Welcome to BIFF 2026.

Moscow, 1996. Andrey Rubanov, a young and enterprising banker, has a wife named Irma and a small child. He also has over a million dollars — split with his friend Misha. Seeing themselves as the future elite of the new Russia, destined to become oligarchs, they get involved in a major deal. But it turns out that the friends have been drawn into a large-scale scheme to embezzle billions from the state treasury. 

A selection of short films:
Crocodile Tears
Lola is a professional mourner by trade, and this funeral may be her strangest yet. Hired by the formidable matriarch of the wealthy Walton family to pose as the grieving girlfriend of her recently deceased son, Theodore, Lola soon finds the line between performance and reality beginning to blur. 

Procedure
On a 1976 extradition flight, a closeted police officer must choose between the rigid procedure that has protected her and the woman she loves - risking everything in the process.

Fractured
Fractured is an experimental, performance-driven film that explores the quiet disintegration of a relationship. Through restrained gestures and minimal interaction, it captures two individuals struggling and ultimately failing to rebuild what’s lost, arriving at the realisation that some chapters must end. 

Trash Magnet
An egotistical artist steals a lost watch for their project, and becomes trapped in a time loop that forces them to confront the real-world cost of their self-absorption.

Meet The Agent is a straight talking introduction around gaining an agent presented by James Little.

This session aims to open eyes and ears to the crucial role sound can play in indie films. Many low / no budget films suffer from the same problem – poor quality sound. This issue is often a barrier for films looking for a life on the festival circuit as having poor sound, or sound that doesn’t match the quality of the visual, takes audiences out of the story and generally lowers the overall perceived quality of the film.  

This session aims to open ears and ears to the processes and potential for great sound by sharing examples, workflows and offer practical advice while shining a light on the often, hidden craft of film sound. 

Steve and Glen have, between them, worked across all areas of the Sound Department on a wide range of indie shorts and features and, using examples, will highlight each role in the sound process outlining why and how each area is important to consider when thinking about your finished film. From capturing clean location sound, to the manging the final mix, Steve and Glen will sharing their experience and advice through practical examples in this 45-minute session designed to elevate the quality of your films.   

A selection of NFTS Graduate films followed up with a Q&A.

Declan is a disengaged biology student who cares more about drawing than his degree, but now in his second year, where grades
count, even his closest friends don’t want to partner with him for this term’s assignment. Out of options, Declan is forced to work
with the new girl, Claire, a proud and ambitious Deaf eco-activist pushing through the lack of accessibility in universities. Their different attitudes quickly bubble to the surface on the mudflats and pebbled shores of the south English coast, but so might long-
hidden secrets and a friendship if they stand in the seagrass long enough.

In the 1970s, Diane Jobson made a name for herself as Bob Marley's close friend and lawyer, converting to Rastafarianism under his influence. After his death, she dedicated her career to defending Jamaica's poorest communities, becoming the island's beloved "Rasta lawyer.” Now 80, the fiercely stubborn attorney with 12-foot-long locks still works without a computer, taking handwritten notes and helping clients facing police violence and murder charges. To cope with her demanding work, Diane finds a sense of peace through her spiritual connection with Jamaica's nature and her sprawling conversations with her close friend Sally Henzell about aging, love and purpose.

A selection of UK Short Films.

ADHD
Clara, a neurodiverse, overwhelmed corporate employee, struggles to manage her workload and the number of daily tasks she has to keep up with just to stay alive in the modern world, within a sterile corporate environment. After being summoned to a meeting with her manager and HR, she deflects criticism of her work and inappropriate behaviour by blaming everything on her ADHD, with loud confidence. As the meeting escalates, increasingly absurd misconduct is revealed, culminating in her dismissal. Clara figures out how to beat the system by making herself unfirable when she reveals that she is Italian, and therefore their most diverse employee.

The First Silence
The First Silence follows Yaz, a young actress whose breakthrough role exposes the emotional abuse beneath her relationship with charismatic, manipulative Logan. As gaslighting fractures her confidence, memory and identity, Yaz struggles to distinguish truth from illusion. Through therapy and acting, she gradually reclaims her voice, independence and sense of self.

