The official competition lineup of the 70th edition of the BFI London Film Festival (LFF) is set, with organizers unveiling the 10 movies that will vie for the best film award.
The titles make for an international lineup of filmmakers, with 10 countries represented, including the U.K., Ireland, Brazil, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Japan, and Poland.
“This year’s official competition explores an incredible range of storytelling, from a wide range of voices and styles, spanning fiction to documentary, from post-war Europe to Dhaka, Japan and beyond,” organizers said.
The competition program includes the world premiere of Carol Morley’s (Dreams of a Life) new feature, 7 Miles Out, the film adaptation of her novel of the same name. Based on her own troubled adolescence following her father’s suicide, the novel tells the story of Ann, who, after losing her father in tragic circumstances, finds solace – and trouble – in the Manchester music scene of the 1970s and 1980s.
The LFF 2026 competition lineup also includes such international filmmakers as Hirokazu Kore-eda, Sergei Loznitsa, Lili Horvát, Benjamín Naishtat, Christine Molloy and Joe Lawlor, Giovanni Tortorici, Malgorzata Szumowska, May el-Toukhy and Michal Englert, as well as Rubaiyat Hossain. Various of the titles will world premiere at Venice or Toronto before touching down at London.
Established in 2009, the BFI London Film Festival’s best film award previously went to the likes of Jacques Audiard for A Prophet, Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s Evil Does Not Exist, Adam Elliot’s Memoir of a Snail in 2024, and Landmarks by Lucrecia Martel in 2025.
“As we celebrate the 70th edition of the BFI London Film Festival, it’s an honor to have a number of alumni filmmakers represented in the official competition alongside those making their first appearance at the festival,” said Kristy Matheson, BFI London Film Festival director. “Our 2026 competition selection brings an astounding array of filmmaking styles to the screen. As ever, it’s been creatively nourishing for myself and the team to encounter each of these works – we’re excited to share these with audiences in October.”
LFF 2026 takes place Oct. 7-Oct. 18. The full festival program will be revealed on Sept. 2.
Check out the 10 films in the LFF 2026 official competition below.
7 Miles Out (UK, Dir. Carol Morley)
Act 3 (Ireland-UK, Christine Molloy and Joe Lawlor)
Glaxo (Brazil-Argentina, Dir. Benjamín Naishtat)
Imperium (Germany-France-Italy-Lithuania, Dir. Sergei Loznitsa)
Ketticè (Italy, Dir. Giovanni Tortorici)
Look Back (Japan, Dir. Hirokazu Kore-eda)
My Notes on Mars (Hungary-Austria, Lili Horvát)
The Difficult Bride (France-Bangladesh-Portugal-Norway, Germany, Rubaiyat Hossain)
The Idiot(s) (Germany, Poland, Dir. Malgorzata Szumowska, Michal Englert)
Woman Unknown (Denmark-Latvia-Sweden, Dir. May el-Toukhy)
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