Irish actors, directors, and animators have taken center stage at the milestone 70th BFI London Film Festival. They helped anchor an international program of 251 titles from 88 countries. Running from October 7 to 18, the festival kicked off at the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall with the European premiere of Simon Stone’s biographical feature, Elsinore.
According to reports from RTÉ, the opening night film stars Andrew Scott as Scottish actor Ian Charleson. The movie chronicles his fierce preparations to perform Hamlet at Britain’s National Theatre while privately battling AIDS. Directed by Stone from a screenplay by Stephen Beresford, Scott leads an ensemble cast that includes Olivia Colman, Billie Piper, Johnny Flynn, and Luke Thompson. Alongside his starring role, Scott hosted an exclusive Screen Talk during the festival.
Strong Irish Representation Across Galas and Competitions
Irish creative influence extends deep into the festival’s programming strands. A major highlight features Barry Keoghan in Kim Bartley’s gritty feature Lemonade. The film centers on Danny, played by Lewis Brophy, as he navigates a fragile reconnection with a social worker who previously tried to assist him. Lemonade secured its UK premiere in London following a debut at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Kilkenny-based animation powerhouse Cartoon Saloon returned to the international spotlight with Julián, directed by Louise Bagnall. The animated feature follows a young boy spending a transformative summer with his grandmother in Brooklyn, where he becomes captivated by the local city traditions of the Mermaid Parade.
In the documentary and feature categories, Christine Molloy and Joe Lawlor’s Act 3 stands out as one of ten films competing for the festival’s Best Film Award. The Irish-UK co-production examines aging, family history, and the directors’ decades-long creative partnership. Meanwhile, Sinéad O’Shea’s documentary All About The Money explores Fergie Chambers, an heir to an American fortune who rejects his privileged background to fund an anti-capitalist collective.
Collaborations, Short Films, and Directorial Debuts
Another documentary entry is The Slightest Touch, which captures the friendship between actor Colin Farrell and disability campaigner Emma Fogarty, who lives with Epidermolysis Bullosa. The project documents their journey toward the 2024 Dublin Marathon, where Farrell pushed Fogarty in her wheelchair for the final four kilometers.
The festival also celebrates short form work and directorial breakthroughs. Most notably, Saoirse Ronan made her official directorial debut. Ronan wrote and directed Paper Plane, a short film centered on a defiant young girl whose silent protest forces her mother into a difficult life choice.
Patrick Hough’s Landscapes of Shame adds further Irish presence by competing for the Short Film Award within the Tracing Islands strand. Additionally, documentarian Mark Cousins presented an episode focused on the cinema of the 1990s as part of his series exploring the history of documentary film.
With major studio galas like Martin McDonagh’s star-studded Wild Horse Nine rounding out the slate, Irish cinematic voices continue to perform strongly on the global stage. This cemented a memorable chapter for the 70th anniversary of the BFI London Film Festival.
