29th RAINDANCE FILM FESTIVAL OPENING GALA: MICHAEL CAINE IN BEST SELLERS + FULL PROGRAMME ANNOUNCED RAINDANCE REINVENTS IN 2021

29th RAINDANCE FILM FESTIVAL
        OPENING GALA: MICHAEL CAINE IN BEST SELLERS
              + FULL PROGRAMME ANNOUNCED

                          RAINDANCE REINVENTS IN 2021
        In-person premieres at new partner cinemas across London
  & UK-wide online screenings via new digital partner Curzon Home Cinema
                                    27 October – 6 November 2021
                                       www.raindance.org/festival

LONDON, 15 SEPT 2021: RAINDANCE RETURNS TO CINEMAS 27 October to 6 November for the 29th
edition of the Raindance Film Festival. As the world begins to emerge from a Covid cocoon, Britain’s
biggest independent film festival Raindance is poised and ready to return to cinemas – and after the last 18
months of isolation and uncertainty, Raindance is coming back reimagined, reinvented, and with a host of
new partners and of course some incredible new films.

“There’s nothing new about independent film, except that indie film is forever new,” says Raindance founder
Elliot Grove. “Independent filmmakers tell the most original and individual stories, using the medium of film
to show every facet of the complex world we live in. Now that cinemas have reopened, Raindance is ready to
re-connect with the energy, vibrancy and insurgent spirit of indie film – and this year we have some exciting
new partners to join us on our mission. We hope you will join us too.” #TheyWillCome

The festival will bring this year’s programme of ground-breaking indie features and shorts to a range of new
venues as Raindance partners for the first time with local cinemas across London: Curzon Hoxton, Curzon
Soho, Curzon Mayfair, Genesis Cinema, Regent Street Cinema, Bertha DocHouse. Expanding on the
experience of hosting a hybrid festival in 2020, when around 70% of the online audience was located outside
of London, this year Raindance endeavours to cultivate its digital reach. The in-cinema premieres will be
supplemented by a full online programme of films via new digital partner Curzon Home Cinema. Festival
titles from the Official Selection will have a digital repeat screening, available UK-wide via the Curzon Home
Cinema platform. Films will be available on a ‘pay per watch’ basis via Curzon Home Cinema’s iOS app,
Android app and on Smart TVs.

Raindance’s visual content (incl. poster artwork, programme, social media graphics) has a fresh new look in
2021 thanks to Bobo Design and new partner, graphic design platform Canva. Indeed, Raindance will be
the first film festival to be designed with Canva. Other new festival partners and sponsors include Guardian
Documentaries, TooFar Media, Vuulr and Soldo. Spotify returns to sponsor the SONICA music strand.

OPENING GALA: BEST SELLERS (dir: Lina Roessler, Canada)
The 29th Raindance Film Festival opens on 27 October with the UK theatrical premiere of BEST
SELLERS, the first feature by actor and award-winning short filmmaker Lina Roessler. Starring Aubrey
Plaza, Michael Caine and Cary Elwes, it portrays a cranky retired author who reluctantly embarks on a final
book tour to help out a young publisher. Director Lina Roessler will join special guests on the red carpet
at Curzon Mayfair, followed by a party at The Dorchester.

CLOSING GALA: MEDUSA (dir: Anita Rocha da Silveira, Brazil)
Following its debut at Cannes Directors Fortnight, Raindance presents the UK Premiere of MEDUSA as
closing gala on 6 November at Genesis Cinema. Inspired by mythical and real-life violence by women
against women and set against a backdrop of toxic masculinity and right-wing politics, the second feature by
Brazilian filmmaker Anita Rocha da Silveira sees a group of Christian women gang up to attack women who
they judge to be too liberal or too promiscuous.

FILM STRANDS & HIGHLIGHTS:
This year’s Official Selection comprises World Premieres of new independent titles discovered by
Raindance, and UK Premieres of the best from the international film festival circuit, programmed across
eleven strands by Head of Programming Suzanne Ballantyne and Senior Programmers Martyna
Szmytkowska and Malaika Bova. New strands for 2021 include the SCREAMDANCE horror strand, and
the BOOMERANG strand which in response to the challenging and often gloomy months we’ve just endured,
aims to turn the arthouse frown upside down by embracing the joy of indie film.

