LFF announces LFF for Free programme

The 68^th BFI London Film Festival in partnership with American Express reveals a host of compelling new events for its 2024 LFF For Free programme.

One of the events will be a talk on The Art of Cinematography hosted by British Cinematographer, taking place at BFI Southbank, BFI Reuben Library from 12:00-13:15. The panel will discuss what cinematography is and what a cinematographer does, whilst sharing insights into their art and craft.

Taking in everything from the secrets of making the world’s biggest animations, to the future of cinema, LFF For Free is open to everyone, offering engaging, one-of-a-kind events for audiences of all tastes. From family-focused activities to multidisciplinary short film screenings, talks with visionary new talent, immersive experiences, video games and film-inspired DJ nights – all events are available totally free of charge for audiences to enjoy.

The majority of LFF For Free will take place at BFI Southbank and gallery@oxo  over the two weekends of the BFI London Film Festival: 12-13 October and 19-20 October, with further free experiences available at venues across London and online outside of these dates.

Kristy Matheson, BFI London Film Festival Director, said: “Our 2024 programme is bursting with ideas and events to entice film fans and the cinematically curious alike. With exhibitions, workshops, talks, screenings and club nights there’s so many ways to enjoy the LFF – for free!”

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FULL PROGRAMME INFORMATION: 

Celebrating 30 years of the iconic animation studio, DreamWorks Animation, LFF For Free is delighted to welcome the President of DreamWorks Animation, Margie Cohn for a conversation with three-time Academy Award nominated writer-director Chris Sanders about his new film, The Wild Robot (LFF Special Presentation). Together they will look back at the making of a host of family favourites including How to Train Your Dragon, Madagascar and Kung Fu Panda, celebrating 30 years of the highest quality animation and imaginative storytelling. Also taking place will be a DreamWorks 30th Anniversary Exhibition, at gallery@oxo, running from 7-20 October. This immersive exhibit will take visitors on a captivating journey through the studio’s artistry, imagination and excellence over three decades of animation that has encouraged audiences to imagine a funnier, kinder, more inclusive and more connected world. Featuring more than three decades of innovation and creativity, the exhibit will showcase the evolution of some of the most beloved titles and characters in animation history, including Shrek, Puss in Boots and Kung Fu Panda, from initial sketches and story concepts to the breathtaking final animated worlds and characters that have enchanted audiences worldwide. The exhibit culminates with The Wild Robot, a powerful story about discovery of self, starring Oscar winner Lupita Nyong’o.

Following the premiere of Episodes 1-3 of Alfonso Cuarón’s new series Disclaimer, which takes place at at the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall as part of the main programme on 10 October, LFF for Free will offer an opportunity for audiences who cannot wait to see how this intriguing psychological thriller unfolds, with free screenings of the remaining Episodes 4-7. Cuarón’s adaptation of the best-selling novel by Renée Knight explores the power of storytelling, with a magnetic turn from Cate Blanchett, alongside co-stars including Kevin Kline and Sacha Baron Cohen.

Get in the festive spirit early this year with a festive That Christmas workshop at BFI Southbank ahead of the premiere of the hugely enjoyable seasonal animated tale, written by Richard Curtis. This free, fun and interactive holiday workshop is just for the kids, who will get to decorate delicious, pre-made Xmas cookies with festive sprinkles and icing, as well as unleash their creativity by embellishing their very own Christmas tree ornaments to take home.

LFF for Free will host Film in Print, a programme which celebrates the very best of film writing, curated in partnership with Michael Leader and Jake Cunningham, co-creators of the Ghibliotheque series of books and podcasts. Heading up the programme, acclaimed director, writer and wanderer Mark Cousins will discuss his new book Dear Orson Welles & Other Essays; Daily Telegraph film critic Tim Robey will look back over a century of spectacular flops to tell an alternative history of Hollywood, inspired by his new book, Box Office Poison; while critic and Bechdel Test Fest founder Corrina Antrobus brings a spirited reappraisal of a much-maligned genre, as she discusses her debut book I Love Romcoms and I Am A Feminist. Author, journalist, and co-presenter of BBC Radio 4’s Screenshot, Ellen E Jones will join UCL’s Dr Clive Chijioke Nwonka, for an in-depth discussion of race on screen, inspired by their respective books. Other Film in Print events include a talk on Wes Anderson with Little White Lies Editor-at-Large Adam Woodward and a discussion on British propaganda film with Scott Anthony, whose new book The Story of British Propaganda Film contains unique material from the BFI National Archive. Cinema itself will also come under the magnifying glass through a dive into the world of film criticism, plus a series offering insight into the publishing process, with lead writers and creatives sharing their tips and tricks.

LFF For Free @ The Festival Café presented by American Express will delve into the filmography of some of the preeminent directors with works in this year’s festival, in the Beginners Guide to… series of ten drop-in lunchtime talks. Highlights include talks on legendary British director Mike Leigh (Hard Truths, Naked, Another Year), acclaimed director Luca Guadagnino (Queer, Call Me By Your Name, Challengers); one of Taiwan’s foremost filmmakers, Tsai Ming Liang (Abiding Nowhere, Vive l’amour, Stray Dogs), celebrated director Andrea Arnold (Bird, Fish Tank, Transparent); Academy Award-winning filmmaker and Turner Prize-winning artist Steve McQueen (Blitz, 12 Years a Slave) and prominent Chilean filmmaker, Pablo Larraín, whose new biopic of opera singer Maria Callas, Maria, stars Angelina Jolie in the title role.

