8 Feature Films + 12 Short Film Blocks – London Independent Film Festival Returns For October 2026: What’s On at Genesis Cinema
The London Independent Film Festival (LIFF) 2026 returns to Genesis Cinema from Friday 2 October to Sunday 11 October, bringing together feature films, shorts, industry panels, networking opportunities and a closing awards celebration.
This October’s programme combines premieres, filmmaker Q&As and practical industry sessions, with a strong focus on relationships, collaboration and career-building in independent film.
Be part of the conversation: @LondonIFF on Instagram.
**IMPORTANT: All films and shorts blocks are 18+ unless otherwise stated**
Friday 2nd October:
7.30pm Opening party
9pm Feature:
The (First) Last Screenplay by Thomas J Ward | Genesis Listing
Debbie Scott, an influencer turned film producer, runs what she proudly calls “Hollywood in the UK countryside” - a studio presented as thriving, ambitious and in control. But behind the façade sits retired Hollywood editor Richard Wadsworth, whose deteriorating memory is becoming impossible to ignore. As dementia erodes his sense of time and continuity, the film Debbie is desperately trying to finish with him begins to collapse in the edit suite. Scenes drift, timelines fracture and cuts no longer connect. As pressure mounts, the boundary between the film Debbie is producing and the life she is staging begins to blur. The (First) Last Screenplay is an intimate portrait of care, denial and an industry that believes every failure can be fixed in post.
The (First) Last Screenplay Film Page | The (First) Last Screenplay Review
Saturday 3rd October:
Afternoon panel(s)
5pm Shorts Block 1
Gobstopper by Pippa Lore Feldberg Collins
Blood Runner by Eda Sezer & Jonah Attalla
Witchcraft in D minor by Danny Szam
Unrest by Jacob Vickers
Je jouissante… moi non plus by Flâneuse du Mal
Bloomin’ Octopus! by David Palfrey
7pm Shorts Block 2
Lost in Us by Moe Musa
Small Town Boy by Lee Strickland
Won’t Be Displaced by Piera Van de Wiel & Katharina Benjamim
The Homecoming by Brian Timoney
Full Time by Sonya Kanevskaya
Gumball by James Murray
Wonderful Things by Leigh Haggerwood
9pm Feature:
Lost on the Road by Matthew Highton | Genesis Listing
Four old friends, once bound by countless late-night games of Dungeons & Dragons, reunite for Jack’s stag do. Jack hopes for a quiet countryside walk, but his plans quickly unravel thanks to the wild energy of Claire, Ruff, and Phil, and what should be a simple hike soon spirals into a series of surreal encounters. With his wedding fast approaching, Jack must face a decision as daunting as any dice roll — whether to cling to the life he knows, or to let it go
Set against the rolling hills of the British countryside, this is a comedic and heartfelt film that transforms a stag weekend into a quest of epic proportions.
Lost on the Road Film Page | Lost on the Road Review
Sunday 4th October:
Afternoon panel(s)
4pm Shorts Block 3
Dirt by Isabella Speaight
Products of Loneliness by Patrick Fitzgerald
Niceties by Haley Maiden & Lilou Le Sergent
Full Fat by Louisa Connolly-Burnham
Hazard Perception by Amadeus Redha
Andrew Ganvickton by Joseph Pelling
Boobs by Olivia Nixon & Jodie Tyack
From Round Here with Pete Elsewhere by Tim Fox
6pm Shorts Block 4
Spiff by Oscar Flohr
Dys is Me by Stacha Hicks
Red by Susan Lynch
Therapist by Udbhavi Upadhyay
Muddled Meals by Christie Arnold
Flat White by Sam Hocking & Rachel Nicholson
Human Toilet by Ben Kent
My Paper Bag Life by Charlotte Louise Bracegirdle
8pm Feature:
Finding My Voice by Arabella Arabia Burfitt-Dons | Genesis Listing
Melanie is a talented singer-songwriter on the brink of a life-changing opportunity as she approaches a scholarship audition for the prestigious Highbury College of Music. It could be her chance to finally be seen, just like other successful stars who started their careers there. But with a single mother working nonstop and three younger siblings to help raise, Melanie spends most of her spare time supporting her mother and also quietly struggling with her own self belief. Deep down, Mel finds it hard to believe she actually deserves the dream she’s chasing.
Finding My Voice Film Page | Finding My Voice Review
Tuesday 6th October:
7pm Shorts Block 5
The Other Night by Sofia Martin-Birsim
Messes by Ines Guibal
Little Brother by Jack Sambrook
Untouched by Simon Drew
Fire Baby Monster by Saudat Sanusi
Wave Back by Jago Bevan
9pm Shorts Block 6
Damp Sugar by Andrei Zamfir
Bacon by Paula Bagley
In Too Deep by Kelvey Goldhar-Killick
The Story Teller by Anna Elizabeth Haig
Run Club by Lauren Lyle
Pushing Up Plastic by Joe McGowan
My Hero by Jassica Magaye
Six Of Cups by Sasha Case
Midnight Bloom by Adam Fergler
Wednesday 7th October:
7pm Shorts Block 7
Echoes by Alex Lanipekun
First Rehearsal by Mark Artemichev
A Quiet rebirth by A M Lockley
Peter by Hannah Van Der Westhuysen
The Cull by Adam Cameron King
Stay On Top by Kyri Paris
9pm Feature:
I’m Not You by Gary Grant | Genesis Listing
Eighteen year old Joe is caught in a storm of identity and expectation. A gender crisis rips the heart out of a world that once seemed simple, now torn between the pressures imposed by a traditional family and the labels imposed by friendship groups. Joe embarks on a journey of discovery and introspection that threatens to destroy a family, a community and ultimately a life.