>> ABSURDITIES: unconventional & fantastical titles fresh from the European festival circuit
IN THE MIRROR (dir: Laila Pakalnina, Latvia). UK Premiere. An absurd retelling of Snow White, the story of
a CrossFit-obsessed gym owner and his new young wife who works out all the time in order to be the best.
And she is: until the day her gym-raised stepdaughter surpasses her.
THE NOISE OF ENGINES (dir: Philippe Grégorie, Canada). UK Premiere. Following its San Sebastian
premiere, this stylised and somewhat bonkers tale focuses on a college instructor accused of drawing
sexually explicit vignettes, a scandal that turns the town upside down.
KING CAR (dir: Renata Pinheiro, Brazil). UK Premiere. In this surreal sci-fi, cars have developed voices and
souls – but these machines become evil characters that turn against man.
TZAREVNA SCALING (dir: Uldus Bakhtiozina, Russia). UK Premiere. Having premiered in Berlin, this debut
feature by Uldus Bakhtiozina reflects her work as a fine artist and photographer and features lavish avant-
garde costumes. In a narrative inspired by Russian fairytales, it tells of a fishmonger’s daughter who drinks a
strange tea and dreams that she’s the Tzar’s daughter.
THE DAY I FOUND A GIRL IN THE TRASH (dir: Michal Krzywicki. Poland). International Premiere. In 2028,
a social activist announces his pending suicide via his streaming channel, intending it to be a statement
against slavery in Poland – then he finds an abandoned slave-girl in the trash.

>> BOOMERANG: a new strand that embraces the joy of indie film
ALL SORTS (dir: J. Rick Castañeda, USA). International Premiere. A nerdy loner gets an office job and
discovers a secret competitive world of championship folder filing.
MY HEART GOES BOOM! (dir: Nacho Álvarez, Spain/Italy). UK Premiere. A joyful, high-spirited musical
incorporating the hits of iconic Italian star Raffaella Carrà, telling the story of a starlet who brings colour to
the greyest days of Francoist Spain in the 1970s.
ZIP IT (dir: Anicée Gohar, Egypt/Saudi Arabia/UK). UK Premiere. Fun, flamboyant and full of fabulous
clothes, documenting the creativity of edgy Egyptian fashion designer Mohanad Kojak.
SWEET DISASTER (dir: Laura Lehmus, Germany). UK Premiere. A pregnant woman uses increasingly
absurd, exaggerated and often hilarious methods to try and win her boyfriend back.

>> DISCOVERY: the place to find maverick works by first-time filmmakers
AS FAR AS I KNOW (dir: Nándor Lörincz & Bálint Nagy, Hungary). UK Premiere. Based on true events,
presented as a detective story, and radically told from the male perspective, it’s the story of a couple and
their challenges after a rape.
MAYDAY (dir: Karen Cinorre, USA). UK Premiere. Starring Grace Van Patten, Mia Goth and Soko, with a
cameo by Juliette Lewis, this intriguing story follows a young woman who faces abuse from her boss, and is
then transported to a dreamlike land where girls like her are engaged in a never-ending revenge war.
SECOND THOUGHTS (dir: Zora Rux, Germany). UK Premiere. An apprentice of renowned Swedish director
Roy Andersson, filmmaker Zora Rux takes his influences onboard in her first feature: a surrealistic story of a
woman who gets a wedding proposal, and has her mind flooded with the thoughts and opinions of others,
including her parents and ex-boyfriend.
SHAPELESS (dir: Samantha Aldana, USA). International Premiere. Kelly Murtagh brilliantly portrays a singer
who is forced to confront her eating disorder when her internal struggle appears to become external and she
risks turning into a monster.
THE HILL WHERE LIONESSES ROAR (dir: Luàna Bajrami, France/Kosovo/USA). UK Premiere. Nominated
for the Golden Camera and Queer Palm at Cannes, the film depicts three free-spirited young women who
rebel against the prospect of a dismal small-town future by forming a gang - with bleak consequences.
ASCENSION (dir: Jessica Kingdon, USA). UK Premiere. Documenting the paradoxes of economic progress,
this impressionistic portrait of China’s industrial supply chain reveals the country’s growing class divide.

>> FEMALE GAZE: a viewpoint covering everything from motherhood to race to abuse
MY SUNNY MAAD (dir: Michaela Pavlátová, Czech Republic/France/Slovakia). UK Premiere. This highly
topical and thought-provoking animation depicts a young Czech woman who falls for an Afghan man – but
when the couple and their newly-adopted disabled child begin a life in post-Taliban Afghanistan, they must
face the reality of being odd ones in a community that doesn’t like diversity.

PORCELAIN (dir: Jenneke Boeijink, Italy/Belgium/Netherlands). UK Premiere. A Dutch couple enjoy an
apparently perfect life, but when their son inexplicably falls ill with a disease, the happy family façade starts
to fracture and tragically falls apart.
SHADOW (dir: Bruno Gascon, Portugal). UK Premiere. The harrowing real-life story of a woman who
continues to look for her missing son years after his disappearance, touching on delicate topics including the
brutal reality of sexual trafficking.
SUBJECTS OF DESIRE (dir: Jennifer Holness, Canada). European Premiere. Contributors including India
Arie, Jully Black, and Brittany Lee Lewis help to document the cultural shift in US beauty standards towards
embracing black aesthetics and features, deconstructing what we understand about race and beauty.

