A starry crowd of filmmakers and talent gathered to mark the start of awards season, including Jack O’Connell and Danny Boyle (“Ink”), Sandra Hüller (“Rose”), Taron Egerton (“Everybody Wants to F*ck Me”), Rosalind Eleazer (“Misty Green”), Billie Piper (“Elsinore”), Gemma Chan (“Josephine”) and Florian Zeller (“Bunker”). DiversityIntimate yet sumptuous dinner at Soho Mews House to celebrate the BFI London Film Festival.
The evening is marked DiversityThe first London dinner hosted by international editor Elsa Keslassy, hosted by London-based colleagues Alex Ritman and Ellise Shafer in collaboration with Studiocanal.
The European powerhouse, part of London-listed Canal+ Group, was at the event with some hot talent from LFF as well as standouts from autumn festivals in Venice, Toronto and Telluride. Among them are Boyle, director of the Venice opener “Ink,” in which writer James Graham and star O’Connell were in attendance; LFF openers “Elsinore” writer Stephen Beresford and singer-turned-actor Piper; Zeller with “Bunker” starring Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem; as well as “Everybody Wants To F*ck Me” director Jonathan Schey and key actors Egerton and Mia McKenna-Bruce. Studiocanal president Anna Marsh, who flew in from Paris for the event, was there along with VP of global production Ron Halpern and VP of production and development Joe Naftalin.
Mia McKenna-Bruce, Taron Egerton and Jack O’Connell.
Tim Whitby
Wearing a silk red dress, Hüller attended with “Rose” director Markus Schleinzer. In addition to “Rose,” the German star is also at LFF with Pawel Pawlikowski’s “Fatherland,” which could earn her two best actress nominations. Also among the participants were Eleazar, who made a big splash at the Oscars with her first leading role in Chris Rock’s “Misty Green”; Chan, who starred opposite Channing Tatum in Sundance’s highlight film “Josephine”; and MacKay, who is currently filming the “Ocean’s Eleven” prequel in France and presenting Calvin Demba’s “The Animals” at LFF.
Also attending the meeting were “The Outrun” director Nora Fingscheidt; Olivia Washington, who starred in the West End production of “Slave Play” directed by Jeremy O. Harris; and Savanah Leaf, who made her feature directorial debut with “Earth Mama.”
Sandra Hülser and Markus Schleinzer.
Tim Whitby
The guest list reflected the breadth of the British and international film industry; Mubi founder Efe Çakarel, whose fall list of the company includes “Rose” and “Motherland” as well as France’s Oscar candidate “Minotaur”; and prominent producers such as Katie Goodson of Searchlight Pictures, who produced “Wild Horse Nine”; Ed Guiney and Andrew Lowe of Element Pictures; Graham Broadbent and Pete Czernin of Blueprint Pictures; Heyday’s Rosie Alison; Ed Macdonald of Plan B Europe; Ben Browning of Pathé UK; Tanya Kureshi of LuckyChap International; and up-and-coming independent producer Rosa Attab; as well as Paris-based entertainment lawyer Elsa Huisman, Independent Talent Group CEO Sally Long-Innes, BFI’s esteemed CEO Ben Roberts and senior production and development executive Ama Ampadu. Kristy Matheson, artistic director of the London Film Festival, which is in its fourth year, also attended the dinner held after the presentation of Andrew Haigh’s film “A Long Winter”.
George MacKay and Rosalind Eleazar.
Tim Whitby
Following a lively cocktail reception in the warmly lit lounge decorated with vintage furniture, guests sat for a four-course dinner around two long tables lined with white linen and softly lit by small lamps. The menu included smoked salmon with buckwheat blini, black fig burrata, Suffolk chicken and baked potato gnocchi, followed by desserts such as sticky toffee pudding and dark chocolate mousse.
In a short speech welcoming the guests, Keslassy emphasized the importance of bringing the international film community together at a time of turmoil and consolidation in the industry.
“We’re here to celebrate the London Film Festival, but we’re also here to celebrate you; filmmakers, talent, producers and executives have something in common: the desire to make films that are not just entertaining, but bold and meaningful,” Keslassy said. said Keslassy. “The goal of this event is to bring this community together and reflect how vibrant and diverse it is.”
Billie Piper and Gemma Chan.
Tim Whitby
The evening also celebrated the close ties between the French and British film industries; Studiocanal’s strong presence at the festival demonstrated the increasing interaction between talent, producers and funding partners from both sides of the Channel.
“The French and the British may be the greatest rivals in many fields, including football, but when it comes to cinema, we are the best of allies!” Keslassy said.