BFI London Film Festival 2026 Preview: What the Film Focus Online Team Can’t Wait to See
October 5, 2026
From the 7th to 18th of October BFI London Film Festival is back, bringing another packed programme of premieres, festival favourites and some of the most anticipated films of the year to screens across the capital.
With the Film Focus Online team heading to the festival once again, we asked four of our writers — Jack Ransom, Alex Gilston, Dan Bremner and Becca Johnson — what they’re most looking forward to seeing, which filmmakers and performers have caught their attention, and what keeps them coming back to the London Film Festival each year.
From the stop-motion spectacle of Wildwood and Duncan Jones’ return to science fiction with Rogue Trooper, to exciting directorial debuts and the atmosphere surrounding the festival itself, here’s what the Film Focus Online team are looking forward to at this years BFI London Film Festival.
Which film are you most looking forward to seeing at this year’s BFI London Film Festival, and what makes it stand out to you?
Alex Gilston - The film I’m most looking forward to at the festival is Wildwood. It has been seven years since their last film and Wildwood looks set to be their most ambitious and gorgeous outing yet. The ambition is clear in the fact it is taking the title of longest animated film ever, and considering that it’s stop motion animation the amount of work that will have gone into it will have been monumental. I’ve also been avoiding plot details in trailers so going on not knowing much is equally as exciting!
Becca Johnson - Ink and Wildwood. Ink due to the team up between Jack O'Connell and director Danny Boyle, my favourite actor and one of my favourite directors, also the trailer has so much flavour and looks intriguing and stylish. Wildwood because I'm a huge fan of stop motion animation, and LAIKA studios are one of the best doing it right now in the animation world.
Jack Ransom - The film I am most looking forward to seeing at LFF this year is Rogue Trooper. I’m a big fan of Duncan Jones’ Source Code & Moon, so seeing him return to sci-fi in the world of 2000 A.D. is certainly promising. The film being animated in the video game engine Unreal Engine 5 also is an intriguing and unique idea.
Dan Bremner - Wildwood, as a big fan of Laila and their stop-motion animation brilliance. While there is plenty of animated films in the festival, hand-crafted stop-motion will always trump any computer form of animation.
Is there a filmmaker, actor or emerging talent at this year’s festival that you’re particularly excited to discover?
Alex Gilston - Jordan Firstman, one of Rachel Sennott’s I Love LA breakout stars, is bringing his feature directorial debut to London Film Festival - Club Kid. It has had incredible reactions at other festivals this year and it looks set to be an iconic piece of queer cinema. The reason I’m so excited for Jordan in particular is that he doesn’t just direct here, he also writes and stars.
Becca Johnson - Ashley Walters, an actor that impressed with his performances in Adolescence and his work on Top Boy, has his directorial debut releasing called Animol, which I'm excited to check out. Also a lot of foreign cinema I'm excited to see, namely La Bola Negra.
Jack Ransom - Nightborn director Hannah Bergholm delivered a creepy, darkly comedic little gem back in 2022 with Hatching, so I am very interested to see her dabble in the folk horror genre.
Dan Bremner - While I don't have a name specifically I'm excited for, part of LFF is always discovering new talent and names to add to the watchlist with their smaller debut features that are featuring.
Beyond the films themselves, what are you most looking forward to about being at the BFI London Film Festival this year?
Alex Gilston - One of the best things about being at London Film Festival every year is knowing that you are amongst droves of like minded people who love films just as much as you do. Even though you are running on minimal sleep and you haven’t taken your eyes off a cinema screen in two weeks, that shared untold buzz keeps you going through the thick and thin of it.
Becca Johnson - Networking. Last year was my first year of attending the entire festival, and I made so many friends just through queueing for films and events. It's such a safe, happy space full of film fans and really fun to fully immerse yourself into. Everyone is up for a chat.
Jack Ransom - As always I am looking forward to the buzz of everyone around London attending different screenings and meeting people at the LFF drinks gathering as well!
Dan Bremner - The atmosphere and vibe of seeing friends and faces from social media spaces that also attend. Getting to see films early, and in some cases it's the only way to see these films theatrically, as they will either end up only showing on streaming or will be given tiny theatrical releases once they get a set UK release date.
Film Focus Online at BFI London Film Festival 2026
With Wildwood emerging as one of the clear favourites among the team alongside Rogue Trooper, Ink and a host of potential discoveries, there’s plenty for Film Focus Online to look forward to across this year’s festival.
We’ll be covering BFI London Film Festival throughout its run, with reviews, features and more from the Film Focus Online team as we make our way through one of the biggest events in the UK film calendar.
For more from this years BFI London Film Festival, keep it locked to Film Focus Online.