>> GENERATION: from Millennials to Gen Z to the newbies of Gen A, Raindance visualises our
world from the unique perspective of these three young generations
BEANS (dir: Tracey Deer, Canada). UK Premiere. Hailed at festivals including Berlin and Toronto, this debut
feature tells of a Native American girl rebelling against her family, set against the real-life stand-off between
Mokawk communities and government forces in Quebec in 1990.
SAMI, JOE AND I (dir: Karin Heberlein, Switzerland). UK Premiere. A coming-of-age story of three girls from
different walks of life, ready to embrace what comes after school – but reality doesn’t live up to their dreams.
THE REVOLUTION GENERATION (dir: Josh Tickell, Rebecca Harrell Tickell, United States). UK Premiere.
Narrated by Michelle Rodriguez, the film documents how millennials have inherited a world that needs them
to save it, and shows young people deploying their strengths to confront both the US political crisis and the
global environmental crisis.
VIRAL (dir: Udi Nir, Sagi Bornstein, Germany). UK Premiere. Portraying young influencers who share their
lives on social media, illustrating their adaptability during the Corona pandemic.
YOUTH v GOV (dir: Christi Cooper, USA). UK Premiere. The story of twenty-one young Americans hoping to
make history and change the future, as they sue the US government over its role in the climate crisis.

>> HOMEGROWN: The best new indies born and raised right here
A BIRD FLEW IN (dir: Kirsty Bell, UK). World Premiere. Featuring a host of UK talent including Derek
Jacobi, Sadie Frost, Sophie Kennedy Clark, Camilla Rutherford and Frances Barber, it follows what happens
when lockdown is imposed, and the cast and crew of a film are removed from the set and sent home alone.
THE DROWNING OF ARTHUR BRAXTON (dir: Luke Cutforth, UK). World Premiere. The story of a bullied
teenager who falls in love with a mermaid-like girl in his local swimming pool, co-starring Johnny Vegas.
LISTEN (dir: Ana Rocha, UK/Portugal). UK Premiere. Anchored by a brilliant performance by Lúcia Moniz
(Love, Actually) alongside co-stars Ruben Garcia and Sophia Myles, it follows a couple living in the London
suburbs who face serious difficulties with social services when their 7-year-old daughter’s deafness triggers
a red flag in the system.
I AM GEN Z (dir: Liz Smith, UK). UK Premiere. Documenting how the digital revolution is impacting our
society, our brains and our mental health, it investigates how we use different social media platforms – and
how they use us.
HOSTILE (dir: Sonita Gale, UK). World Premiere. For generations, Britain has relied on migrants to keep the
wheels of our society in motion. This documentary explores how they now face being expelled. Although
Brexit contributes, Covid is the focus: we see, for example, a doctor who worked on the frontline during the
pandemic, and now his licence to work is being revoked.

>> ICONS: a strand of biopics honouring some of cinema’s biggest icons
THE ROSSELLINIS (dir: Alessandro Rossellini, Lorenzo d’Amico de Carvalho, Italy/Latvia). UK Premiere.
Following its Venice premiere, this glorious family saga recounts the lives of Roberto Rossellini’s children,
told from the perspective of the great director’s grandson Alessandro. After a shaky career as a
photographer and a past as a drug addict, this film is his attempt to measure up to the surname he bears.
JEAN SEBERG: ACTRESS ACTIVIST ICON (dir: Kelly Rundle & Garry McGee, USA). International
Premiere. Comprising exclusive interviews and never-before-seen private footage, it focuses on the private
side of this international movie star, including her offscreen activism that made her a target of the F.B.I.
OSCAR MICHEAUX – THE SUPERHERO OF BLACK FILMMAKING (dir: Francesco Zippel, Italy). UK
Premiere. The complex and fascinating story of the most successful African American director of the first half
of the 20th-century – a pioneer who wrote, directed and produced more than forty-four films.

>> POLITICO: astute stories of social and political significance
THE CAVIAR CONNECTION (dir: Benoît Bringer, France). UK Premiere. Exploring corruption in countries
including Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan, and documenting how this impacts the likes of the EU.
WHITE NOISE (dir: Daniel Lombroso, USA). UK Premiere. The disturbing inside story of the alt-right, as
white nationalist violence surges in America and across the world.
POWER, PROFIT AND POPULISM: THE BATTLE FOR HARD BREXIT (dir: Tom Costello, Germany). UK
Premiere. A behind-the-scenes look at the thinktanks and lobbyists who supported the Leave campaign.