Pigeonman
A director plans to make a viral video in order to get famous. Alongside his assistant, Pepsi, the two attempt to film a local man who thinks he can control birds. Pigeonman doesn't think he can control birds. He knows it. As time progresses and the directors nasty true intentions show, Pepsi begins to have a change of heart, eventually joining Pigeonman in his strange hobby.

Well-Being
In a bleak city where a corporate giant promises to "fix" the broken, a young man enters a free therapy program, only to uncover a sinister plot to turn the vulnerable into obedient AI servants, forcing him to confront his darkest memories and fight for his own humanity.

A selection of short films

Dirt
Five months after being abandoned, a mother and her young son live in suffocating grief. When her emotional withdrawal puts him in danger, she is forced to confront the pain beneath her numbness, leading to a raw and transformative rediscovery of connection, sensuality, and joy.

Gan Canny
BAFTA and BIFA-qualifying, Royal Television Society award-winning Gan Canny is a darkly comic North Eastern tale of grief, grudges and Geordie culture. Unhappy with their estranged mam’s funeral plans, siblings Tyler and Paige steal Nana’s hearse and take her on one final road trip, with heartfelt, hilarious and deeply disrespectful consequences.

Beautiful Birds
When a widowed birdwatcher reluctantly teams up with her granddaughter for a local birdwatching competition on the Isle of Bute, their search for rare species becomes a heartfelt journey through grief, love, and letting go.

An intimat ediscussion with Director Nicole Fry, last year's winner with The Lace and 3 entries for BIFF2026

A selection of short films.

Bleeding
Mollie, a young woman in her twenties, is struggling with her mental health. She writes a diary entry, pouring out all the emotions she can’t express aloud. Her words reveal the depth of her isolation and the hopelessness of feeling all this pain bleed out of her without anyone noticing.

A Girl Called Alice
In the middle of London's mobile phone theft epidemic; a young woman with the reputation of one of the most gifted phone thieves is challenged by a notorious street gang leader to see just how good she really is, but is it a wise choice? 

Behind the Reflection
Set within a raw and intimate world, this film follows a young woman navigating addiction, identity, and emotional disconnection. As her internal conflict deepens, moments of vulnerability and self-destruction blur the line between escape and reality. Through a stripped-back and honest lens, the film explores the weight of unresolved pain and the fragile search for self within the queer experience.

A specially selected short film Bournemouth University followed by a Q&A panel about the film and its themes.

Memory is a Wonderful Thing is an animated documentary about looking back in order to understand who we are now. A group of veterans meet to talk about health care, ageing, and dementia—and the conversation unravels into something else. Childhood memories surface alongside recollections of military service and the years that followed, revealing personal and shared threads that bind these men and women together. Underpinning the film is a simple but resonant idea: memory is what makes us human. Visualised through flowing, animated painterly imagery, the film moves between past and present.

Memory Is a Wonderful Thing (2026), is a short 2D animation created as part of the Served research project, which investigates why veterans may be reluctant to seek help for dementia-related concerns. The animation was developed through collaboration between veterans, researchers from Bournemouth University’s Health department, and the NCCA over a course of creative workshops. This panel discusses the film in the context of developing working practices that focus upon processes of co-creation and participatory making in animated documentary. 

Presented by Margherita Madeo and Collette Weston.

The BFI Certification Unit is the first point of contact for applicants wanting to qualify their film (including shorts, documentary and animation) or TV project as British to access the UK’s creative sector tax incentives (AVEC). Certification analysts Collette Weston and Margherita Modeo will be on hand to discuss qualifying your film, animation and or other projects under the cultural test or as an official co-production to access the expenditure credits, including the recently introduced Enhanced AVEC for low-budget film (also known as the Independent Film Tax Credit, IFTC), which can be worth up to nearly 40% of your UK qualifying expenditure. If you’re making a film in the UK then you’re likely eligible, so come and see for more information.