For audiences looking to stay out late, follow the beat down to BFI Southbank bar for four DJ nights inspired by films in the festival programme. From DJ Juggy Jones’s retro-tastic set, The Face of 1966, a musical tribute to the swinging ’60s to compliment Sadie Frost’s new documentary about fashion icon Twiggy; to a celebration of Pauline Black: A 2-Tone Story with DJ Rhoda Dakar (The Bodysnatchers) spinning a night of very best 80s British Ska revival and the Jamaican music that influenced it. Hit the dance floor for Frontin’, a night featuring the biggest hits from Pharrell Williams, inspired by his Lego-constructed biopic, Piece by Piece (LFF Closing Night Gala), and then journey to Brazil, for a rich exploration of its musical tapestry, inspired by the breadth of Brazilian films on offer at the Festival.

This year’s free talks will explore everything from witches in cinema, to gaming on the big screen and the art of cinematography. Join historian and best-selling author Joshua Levine as he discusses historical fact vs fiction and his role as historical advisor on feature films including Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk and LFF Opening Night Gala, Blitz, as well as the team behind Grand Theft Hamlet, which stages a production of Shakespeare’s Hamlet within the Grand Theft Auto online video game world. Other events include a discussion about the representation of sex workers in film hosted by Sex and Rage founder, Black Venus; a panel exploring on-screen depictions of girlhood, 10 years on from the release of the cult French film Girlhood, a discussion on the history of animals on screen and a journey through the portrayal of witches in film and television, inspired by new film Witches. The programme will also include events exploring the decolonisation of film archives and the powerful role of film to alter perspectives.

Young audiences and families are also invited to join free events including Orangutan-themed activities for ages 8+ inspired by Claude Barras’ new film Savages, which tells the story of a girl and an orangutan facing up to deforestation in Borneo. There will also be dream travelogue collage workshops for ages 6+ inspired by new documentary Blink, which tells the real-life story of a family who travelled the world to create lasting memories as their children began to lose their vision.

This year’s LFF Expanded programme of immersive art and extended reality works takes over four venues across the city from 11 – 27 October. The Expanded programme will feature a talk, The Attention Battle, with the creators behind Impulse: Playing with Reality where they’ll discuss their award-winning new work, narrated by Tilda Swinton, that explores what it means to live with ADHD.

Also part of LFF Expanded are four free XR works that explore how Virtual and Mixed Reality can offer new perspectives on physical and mental health. Part of the hub at Bargehouse at OXO Wharf, audiences will also be able to experience the Festival’s first ever interactive Games Lounge, featuring five fun and creative projects for audiences to play for free. Games on offer include Playing Kafka, the definitive Franz Kafka videogame; foldable paper puzzle adventure Paper Trail; and award-winning psychedelic visual novel Dome-King Cabbage.

For those in search of dazzling, large-scale experiences, Liam Young’s The Great Endeavour is on show at Outernet, the largest digital exhibition space in Europe. The powerful work envisions a future where we achieve planetary transformation through coming together to remove carbon from the atmosphere. Meanwhile BFI IMAX will welcome Superradiance. Embodying the Earth, a captivating multiscreen video and sound installation exploring the interplay of AI and dance.

Amongst a host of specially curated short film programmes are Films of Resistance – spotlighting the fight of women and non-binary people against systems that attempt to quash their power and BBC Comedy Short Films – short sitcoms, sketches and silliness, showcasing fresh talent and famous faces as you’ve never seen them before.

Now in its eleventh year, BFI NETWORK@LFF is a talent development programme centred around the BFI London Film Festival. LFF for Free will present shorts by this year’s selected filmmakers: outstanding UK-based writers, directors and producers, who are poised to make a significant impact in the film industry. Further shorts programmes include Life Beyond Labels, a programme from Together TV’s Diverse Film Fund, which focuses on empowering deaf, disabled, and/or neurodivergent filmmakers and London Calling, a compilation from some of London’s most exciting new voices, funded by BFI NETWORK and delivered by Film London.

Audiences can also enjoy free short films from this year’s BFI London Film Festival from the comfort of their home, via the BFI Player, as well as a selection of high-profile LFF Screen Talks, featuring leaders in contemporary cinema.

Film Academy Young Programmer events will this year traverse activism, language and body horror in film and TV, including an exploration of 40 years of HIV representation on screen in A POZ-itive Lens: A History of Groundbreaking HIV Media in Britain. A panel of HIV activists and archivists will examine these significant media moments, dissecting portrayals, stigmas, and the impact this media will have in achieving the UK’s 2030 target of zero transmissions. The power of cinema will also be explored in Dismantle the Screen: Films of Resistance and Rebellion. In this time of intense public activism, this discussion asks how film can further the mission of a protest movement.

Guts, gore and female catharsis are explored in a third event: The Feminine Urge to Twist the Knife: Healing through Body Horror will explore whether on screen body horror can heal through depictions of harm; while contemporary Celtic-language filmmakers will celebrate the many way we communicate in The Ways We Speak: Minority Languages in Contemporary Celtic Cinema, highlighting cinematic achievements that put Welsh, Irish Gaeilge and Scots Gaelic on screen.

Meanwhile, #GenerationNow, a selection of short films from the BFI London Film Festival main shorts programme, will explore the experience of young adulthood and will be available on BFI Player during the festival. Complementing this, SCENE, a series of virtual interviews with the #GenerationNow filmmakers, will be launched on the BFI YouTube channel on 10 and 17 October, offering insights into filmmaking, career paths, and tips on breaking into the screen industries. Further events for young screen creatives will be available to attend as part of the Film Academy Day, supported by Netflix, on 20 October.