SOROS (dir: Jesse Dylan, USA). UK Premiere. With unprecedented access, this documentary pulls back the
curtain on the personal history, private wealth and public activism of billionaire George Soros – one of the
most influential and controversial figures of our time.
FAR EASTERN GOLGOTHA (dir: Julia Sergina, Russia). UK Premiere. A small-town taxi driver ends up in
danger and in prison for sharing his opinions on a YouTube channel, illustrating how impossible it is to show
any form of opposition in Putin’s Russia.
CHILDREN OF THE ENEMY (dir: Gorki Glaser-Müller, Sweden/Denmark/Qatar). UK Premiere. A
grandfather campaigns to bring his orphaned grandchildren home to Sweden from a Syrian detention camp.

>> QUEER: the full rainbow spectrum of LGBTQ+ cinema
MIGUEL’S WAR (dir: Eliane Raheb, Lebanon/Spain/Germany). UK Premiere. Winner of the Teddy Award at
Berlin, the story of a gay man from Lebanon living in exile in Spain, who returns to his native country after 37
years to confront his traumatic past.
THE POP SONG (dir: Raúl Portero, Spain). World Premiere. Shot on a small budget in b&w, this classic
arthouse indie explores the loss and grief of a past relationship as friends come together for a funeral.
GIRL LIKE YOU (dir: Frances Elliott & Samantha Marlowe, Australia). International Premiere. This touching
and insightful documentary portrays a couple battling to stay together as one of them transitions genders.
AGAINST THE CURRENT (dir: Óskar Páll Sveinsson, Iceland). UK Premiere. Having spent a lifetime
battling social expectations, a trans woman from Iceland attempts to become the first person to kayak
against the current around the 2,000 km Icelandic coastline.

>> SCREAMDANCE: the festival’s new signature horror strand
FATHER OF FLIES (dir: Ben Charles Edwards, UK/USA). World Premiere. A haunting tale of family life,
starring Camilla Rutherford alongside Nicholas Tucci in his final role.
THE SECRET OF SINCHANEE (dir: Steven Grayhm, USA). International Premiere. The survivor of a double
murder returns to his childhood home only to discover a paranormal presence.
WHERE’S ROSE (dir: John Mathis, USA). International Premiere. A missing girl is seemingly found, but her
brother enters a deadly game of cat-and-mouse to discover who or what has really taken her place.
THE WELDER (dir: David Liz, USA). International Premiere. A traumatised ex-soldier takes what should be a
relaxing holiday with her boyfriend, only to find themselves in a fight for their lives.
VAMPIR (dir: Branko Tomovic, UK/Serbia). UK Premiere. A witness to a crime flees London, deciding to hide
himself in a remote Serbian village – but he begins to have nightmarish visions.

>> SONICA SPONSORED BY SPOTIFY: resonating with music docs and live concert films
LEARNING TO LIVE TOGETHER: THE RETURN OF MAD DOGS & ENGLISHMEN (dir: Jesse Lauter,
USA). International Premiere. This documentary concert film revisits this historic Joe Cocker tour, featuring
performances from Leon Russell, Rita Coolidge, Chris Robinson (The Black Crowes), Dave Manson, and
Claudia Lennear (20 Feet From Stardom).
I’M WANITA (dir: Matthew Walker, Australia). European Premiere. Documenting a renegade country music
singer from regional Australia, hellbent on overcoming hurdles such as her autism to realise her childhood
dreams of stardom.
HELMUT LACHENMANN – MY WAY (dir: Wiebke Pöpel, Germany). UK Premiere. An exploration of the life,
philosophy and artistry of this experimental German composer.

AWARDS AND JURY
The Raindance Film Festival awards system honours features and documentaries in eight categories: Best
International Film, Best UK Film, Best Director, Best Performance, Best Screenplay, Best Cinematography,
Best Discovery, Best Documentary.

This year’s jury: Fiona Shaw (Killing Eve, Harry Potter, True Blood), Natalie Dormer (Game of Thrones,
Penny Dreadful, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay), Tobias Menzies (The Crown, Outlander, Rome),
Phoebe Dynevor (Bridgerton, Snatch, Waterloo Road), Rakie Ayola (Anthony, The Pact, Grace), Jodhi
May (A World Apart, Last of the Mohicans, Defiance), Dolly Wells (The Offenders, Can You Ever Forgive
Me?, Doll & Em), Robert Sheehan (Love/Hate, Misfits, Song for a Raggy Boy), Aneurin Barnard (Dunkirk,
The Personal History of David Copperfield, Goldfinch), Romola Garai (The Hour, Emma, Inside I’m
Dancing), Ben Hardy (X-Men: Apocalypse, Mary Shelly, Bohemian Rhapsody), Babou Ceesay (Our Loved
Boy, Dark Money, Best of Enemies), Mena Massoud (Aladdin, Open Heart, Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan),
human rights and LGBT+ campaigner Peter Tatchell, director Tarsem Singh, The Guardian head of
documentaries Lindsay Poulton, CNN political commentator S.E Cupp, casting associate on the Emmy
Award winning show Ted Lasso Olissa Rogers, producer Phil Hunt, producer Stella Nwimo, Arrow Films
senior marketing manager Louise Buckler, Bulldog Film head of distribution Philip Hoile, 42 Management
literary manager Alex Bloch, Film Constellation marketing director & general manager Chloe Tai, 16 Days
16 Films Johanna Von Fischer, Curzon’s director of programme & distribution sales Damian Spandley,

