Marking the awards season kickoff, a starry crowd of filmmakers and talent 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”) turned up at Variety‘s intimate yet glamorous dinner at Soho Mews House to celebrate the BFI London Film Festival.
The evening marked Variety’s first London dinner, hosted by international editor Elsa Keslassy alongside London-based colleagues Alex Ritman and Ellise Shafer, in collaboration with Studiocanal.
The European powerhouse, which is part of the London-listed Canal+ Group, was out in force at the event with some hot talent from the highlights of their fall festival slate at Venice, Toronto and Telluride, as well as LFF. These included Venice opener “Ink” director Boyle, who was joined by writer James Graham and star O’Connell; LFF opener “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 his key cast Egerton and Mia McKenna-Bruce. Studiocanal chairman Anna Marsh, who traveled from Paris for the occasion, was there with Ron Halpern, EVP of global production, and Joe Naftalin, SVP of production and development.
Hüller, dressed in a silky red dress, also attended with “Rose” director Markus Schleinzer. Besides “Rose,” the German star is at LFF with Pawel Pawlikowski’s “Fatherland,” which could land her a pair of best actress nominations. Also in attendance were Eleazar, whose first leading role in Chris Rock’s “Misty Green” has earned some strong Oscar buzz; Chan, who stars opposite Channing Tatum in the Sundance highlight “Josephine”; and MacKay, who is currently shooting the “Ocean’s Eleven” prequel in France and presented Calvin Demba’s “The Animals” at LFF.
The gathering also drew a mix of rising talents and filmmakers, including “The Outrun” director Nora Fingscheidt; Olivia Washington, who starred in the West End production of Jeremy O. Harris’ “Slave Play”; and Savanah Leaf, who made her feature directing debut with “Earth Mama.”
The guest list reflected the breadth of the British and international film industry, with Mubi founder Efe Cakarel, whose company’s fall slate includes “Rose” and “Fatherland” as well as France’s Oscar candidate “Minotaur;” and prominent producers including 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; Rosie Alison of Heyday; Ed Macdonald of Plan B; Ben Browning of Pathé UK; Tanya Qureshi of LuckyChap International; and up-and-coming independent producer Rosa Attab; as well as Paris-based entertainment attorney Elsa Huisman, Independent Talent Group’s CEO Sally Long-Innes, BFI’s well-respected CEO Ben Roberts and senior production and development executive Ama Ampadu. London Film Festival artistic director Kristy Matheson, who is on her fourth year at the helm of the fest, also joined the dinner after the presentation of Andrew Haigh’s “A Long Winter.”
After a lively cocktail reception in the warmly lit lounge decorated with vintage furniture, guests sat down for a four-course dinner around two long tables dressed in white linen and softly lit by small lamps. The menu included smoked salmon with buckwheat blinis, burrata with black figs, Suffolk chicken and baked potato gnocchi, followed by desserts including sticky toffee pudding and dark chocolate mousse.
In a short speech welcoming guests, Keslassy highlighted the importance of bringing the international film community together at a time of upheaval and consolidation within the industry.
“We’re here to celebrate the London Film Festival, but also to celebrate you — filmmakers, talent, producers and executives who all have one thing in common: a desire to make movies that are not just entertaining but also bold and meaningful,” Keslassy said. “This event is meant to bring this community together, and reflect how vibrant and diverse it is.”
The evening also celebrated the close ties between the French and British film industries, with Studiocanal’s strong presence at the festival illustrating the growing crossover between talent, producers and financing partners on both sides of the Channel.
“The French and British may be the biggest rivals in many fields — including in soccer — but when it comes to cinema, we’re the best of allies!” Keslassy said.