elton John, Andrew Garfield, Saoirse Ronan Titles Among BFI London Film Festival Full Lineup". Variety. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
- ^ "Competition juries announced for 68th BFI London Film Festival". BFI London Film Festival. 27 September 2024. Archived from the original on 2 October 2024. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
- ^ "LFF on tour". British Film Institute. Retrieved 6 September 2024.
- ^ "Venues". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on 6 September 2024. Retrieved 6 September 2024.
- ^ Ntim, Zac (2024-09-04). "BFI London Film Festival Lineup: Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi & Jimmy Chin To Debut 'Endurance', Baker, Heller, Berger & Abbasi's Trump Movie Among Headline Galas — Full List". Deadline. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
- ^ Dalton, Ben (20 October 2024). "Adam Elliot's 'Memoir Of A Snail' heads BFI London Film Festival 2024 winners". ScreenDaily. Archived from the original on 15 November 2024. Retrieved 22 October 2024.