Spotify’s Olga Puzanova, Leroy Harris and Kieran Lancini, Genesis Cinema alternative programming
manager Christina Papasotiriou, director Gabriel Range (Stardust, 28th Raindance opening gala), director
Giorgos Georgopoulos (Not To Be Unpleasant But We Need To Have A Serious Talk, 28th Raindance
“Film of the Festival”), director Amit Dubey (A Fallen Fruit, 28th Raindance “Short Of The Festival”).

OUT-OF-COMPETITION GALA PRESENTATIONS AT THE MAY FAIR HOTEL:
Raindance turns back time to give HATING PETER TATCHELL (dir: Christopher Amos, Australia/UK) the
gala cinema screening it deserves. Executive produced by Elton John and David Furnish, and starring Ian
McKellen and Stephen Fry, this evocative documentary from WildBear Entertainment will be making its UK
theatrical premiere at Raindance. With his acts of civil disobedience, Peter Tatchell rocked the
establishment, revolutionised attitudes to homosexuality and exposed tyrants in the fight for equality –
earning him a place in queer history, and now a Raindance red carpet screening at The May Fair Hotel
followed by a Q&A. Hating Peter Tatchell is now streaming on Netflix.

Documenting the soul of American music, 2014’s Take Me To The River won awards at festivals including
Raindance and SXSW. Now the second film TAKE ME TO THE RIVER: NEW ORLEANS (dir: Martin Shore)
celebrates the rich musical history, legacy and influence of New Orleans and Louisiana. This Out-of-
Competition gala at The May Fair Hotel will feature a DJ plus special guests including director Martin Shore,
Jerry Harrison (Talking Heads), and Ian Neville (from the band Dumpstaphunk who feature on the
upcoming Take Me To The River: New Orleans LP release, and son of Art “Papa Funk” Neville from The
Meters and The Neville Brothers).

An Out-Of-Competition gala, the European Premiere of Japanese anime THE LAWS OF THE UNIVERSE –
THE AGE OF ELOHIM (dir: Isamu Imakake, Japan) is set 150 million years ago, at a time when Earth was in
harmony under Elohim – but forces from the dark side of the universe are intent on destruction.

GUEST COUNTRY: CYPRUS
This year the Raindance Film Festival, along with the Cyprus High Commision in the UK and Invest Cyprus,
will showcase the country as a filming location, as well as presenting a programme of glorious new films from
Cyprus. A Greek former champion diver takes an adventurous road-trip of rediscovery with a handsome
German student in THE MAN WITH THE ANSWERS (dir: Stelios Kammitsis, Cyprus/Greece). A musician’s
plan to leave crisis-ridden Cyprus must be amended when his dog Jimi runs away and crosses the UN Buffer
Zone that divides the Greek and Turkish sides of the island in SMUGGLING HENDRIX (dir: Marios
Piperides, Cyprus/Germany/Greece). A wife attempts to escape her oppressive marriage by finding refuge in
a fantasy world of vindictive violence in PAUSE (dir: Tonia Mishiali, Cyprus). A woman begins a hesitant
friendship with a shy and defiant teenage girl in PATCHWORK (dir: Petros Charalambous, Cyprus). And a
masterclass by award-winning cinematographer Haris Zambarloukos.

RAINDANCE IMMERSIVE VR PROGRAMME (27 October – 21 November)
The indie community spirit exists in VR just as it does in film. Indie VR creators, game developers and avatar
designers are laying the foundation blocks of the metaverse, building virtual worlds and creating virtual
spaces where the VR community come together. Curated by Mária Rakušanová with virtual worlds co-
curated by Joe Hunting, this year’s Raindance Immersive is powered by HTC VIVES’s Viveport and
VRChat, with immersive VR games and experiences competing for seven awards – Raindance is the only
film festival in the world to recognise and award VR on this scale. www.raindanceimmersive.com

VR HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:

THE METAMOVIE PRESENTS: ALIEN RESCUE (creators: Jason Moore, Avinash Changa, Chris Insana).
A vast, cinematic VR adventure with supporting characters played by live actors. This revolutionary shared
experience combines immersive VR storytelling, live theatre, role-playing and video game mechanics.
GLIMPSE (creator: Benjamin Cleary, Michael O’Connor, Lee Harris, Julianna Barwick). Having previewed at
Raindance 2019, and following its World Premiere at Venice, this animated love story features a heartbroken
panda who’s recently broken up with his deer girlfriend, voiced by Taron Egerton and Lucy Boynton.
KNIGHT OF THE WAILING STARS (creators: Louis Cacciuttolo, Denis Semionov, m1n0t0r). Players travel
to mystical planets in this immersive journey through the music of electronic artist m1n0t0r.
THE PIRATE QUEEN (creators: Eloise Singer, Maja Bodenstein, Will Brosch, Dave Raynard). Multi-award
winner Eloise Singer has produced films that have screened at top international film festivals, including
Raindance. Here she co-creates her first VR: a puzzle-based adventure game that centres on Cheng I Sao,
a Chinese widow who became the world’s most powerful pirate in the lead up to the Opium Wars.
NATURE TREKS: TOGETHER (creators: John Carline, Eleftheria Kalograni, Sergiu-Robert Ursulescu). A
multiplayer meditative game for up to 16 players. Explore a beautiful island paradise, connect with others,
and transition into a powerful sensory experience.

SPACEFOLK CITY (creators: Therése Pierrau, Chris McLaughlin, Alex May, Frankie Hobbins, Taylor
Keator, Ben Sherratt, Joe Bain, Vincent Diamante). Build your own city of bizarre buildings, and help its
citizens save themselves from the danger of their dying sun in this VR city simulator.
DAGON: BY H. P. LOVECRAFT (creators: Hubert Mróz, Maciej Górny). This Polish VR studio has created a
free daemonic narrative experience, inspired by a short story by American horror writer H. P. Lovecraft.
SUSHI BEN VR (creator: Kane Tyler Garrett, Brian Hicks, Ian Navarro Silver, Alli Hockaday, Tanner Carson,
Zerolchi). A preview of this anime-style narrative game enhanced by 3D manga panels, in which a sushi bar
is going out of business – and it’s up to you to save it.
BELONGINGS (creator: Carol Silverman). The haze of memory blurs the line between ordinary and precious
as a woman’s possessions tell the story of the life she lived in this highly interactive VR experience.

**FULL RAINDANCE IMMERSIVE VR PROGRAMME & AWARD NOMINATIONS ANNOUNCED 30 SEPT**

ACADEMY AWARD® QUALIFYING SHORTS PROGRAMME
Raindance is an Oscar-qualifying festival. The recipient of Best Short Of The Festival is eligible for
consideration in the Short Film category of the Academy Awards® without the standard theatrical run
(provided the film otherwise complies with the Academy rules). Highlights include Andrew Kötting’s
DISEASED AND DISORDERLY which utilises the artworks of neuro-diversive artist Eden Kötting to take us
on a fantastical journey. Award-winning Michelle Coomber explores Ugandan tradition in the ethereal
documentary NSENENE. Two young men secretly express their feelings for each other through dance
against a backdrop of homophobia in SPLIT SOLE. Director-duo rubberband collaborate with musician
Topaz Jones for DON’T GO TELLIN’ YOUR MOMMA, which won awards at Sundance and SXSW for its
quasi-documentary portrayal of black educators in 1970s Chicago.

Shorts programmes include Guardian Picks by Guardian Documentaries, comprising documentary shorts
with narratives relevant to today. These include THE RETURN, the story of a family in the Ecuadorian
Amazon who move deeper into the jungle in response to the coronavirus pandemic; and SINDICAT,
documenting a group of young volunteers in a Barcelona suburb trying to counteract the housing crisis.

The new subscription-free streaming platform Paus will exclusively preview a selection of short films ahead
of their Raindance premiere. These will screen in a series of 24-hour windows between 15 September - 15
October on the paus iOS app, Android app and the paus.tv streaming website. Paus aims to disrupt the
traditional streaming models that rely on adverts or intrusive payments, by instead allowing viewers to
support filmmakers directly by virtual tipping.

NEW FOR 2021: THE HOUSE OF RAINDANCE
Raindance announces the inaugural edition of The House of Raindance. Based in the heart of central
London just steps from Charing Cross Station, The House of Raindance is an exclusive space where
filmmakers, audience members, and industry professionals can come together to engage and explore what
the future of cinema has to offer today. At our morning coffee club guests can prepare themselves for the
day ahead, and our evening happy hours offer time to network and reflect on the future of film. The House of
Raindance Pass offers full access to our programming on site, including more than 30 panels and talks
covered in our Industry Forum and an exciting curation of exclusive virtual reality content in The Raindance
Immersive VR Programme. Individual day passes will also be available, though with so many events to
choose from, you won’t want to miss a moment of it.