Mucker provides a fascinating insight into the professional and personal life of the pioneering and award winning British documentary film maker Brian Moser.

A feature documentary exploring the four-decade long career and profound underground influence of enigmatic Canadian singer-songwriter Al Tuck. Filmed over eight years, the film offers a poetic reflection on artistic devotion, resilience, and life on the margins of mainstream success.

A fireside conversation with renowned stuntman Paul weston.

A multi decade career seeing Paul work across a host of Hollywod movies including James Bond.

“My job wasn’t just to fall. It was to engineer the fall so the camera believed it, and I could walk away to do it again.” 

A selection of short films.

Learners
When a cantankerous widower teaches his son’s struggling actress girlfriend to drive, their disastrous lessons blossom into an unlikely friendship that forces them both to confront how lost they have become.

Time to Go
Driven to breaking point by years of workplace misogyny, Megan meticulously plots to eliminate her manipulative boss, but as detectives close in, the line between her plan, her fantasies and the truth begins to blur.

The Sound We Make Together
Following Portsmouth duo The Hills Brothers, this documentary explores how open-mic nights offer struggling musicians something beyond fame: creative expression, mutual support and a vital sense of community.

Hazard Perception
An expectant father and a woman haunted by her fear of driving spark an unexpected connection while waiting to be called in for their driving test.

CLOSE
After discovering his absent father’s photographic negatives, Keane develops them with his mother and uncovers a hidden life, leading them towards the closure they have long been denied.

Anintimate conversation with legendary stuntman Paul Weston, hosted by Rhiannon Duffin.

Paul Weston is one of Britain’s most respected stunt performers, coordinators and second unit directors, with a remarkable career spanning six decades. Beginning as Roger Moore’s understudy on The Saint, Paul went on to help create memorable action sequences for some of cinema’s biggest franchises, including James Bond, Star Wars, Indiana Jones and Superman. His extensive credits also include Aliens, A Bridge Too Far and Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. Paul is the author of Falling Into Film: A Stuntman’s Early Adventures, which recounts the extraordinary stories behind a lifetime spent creating action for the screen.

Join us for an exlcusive UK screening of the sensational Jonah Lomu documentary. Produced by one of our local production companies - Sylver Entertainment.

LOMU is a theatrical documentary about the legendary All Black, Jonah Lomu. An intimate and heartfelt character study tracing his Tongan upbringing, meteoric rise to fame, and the complicated personal and health battles he faced at the pinnacle of world rugby.

“an exceptional film… far more than a simple sports documentary… a tender but unsentimental study of what it is to be a son, and a father. Brilliant.” - The Conversation

This is a seprate out of comptetion screening and is ticketed outside of the BIFF passes.

A selection of short films.

The Pen That Will Not Bow
In early eighteenth-century Paris, young Voltaire’s love for actress Adrienne Lecouvreur fuels a defiant voice against censorship and power.

Albert 
Guernsey, 1690. As echoes of the island’s witch trials linger, reclusive farmer Sarre must conceal his connection to nature or risk persecution. Inspired by local folklore and historical research, this psychological drama explores isolation, sacrifice and the conflict between nature and order, witchcraft and religion, asking what conformity ultimately costs.

We're All Black Down Here
In racially divided 1950s Britain an Afro Caribbean miner struggles to find acceptance above ground.

Full Fat
Grace and Bels do everything together. They live together, spend every waking moment together, and have even slept together. The only problem? Grace is in love with Bels, and Bels has a new boyfriend. Something has to give.

Back In Business
A scheming wife gets more than she bargains for when she persuades two happily retired assassins to help her escape the confines of a loveless marriage. 

A selection of short animation.

Future Of...
The end is near as the animal world is in revolt.
Three short stories from animals of our pillaged seas, the land we hunt upon, and the air which we overindulge.

Final Act
After witnessing the death of a famous actress, Mateus Santos, a journalism intern, has the unique chance to investigate the case alongside his idol, the renowned journalist Miriam Matos. Together, they interrogate three suspects in pursuit of the truth behind the killer’s motive.

