50 Screens surprise film event at London Festival
There are just 2 days left to go until The Times BFI 50th London Film Festival opens its doors throughout the city for a celebration of cinema including the world’s largest surprise film screening. Organisers announced the exciting line-up of 50 venues across all London boroughs for the special 50 Screens surprise film event on Sunday 29th October, in addition to a talent laden guest-list attending the 16 day Festival.
Inspired by regular Festival hot ticket – the Surprise Film Gala at the Odeon West End – 50 Screens provides a unique birthday celebration for the Festival’s 50th Anniversary. Up to 10 surprise films will be revealed across 50 London cinemas and venues on the night, from Acton to Uxbridge, with special locations including Heathrow Terminal 4, HMP Holloway, St Ethelburga’s Church and St Thomas’s Hospital, bringing the Festival experience to thousands of people across the capital. Admission is only £5 and special guests are anticipated to introduce the films.
Attending the Opening Night Gala on Wednesday 18th October for the European premiere of the acclaimed The Last King of Scotland will be director Kevin Macdonald, accompanied by Forest Whitaker, James McAvoy, Gillian Anderson, Kerry Fox and Simon McBurney.
The Odeon West End will welcome an array of actors and filmmakers attending the premieres of their films over the 16 day Festival. Bob Hoskins and Ben Affleck will attend for Hollywoodland, Phillip Noyce will present Catch a Fire, Todd Field will be introducing Little Children with leading actress Kate Winslet, and Emilio Estevez will be joined by many of his Bobby cast members, including Martin Sheen, Freddy Rodriguez and Christian Slater. The Namesake will be introduced by director Mira Nair, while Rankin & Chris Cottam will be joined by guests at the premiere of The Lives of the Saints and Nanni Moretti will present The Caiman. Dustin Hoffman, Emma Thompson, Will Ferrell and writer Zach Helm will also attend the premiere of Stranger than Fiction.
Richard Linklater will be joined by writer Eric Schlosser and Fast Food Nation star Ashley Johnson. Other Screen Talk guests including producer Christine Vachon and John Cameron Mitchell will present the screenings of Infamous and Shortbus respectively, with Shortbus cast Sook-Yin Lee, PJ De Boy and Paul Dawson also attending. Tim Burton will introduce the Family Gala screening of The Nightmare before Christmas – 3D as well as taking part in the Screen Talk series, as will Paul Verhoeven who will be introducing Black Book.
British talent from both sides of the camera will be out in force, including Nick Broomfield with his film Ghosts, Penny Woolcock for the world premiere of Mischief Night, and Pete Postlethwaite and director Terence Davies will introduce the newly restored Distant Voices, Still Lives. Sacha Baron Cohen will be making an entrance at the UK premiere of Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan while Jude Law will join co-star Robin Wright Penn and director Anthony Minghella for Breaking and Entering. Director Andrea Arnold will be accompanied by Kate Dickie and Tony Curran to introduce the Cannes award-winning Red Road. And marking their third collaboration together, Roger Michell and Hanif Kureishi will introduce Venus alongside Peter O’Toole and Jodie Whittaker.
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The high-profile roll call of international directors set to attend the Festival include Susanne Bier (After the Wedding), Abderrahmane Sissako (Bamako), Lukas Moodysson (Container), Nuri Bilge Ceylan (Climates), Toa Fraser (No.2), Michel Placido (Romanzo Criminale), Hans-Christian Schmid (Requiem), Auraeus Solito (The Blossoming of Maximo Oliveros), photographer Lauren Greenfield (Thin) and the legendary Kenneth Anger.
Music documentary filmmakers attending the Festival include Cecilia Peck, co-director of Dixie-Chicks: Shut Up & Sing, and Stephen Kijak, who will be joining guests at the much-anticipated world premiere of Scott Walker: 30 Century Man. John Scheinfeld will introduce The US v. John Lennon, while beloved band Yo La Tengo will be in conversation on stage.
A further announcement detailing the exciting line-up for the second 50th anniversary celebration will be made soon, confirming the creative names behind Trafalgar Square: A Portrait of London on Friday 27th October. Overseen by Artistic Director Mike Figgis, this free extravaganza will combine specially commissioned music and ‘digital postcards’ in a tribute to cinema and the city.
On Thursday 2nd November, Alejandro González Iñárritu and actors Gael García Bernal and Rinko Kikuchi will attend the Closing Night Gala of Babel, bringing the 50th Festival celebrations to a close.
TICKETS NOW ON SALE! Book online: www.lff.org.uk or telephone: +44 (0)20 7928 3232
50 Screens surprise film tickets available through individual venue box office outlets.
See www.lff.org.uk for full venue listings & ticket details.
NOTE TO EDITORS: -
HMP HOLLOWAY and ST THOMAS’S HOSPITAL screenings are not open to the general public.
HEATHROW TERMINAL 4 screening open only to passengers with valid boarding passes.
