Connor Story, Kit Harington, Jane Fonda, Robert Englund, music icon Eddie Cochran and other big names will appear in the lineup for the 34th Annual Raindance Film Festival in London – whether as stars, behind-the-scenes talent or film subjects.
But organizers revealed the 2026 program on Monday with commentary on the state of the world. “In an increasingly divided and polarized world, the power of storytelling has never been more important,” they said. “Raindance is special as a platform to share the stories of emerging filmmakers: new voices in cinema who won’t wait for big producers or major studios to greenlight their projects, because some films just can’t wait.” “This urgency may be to share important facts about headline-grabbing topics from Ukraine to artificial intelligence, from fracking to deforestation, from refugees to bride slavery,” they added.
Of course, the collection will also highlight past and present celebrities and escapism, whether they’re from sci-fi, horror, or any other genre. From June 17 to 26, Rainance will screen 85 feature films and documentaries, including 48 films by first-time directors, and 112 short films. In addition, the 11th edition of Raindance Immersive will showcase 27 projects.
“Some films just can’t wait, and we at Raindance can’t wait to share a selection of this year’s must-see independent films,” said Raindance Founder, Elliot Grove. Highlighting the mission of “championing emerging filmmakers alongside under-the-radar films that may be overlooked by other festivals”, he urged cinephiles to “come and join our celebration of independent cinema in the heart of London”.
The UK premiere of director Michelle K.’s debut feature film. Barandi April 10tha near-future thriller starring Story (Hot competition(And Lily Krug)It crashed, airplane), the festival will open. The opening ceremony will also include the exclusive premiere of the Gorillaz short film The mountain, the moon cave, and the sad god (Directors: Jamie Hewlett, Timothy McCourt, Jonathan Djupe Nkondo), an animated short film by English virtual band Gorillaz from their latest album Mountain” said the festival.
The closing ceremony will see the UK premiere of the documentary Eddie Cochran: Don’t Forget Me, directed by Kirsty Bell, an accredited film about the rock and roll icon behind hits such as ‘C’mon Everyday’ and ‘Summertime Blues’.
Other films set for Raindance include Katie Camosy Gaslitfracking docs executive produced by Jane Fonda, Reese Frack Waterfield Pinocchio: non-tensorstarring horror icon Englund as Jiminy Cricket, the short film PsychobombHarrington’s directorial debut and world premieres as Roots: Chapter 1the directorial debut of boiling point Producer Freddie Houghton Mills. The film is set against the backdrop of the Southport riots of 2024, and tells the story of a “disagreement between neighboring families”. [that] It escalated into a volatile confrontation, exposing buried prejudice, racial tension, and moral hypocrisy.
Among the competition titles I have previously covered THR He is Dužan Duong Summer schoolWhile Richard Hawkins Think of England Get a special offer outside the competition.
This year’s judging panel includes the likes of Amy Fionn Edwards (Slow horses, Trust me), Charlotte Hope (Spanish princess), David Ajala (Woman in cabin 10, Law and order), Jacob Anderson (Interview with the Vampire, game of thrones), Jonathan Rhys Meyers (Edge of the world, Match point), sub deriso (My father’s shadow, London gangs), Anthony Andrews, founder of We Are Parable, Ashanti Omkar, film critic and broadcaster, Fiona Lamptey, producer and former head of British Films at Netflix, and Haider Hozier (BAFTA award-winning short film director) Rock, paper, scissors), Lee Knight (director of the Oscar-nominated film Dorothy’s friend) and producer and executive talent director Rita Osei.
Check out the full Raindance program here.