Generative AI is changing not only how films are made, but who can make them and what forms storytelling might take next.

Drawing on The Casebook of Morgan Elliot, The Broken Heart and Rock ’n’ Roll Grandad, filmmakers Clare Cahill and Fiona Bavinton offer a practical state of play from a micro-independent company actively using these technologies.

They explore what generative tools enable, where they still fail, and how emerging workflows blur boundaries between film, games, immersive media and persistent storyworlds. The session also addresses authorship, labour, copyright and growing dependence on powerful technology platforms.

The question is no longer simply whether AI can make a convincing shot, but what stories become possible as old production barriers begin to shift.

A selection of short films.

Drone
A reclusive programmer with a severe speech impediment receives an invasive and unpredictable brain implant that could turn his life around.

Perfect Imperfection
Nial’s acceptance into university comes with initial self-doubt as the realisation of having to do it solo, with a stammer, takes an emotional toll.

On his final day at college, he opens up about his struggles to his mentor, with the time being used for uncomfortable reflection and discovering newfound optimism. 

A Hair's Breadth
Beck’s new moustache makes waves when it slows him down in the pool shortly before a big race. As his coach grows more aggressive in his attempts to make him shave, Beck must choose between his moustache and freedom, or his coach and treading water.

GAFFER
An amateur football manager’s pre-game preparations are thrown into disarray when his star player disappears in the run up to a crucial match.

An indepth investigation into the air your breathe on aircraft and what the industry really knows.

Two Malawian street musicians build their own instruments and busk their way from Lilongwe to Glastonbury, guided by a British manager who never left, confronting hunger, exhaustion and the harsh cost of the road along the way.

A private celebration for our Official Selection filmmakers and VIP's.

Join us at the Tap & Tandoor on Richmond Hill for a couple of hours boozing and smoozing to celebrate BIFF in style.

Please Note: This event is exclusive to Official Selection/Nominees and VIP Ticket holders.

Complimentary Indian Canepés on arrival, drinks pay at the bar.

PS. If your name's not on the list... 🤗

A selection of Student Short Films.

Your Life sucks, here's why!
Cora must choose between seeking help from the real world or an oddly comforting, perfectly-perfect 1950s show, 'The Fix It Family'.

'Your life sucks, here's why!' explores the life of Cora, an average young woman who is seeking for escapism from her mundane life. When she comes across a strange tv show that seems to transcend time, she finds her intrigue growing with every watch.

Blank Space
Shot alone over the course of 5 days by a 15 y.o. filmmaker, BLANK SPACE follows a disheartened young pianist (Peter Zvoznikov) who retreats into the woods, only to discover a strange patch of land that seemingly vanishes objects into a mysterious void beyond reality. The film explores focus and ADHD. INTO FILM AWARD 2026 OFFICIAL SELECTION

A Rose For Iris
Having fled the war-ravaged country of Iran, a young father and his daughter arrive hopeful on the beaches of England. Believing they have found safety, their lives take a dramatic turn after an encounter with a proud local father and his daughter, forever altering both families. The harsh consequences of this meeting leave scars on the children that will last a lifetime.

Miss Canton
As Jenny, an aspiring chef, sits down for a Lunar New Year dinner with her family, she is engulfed by the disassociation with the language and culture of her Chinese heritage. She grapples with guilt and an overwhelming pressure to belong, but can she escape the surreal pageant of her own creation?

An intimate in conversation with Writer/Director Dan Pringle, hosted by Stuart Marshall.

A selection of International Shorts.

You're not a fool Grandpa
A little girl, now a woman, writes to her grandfather, wounded by a mental disorder. She watches him as he seethes inwardly, pondering the place of childhood in suffering.

Refugee
A young child is forced to leave his country due to an outbreak of civil war, and the obstacles and hardships he experiences in the country he goes to are portrayed. 

Dusted off
Two grandsons of miners enter a talent show. Their act about mining history runs up against a lack of knowledge, but through humor and self-deprecation, it evolves into a sensitive story about identity, beyond the clichés.