RAINDANCE INDUSTRY FORUM @ THE HOUSE OF RAINDANCE
This year’s expanded edition of the Raindance Industry Forum (28 October – 6 November) celebrates the
future of Independent Cinema. With over thirty talks covering topics from the evolution of Sound Design in
Virtual Reality to the explosive transition of Drag Performances from Stage to Screen, we invite our industry
delegates to join us in The House of Raindance for a series of thought-provoking discussions and
presentations

We’ve invited some of our favourite filmmakers and industry experts to explore a range of technical, cultural,
and cutting-edge subjects designed to educate and inspire. Now more than ever, we as an industry must
look forward. This programme has been curated to explore a future we can all be excited about.

NEW FOR 2021: RAINDANCE FILM MARKET
Raindance in collaboration with Vuulr will offer a global content marketplace for filmmakers in the Official
Selection, connecting them with distributors and buyers of content worldwide 24/7. Filmmakers from the past
few years will also be invited to join this new online marketplace venture.

Another new partner for 2021, Raindance will manage its expenses spending with Soldo, the payment and
spend management automation platform for business.

NEW FOR 2021: DONATE A TICKET – SHARE THE RAINDANCE VIEW
Raindance tells powerful stories via the medium of film: shining a light on injustice, amplifying the
whistleblowers, and championing the activists and campaigners who fight for equality and a better world.
Raindance endeavours to share these stories with as broad and engaged an audience as possible: but not
everyone can easily afford to go to the cinema. That’s why Raindance is partnering with Greenlit on a
new crowdfunding initiative. The aim is simple: to provide FREE TICKETS to festival films from strands
including Politico, Queer and Female Gaze.

Free tickets will be provided to people from marginalized communities such as young people from
disadvantaged backgrounds, BIPOC communities, refugees, and the socially isolated. Tickets will be
allocated with the input of partner organisations and charities including Total Arts, The Cares Family and
Micro Rainbow. By donating the cost of just one ticket you could help to inspire a young trans activist, give a
disillusioned refugee a new sense of purpose, energise a campaigner on disability rights, or bring a sense of
community to someone who feels lonely and isolated. Independent film is a powerful medium – so help
Raindance utilise film to motivate, edify and inspire others. https://greenlit.com/share-raindance

                     For more information, images or interview requests:
                             Premier PR: raindance@premiercomms.com
                               Stuart Haggas: press@raindance.co.uk
    Press accreditations now open: www.raindance.org/festival/press-accreditations/

                                  Tickets will go on sale 24 September

NOTES TO EDITORS:
Raindance Film Festival is the largest independent film festival in the UK and it has been recognised by Variety as
“one of the world’s top 50 unmissable film festivals”. Raindance showcases the boldest, freshest content from British
and international filmmakers. Industry and the public attend cutting-edge panels, talks and workshops. Raindance is a
qualifying festival for Oscars®, BAFTA and BIFA.
Raindance is dedicated to fostering and promoting independent film around the world. Founded in 1992, it combines
the Raindance Film Festival, film training courses, and Raindance Higher Education. Training courses are at the heart
of the Raindance structure, aiming to give individuals the tools to start shooting their film, and covering screenwriting,
production, directing, and virtual reality. Moreover, Raindance has developed three fully accredited Higher Education
Film Programmes, becoming the only major film festival in the world to offer higher education.
Launched in 2013, Canva is a free online visual communications platform with a mission to empower everyone in the
world to design. Featuring a simple user interface and a vast range of templates ranging from presentations, social
media graphics, posters, apparel to videos, plus a huge library of fonts, stock photography, illustrations, video footage,
and audio clips, anyone can take an idea and create something beautiful. Available on desktop, web, iOS, Android.
Curzon is a branded customer-facing platform covering film exhibition, distribution, production and on-demand
streaming. The company currently operates 20 cinemas across the UK exemplified by flagship venues Curzon Mayfair,
Curzon Soho and Curzon Bloomsbury. The distribution business has over 40 years experience in independent film and
boasts a library of over 400 critically acclaimed films by the world’s greatest directors. Streaming service Curzon Home
Cinema pioneered day-and-date releasing and is available to customers through TV, Mobile apps and over-the-top-
platforms, with reach into 6.5 million homes.
Genesis Cinema is a family run arthouse cinema in east London, showing blockbusters and independent films in a
uniquely renovated 19th-century building. The cinema boasts five screens with a combined 956 seats, including the
breathtaking 566 seat main auditorium. From the infamous Kray twins to Princess Margaret, this iconic venue has
hosted them all, and holds true to its East End roots, showcasing local artists and championing independent cinema.
Guardian Documentaries: Real people. Untold stories. Lose yourself in the lives of others. From our Oscar® winning
title to hidden gems, Guardian Documentaries has new releases out regularly. Watch at theguardian.com/documentaries
Soldo combines smart company cards with a comprehensive management platform. Empower employees and
departments to pay. Control every penny with custom budgets. Track business-wide spending in real time. Then

