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Explore the films competing for glory | |
Explore the competitions at the 61st BFI London Film Festival in partnership with American Express® | | Not sure where to start at LFF? Our competition sections are a brilliant way to start your Festival adventure, featuring our selections of the most innovative, inspiring filmmaking happening today. Explore the best film category as well as highlights from first time filmmakers, documentaries and short films. Official Competition titles are hosted at the amazing Embankment Garden Cinema, our hugely popular temporary cinema which features Dolby® 7.1 surround sound and 4K digital projection. | | |
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Official Competition | |
Just some of the great films competing in our official competition |
| ![The Breadwinner]()
| | | | | 08 & 15 Oct This exceptional animated film about a girl’s struggles in Afghanistan is based on the bestselling novel by Deborah Ellis. |
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| | ![Wajib]()
| | | | | 09 & 11 Oct An estranged father-son relationship in the vibrant city of Nazareth makes for an immensely entertaining drama by Palestinian director Annemarie Jacir. |
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| | ![Angels Wear White]()
| | | | | 12 - 14 Oct One night in a hotel room has catastrophic consequences in this piercing drama that takes a young female perspective on corruption and sexual exploitation. |
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| | ![Sweet Country]()
| | | | | 12 & 13 Oct Australian director Warwick Thornton brings a vital Indigenous perspective and great cinematic vision to this powerful, revisionist epic. |
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First Feature Competition | |
The Sutherland Award recognises the most original and imaginative directorial debut |
| ![Cargo]()
| | | | | 13 - 15 Oct Tensions erupt when three sons are forced to take over a failing family fisheries business in this dark and compelling North Sea drama. |
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| | ![Winter Brothers]()
| | | | | 10 - 13 Oct Two quarry-worker brothers are swept into a vicious feud in this intensely performed and aesthetically distinctive debut, featuring House of Cards’ Lars Mikkelsen. |
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| | ![Ava]()
| | | | | 05 - 09 Oct A bold and inventive coming-of-age tale with a difference. |
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| | ![Most Beautiful Island]()
| | | | | 09 - 13 Oct Searing social realism with a bold genre twist. |
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Documentary Competition | |
The Grierson Award recognises films with integrity, originality, and social or cultural significance |
| ![Bobbi Jene]()
| | | | | 05 - 10 Oct A fascinating documentary about contemporary dancer Bobbi Jene, whose ambition and physicality will in turn impress and mesmerise. |
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| | ![Jane]()
| | | | | 13 - 15 Oct An extraordinary and inspiring journey into the life of British primatologist Jane Goodall, with never-seen-before archive footage and a beautiful Philip Glass score. |
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| | ![The Prince of Nothingwood]()
| | | | | 13 - 15 Oct A rousing behind-the-scenes account of the life of Salim Shaheen, Afghanistan’s most prolific actor/director, and a one-man charisma-bomb. |
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| | ![Kingdom of Us]()
| | | | | 07 & 08 Oct A powerful documentary exploring the collective recovery of a family following the father’s suicide. |
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Short Film Award | |
Recognising short form works with a unique cinematic voice |
| ![Programme 1]()
| | | | | The Short Film Award recognises short form works with a unique cinematic voice and a confident handling of chosen theme and content. |
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| | ![Programme 2]()
| | | | | The Short Film Award recognises short form works with a unique cinematic voice and a confident handling of chosen theme and content. |
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BFI Recommends | ![Vibrant 2017 – A Festival of Finborough Playwrights]()
| | 8 – 26 October
Finborough Theatre
Now in its ninth consecutive year, Vibrant 2017 – A Festival of Finborough Playwrights, our annual celebration of new writing returns. | | ![The African Gaze]()
| | 19.30 – 20.30 on 13 Oct, 10 Nov & 8 Dec
Victoria & Albert Museum
African Heritage within the V&A’s Europe 1600 – 1815 Galleries: Nadia Denton’s tour will give an overview of the African presence in 17th and 18th Century Europe. Image Credit - Peter the Great with Black Page, Gustav Von Mardefeld (1720), Victoria & Albert Museum, London | | ![Victory Condition]()
| | 5 – 21 October
Royal Court Theatre
An attempt to get to grips with the fact that everything happens at once. | |
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