Mexican Hat
A discouraged chef from LA escapes to the rural lands of Mexican Hat, Utah only to find himself in the center of a small-town scandal.

Going Dutch
Going Dutch is a psychological thriller about two men chasing a better life who take on a remote mining job that promises opportunity. But when gold is discovered, ambition turns to greed, and their loyalty is pushed to its breaking point, with consequences neither of them can escape.

We are incredibly pleased to announce Christine Halbard from mysmash.media who will be presenting anexclusive masterclass on how to pitch your project.

This session is in advance of the excusive competition slot running at 1.15 in RULE.

Anarchy in High Heels tells the story of Les Nickelettes, a women’s satirical musical theater company from 1970s and ‘80s San Francisco. They sang, they mocked, they disrupted—and they did it in heels. Emerging from the late-night underground of 1970s San Francisco, The Les Nickelettes carved out a space that was entirely their own, where performance became protest and humor carried a sharp, liberating edge. Anarchy in High Heels revisits this fearless collective through a vivid tapestry of archival performance and lived memory, capturing the rhythm, color, and irreverence of a moment when women refused to be sidelined—on stage or off.

A selection of Student Shorts

Star of the day
In Star of the Day, a group of students face the wrath of a supply teacher and her unconventional methods of discipline, all in accordance to a set of classroom promises.

This a project that myself and the crew are super proud of, on a production budget of just £80, everyone put their all in and we couldn't be happier with the final result.

Egg
Struggling after his father's death, Josh goes to visit his father's oldest friend Ray who lives off-grid in remote Wales. Surrounded by wild birds, Josh finds an abandoned egg and is compelled to find its nest to return it and takes Ray along with him. While talking the two men find a way of sharing their grief and looking forwards.

After
A couple confronts the meaning of love, loss and legacy in a world where death is now a choice.

The Great Puppet Heist
Four washed-up puppets are convinced by their leader Barry to kidnap a famous Hollywood director and stage a musical audition he can’t ignore, hoping it’s their shot at stardom. 

A seminar with Gina Lyons to enlighten and enthrall. A session about the role of the Comedy Producer.

Join us for a live pitch competition in association with mysmash.media

4 - 5 pitches will be heard live in the room and our judging panel will have an opportunity to question each participant and then make a deliberation, announcing the winner in the room.

They will receive a years pro memberhsip to the mysmash.media platform.

Our Judging Panel to include:
Suki Singh - Writer/Director
Tim Clague - Writer/Director
Claire Cahill - Producer

A selection of Animated Shorts.

Among The Smoke
A grandmother recounts her childhood experiences living in wartime London.

The High King's Daughter
Ruairí, a lowly stable-boy working for the Irish royal household, is instantly smitten when he first sees the captivating and spirited High King’s Daughter. This romantic drama follows Ruairí and the Princess, as the playful friendship of their youth blossoms into love. The High King observes the growing attraction between the two and hatches a plan to keep them apart forever.

Trading Cards
An enigmatic man journeys back in time to find his younger self, seemingly to revisit the nostalgia of trading cards. An exploration of identity, mental health and the erosion of childhood innocence, Trading Cards is a dark fantasy animated film about the weight of living with Obsessive-compulsive disorder.

A selection of Documentary Shorts.

HOMEMADE
Since 1979, a North London corner shop has sustained four generations of one family and the community around them. As matriarch Anju embarks on a new chapter beyond the counter, the strength of what they have built comes into focus.

JAMES MAGEE AND THE HILL
Artist James Magee spent over forty years building installation in the West Texas desert, El Paso. Often working alone or with one assistant, Magee constructed four stone buildings, in the shape of an equidistant cross, containing his large steel-and-glass sculptures.

“James Magee and The Hill” takes the viewer to the artist’s studio and to The Hill, which he worked on until his death in 2024.