automate bookkeeping. That’s why 26,000 companies – including Farmdrop, Kurt Geiger, Secret Escapes, Gymshark,
and Mercedes Benz – are already cutting costs and saving time with Soldo.
Spotify transformed music listening forever when it launched in 2008. Discover, manage and share over 70 million
tracks, including more than 2.9 million podcast titles, for free, or upgrade to Spotify Premium to access exclusive
features for music including improved sound quality and an on-demand, offline, and ad-free listening experience.
Today, Spotify is the world’s most popular audio streaming subscription service with 365m users, including 165m
subscribers, across 178 markets.
To know The Dorchester is to know London. Welcome to a British Institution. Welcome to one of the world’s most
iconic 5-star hotels, standing prominently on Park Lane, overlooking the idyllic Hyde Park. Welcome to a place that
defines its destination. Welcome to care, to refinement, to whatever your heart desires. Welcome to The Dorchester.
TooFar Media publishes provocative stories for the eyes, ears, and imagination by Rich Shapero. His novels—all
available in the TooFar Media app—dare readers with giant metaphors, magnificent obsessions and potent ideas, and
combine music, visual art, animation and video. Download the TooFar Media app on iOS and Android.
Just like its neighbourhood, The May Fair Hotel embraces and embodies the essence of art, culture, entertainment and
gastronomy – all under one roof. May Fair Bar is the scene for cocktail collaborations and pop-up residencies, whilst
contemporary dining is enjoyed at award-winning flagship restaurant May Fair Kitchen. Located in London’s most
exclusive neighbourhood, The May Fair Hotel is moments from Bond Street and Green Park underground station.
Vuulr is the largest global online content marketplace for Film & TV rights that connects buyers with producers and
distributors worldwide. With Vuulr, content discovery and acquisition takes place digitally, with buyers negotiating
directly with sellers, and completing deals online in days, not months. Buyers use Vuulr for free to instantly access over
31,000 titles/ 165,000 hours of premium content across 60 genres; while sellers can showcase their entire catalogue to
over 6,000 buyers worldwide at no upfront cost.

A-Z OF FEATURES:
A BIRD FLEW IN ** AGAINST THE CURRENT ** ALL SORTS ** AS FAR AS I KNOW ** ASCENSION **
BEANS ** BEST SELLERS ** CARVING THE DIVINE ** CHILDREN OF THE ENEMY ** FAR EASTERN
GOLGATHA ** FATHER OF FLIES ** GIRL LIKE YOU ** HATING PETER TATCHELL ** HELMUT
LACHENMANN – MY WAY ** HOSTILE ** I AM GEN Z ** I’M WANITA ** IN THE MIRROR ** JEAN
SEBERG: ACTRESS ACTIVIST ICON ** KING CAR ** LEARNING TO LIVE TOGETHER: THE RETURN OF
MAD DOGS & ENGLISHMEN ** LISTEN ** MAYDAY ** MEDUSA ** MIGUEL’S WAR ** MY HEART GOES
BOOM! ** MY SUNNY MAAD ** OSCAR MICHEAUX – THE SUPERHERO OF BLACK FILMMAKING **
PATCHWORK ** PAUSE ** PORCELAIN ** POWER, PROFIT AND POPULISM: THE BATTLE FOR HARD
BREXIT ** SAMI, JOE AND I ** SECOND THOUGHTS ** SHADOW (SOMBRA) ** SHAPELESS **
SMUGGLING HENDRIX ** SOROS ** SUBJECTS OF DESIRE ** SWEET DISASTER ** TAKE ME TO THE
RIVER: NEW ORLEANS ** THE CAVIAR CONNECTION ** THE DAY I FOUND A GIRL IN THE TRASH **
THE DROWNING OF ARTHUR BRAXTON ** THE HILL WHERE LIONESSES ROAR ** THE LAWS OF THE
UNIVERSE – THE AGE OF ELOHIM ** THE MAN WITH THE ANSWERS ** THE NOISE OF ENGINES ** THE
POP SONG ** THE REVOLUTION GENERATION ** THE ROSSELLINIS ** THE SECRET OF SINCHANEE **
THE WELDER ** TZAREVNA SCALING ** VAMPIR ** VIRAL ** WHERE’S ROSE ** WHITE NOISE **
YOUTH v GOV ** ZIP IT