Thursday 8th October:
7pm Shorts Block 8
Poppy by Julia Schönstädt
I Wrote The Love Of My Life by Machis Baboulene & Holly Bray
Bleach by Tobias Bates
Two Creatures by Ainhoa Garbalena Aramendia
Matilda’s Arrived by Macadie Amoroso
The Cliff Montgomery Show by Dan Iacono
The Great Intervention by Jun Noh
9pm Feature:
Skyclimber: Scaling the Eiffel Tower by Nick Hardie | Genesis Listing
This dramatic film follows Urban Free Solo climber Adam Lockwood as he takes on the iconic Eiffel Tower climb. He is one of just a handful of people who climb tall buildings without any safety equipment, and at 24 years old he’s also the youngest. Behind his daring and athletic skill lies a story of immense personal struggle; but his fearlessness and focus help him find purpose in the face of adversity.
Skyclimber: Scaling the Eiffel Tower Film Page
Friday 9th October:
7pm Shorts Block 9
4 Minutes Before Forever by Yoann Zak
Afterburn by David Cordon
Codes by Eleanor Rhode
The Special by Stéph Kuypers
Winter by Kate Cheeseman
Belhem by Flint Archie Macdonald
9pm Feature:
Sessions by Giles Alderson | Genesis Listing
Sessions is a generation defining film, it’s a stark look at how cocaine culture destroyed the mental health of millions of men around the UK. How shame and guilt took those men from their families.
Richie’s (Daniel O'Reilly) life looks picture-perfect: a new wife, a baby on the way, and a loyal best friend who always knows how to turn up the volume. But beneath the surface, Richie is silently drowning. Terrified by the pressures of impending fatherhood and financial strain, he hides his crippling anxiety behind a mask of lad culture—fueling himself with cocaine, whiskey, and denial. When his charismatic best friend Steve (Jonas Armstrong) drags him into a high-stakes property deal with a corrupt developer (Leo Gregory), Richie sees one last shot at fixing his life and proving his worth as a man.
What starts as a quick score turns into a waking nightmare. As the deal unravels, Richie loses his job, his marriage, and his grip on reality. Hunted by a creditor (Rupert Graves) and haunted by his own mind, he spirals through a haze of drugs and paranoia, desperate to hold onto the one person he thinks he can trust. Sessions is a visceral psychological thriller that unmasks the silent epidemic of the male mental health crisis, exploring the devastating cost of toxic enabling, the trauma of unspoken grief, and the urgent, life-saving need for men to finally ask for help.
Saturday 10th October:
Afternoon panel(s)
5pm Shorts Block 10
Zombie by Danny Millar
Steel & Glory by Mathew Currie
The Application by Kyle Titterton
Brunch Palace by Immanuel Dube
The Chronicles of the Struggling Actor by Lyud Hristov
Single People at the End of the World by Jessica Riches & Casey J. Newell
7pm Shorts Block 11
Bite Me by Issy Johnston
For Whom The Bells Toll by Mack Velle
Don’t You Want Me Baby? by Gabriel Foster Prior
Cards Down by Maria Kraevska
Fish & Chips by Macadie Amoroso
Closer Than They Appear by Rod Main
Milk by Emma Ballantine
9pm Feature:
Under the Bypass by Jake Carter | Genesis Listing
Not long after the power grids failed, life has become a search for safety. Still reeling from the loss and shock that followed, this small group of survivors find the darkest depths of humanity in the shadows. Not everyone wants to help; some even hoped for days like these.
Sunday 11th October:
LIFF mini-market
4pm Shorts Block 12
Chekhov’s Bun by Beau Fowler
Foreign Body by Miguel Torres Umba
The Intimacy Coordinator by Louisa Connolly-Burnham
The One by Anna Bolotina
To Do or Die by Aditi Raina
Touch Grass by Layla Furlong
69 by Leo Butler
6pm Feature:
Christmas & Chaos by Jamie Adams | Genesis Listing
In “Christmas & Chaos,” two creatively lost musicians are marooned in rural Wales—a fading pop star and a rugged, uncompromising artist. As polar opposites, their clashing styles threaten to derail their chance to impress a revered theatre director. Yet, amidst the chaos of creative tension, they uncover unexpected harmony, confronting their own vulnerabilities and the transformative power of collaboration.
8.30pm:
awards and closing party
A Festival Built on Collaboration
Across its 10-day programme, LIFF continues to champion independent filmmaking not just as an art form, but as a collaborative process.
From screenings and Q&As to panels and pitching opportunities, the festival places equal emphasis on the work itself and the relationships that make it possible — giving filmmakers a space to connect, develop and move their projects forward.
The LIFF team includes:
Natasha Marburger (LIFF Festival Director)
Erich Schultz (LIFF Founder/ Admin)
Ore Aiyesimoju (LIFF Co-ordinator)
Vesta Skar (LIFF Assistant)
Mags @LightLedLondon (photography)
Curated by Natasha Marburger, Festival Director of LIFF
About London Independent Film Festival
The London Independent Film Festival (LIFF) is devoted to the advancement of first- and second-time filmmakers telling amazing stories with limited budgets. Hosted every spring at the Genesis cinema – repeatedly voted the best cinema in the UK – the October 2026 London Independent Film Festival will screen the work of almost 100 filmmakers from around the world. Stretching over 10 days with numerous industry events, LIFF offers an unmissable opportunity for networking and building collaborations for future projects. It's little wonder that Time Out Magazine has called LIFF "a treasure trove of undiscovered cinematic gems, one of Europe's top indie film fests". With a reputable support system for emerging filmmakers, LIFF includes popular training programs run by industry professionals who understand the ins and outs of moving a filmmaker's career to the next level.
No Comment