Bridport Torchlight Procession
The torchlight procession is more just a spectacle – it is a symbol of unity, a catalyst for togetherness, and a fundraiser for local causes. we peel back layers of time tradition, we discover the true essence of this event and enduring legacy in the fabric of BrIdport's social landscape

Children of Albion
London-based artist and folklorist, Ben Edge, embarks on his magnum opus - a dramatic, Bosch-inspired altarpiece tracing Britain’s evolution from prehistory to the present. As he delves into the nation’s tangled past, his search for meaning becomes personal, culminating in a manifesto of hope for a country still defining itself.

Dreamscape
Through the dreams and nightmares of people shaped by migration, generational trauma and oppression, Dreamscape explores how the unconscious becomes a refuge, a mirror and a means of survival.

A selection of short films.

The Cycling Adventures of Lettice Bly
In 1890s Britain, women cycling shocks the nation. Lettice Bly sets forth, armed with her new bicycle and scandalous bloomers. But cycling isn't as easy as she thought, and passerby science geek Millicent Frimley-Pratt aims to help her soar with the power of physics.

Life Goes On
BILL is in end of life care waiting for the sweet release of death - but unfortunately for him, he's stuck in an infinite time loop, causing the day to restart the second his heart stops...

A darkly comic yet sweet and hopeful film about enjoying the time you have left and saying the important things to the important people. Starring BAFTA winner David Bradley (Harry Potter, Game of Thrones).

The Graces
In 1860s London, three Greek female artists attend a gallery opening, seeking to impress the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. Based on a true story. (Sort of.)

Strolling Down Brighton Pier
A young Edwardian gentleman, working as a photographer, falls madly in love with a captivating woman as she takes her daily stroll down Brighton Pier. Finally mustering the courage to approach her, he is devastated to discover that there's someone else in the picture.

A selection of short films.

The Ladder
Robert lives in a world ruled by a tyrannical dictator and his dark followers, a world increasingly descended into chaos. With the help of a magical book that grants the most fervent wish of whoever writes it on one of its pages, he hopes to escape this nightmare. For his wish to come true, he must deliver the book up the ladder to heaven.

To get there, he must cross the gloomy city of Konrad, where he meets two resistance fighters, C and H, who share the same path and join his journey. Suddenly, however, Robert must choose between his own freedom and that of his world.

The Art of Inflation - International Short
Fleeing Venezuela’s economic collapse, two brothers struggle for survival on a militia-operated coca farm. With their lives on the line, the younger brother gambles on a last ditch effort to rescue themselves and bring the girl he has fallen for. 

An informative session from Media Lawyer Luke English around copyright and AI.

Can I use A.I in my pitch deck, pitch trailer, script, or feature film?

If so, who owns the copyright?

What A.I tools allow me to use the content I create?

Come to the talk by Luke English(Media Lawyer) where we will do a deep dive into the current A.I do’s and don’t’s.

Please be seated for our celebration of Hot Flash, our out of competition special screening.

Hot Flash tells the story of Geri, who fulfils her lifelong dream of becoming an entrepreneur despite being fired from her job, as well as suffering brutal menopause symptoms and imposter syndrome.

Followed by our Women In Film Panel with Director Kathryn Carmichael, local Director Nicole Fry and local legend Jackie Goddard and hosted by Rhiannon Duffin.

Women In Film Panel Discussion

After the screening of Hot Flash we'll be joined on stage by Director Kathryn Carmichael, local legend Jackie Goddard, Period Drama Director Nicole Fry, and actress and star of Baby Brain, Kimberley Nixon and hosted by the amazing Rhiannon Duffin.

BIFF 2025 Awards Night 🎬✨

Join us for an unforgettable evening as we celebrate the incredible filmmakers and screenwriters of the inaugural Bournemouth International Film Festival.

📅 Saturday, October 4th📍 Hilton Bournemouth

🕢 Doors open 7:30pm | Awards start 7:45pm sharp

What to expect:

55 awards presented in a fast-paced, no-speeches format

Black Tie / Smart Suit dress code — let’s make it a night of style and celebration

Please note: no dinner is served — eat beforehand

The celebration continues immediately after with our exclusive After Party

This is the night where we honour the best of independent cinema — then dance, drink, and celebrate into the early hours.