Strand Galas
Red carpet galas from our themed strands: Cult, Dare, Thrill, Debate, Love, Laugh, Family, Journey, Create, and Treasures.
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Festival Gala
Ema
Dir Pablo Larraín | Chile
Chilean director Pablo Larraín’s (Jackie, No) Ema features a superb Gael García Bernal and a spellbinding lead performance from newcomer Mariana Di Girolamo.
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Family Gala
Abominable
Dir Jill Culton, Todd Wilderman | USA-China
The latest animated tale from Dreamworks is a fun, fast-paced action adventure about a little girl and her yeti companion in a race-against-time trip from China to the Himalayas.
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Thrill Gala
Bacurau
Dir-Scr Kleber Mendonça Filho, Juliano Dornelles | Brazil-France
This brazen Brazilian weird western snatched the Cannes Jury Prize and is coming for your mind next!
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Laugh Gala
The Dude in Me
Dir Hyo-jin Kang | South Korea
A ballsy gangster accidentally possesses a timid schoolboy in this sassy body-swap comedy from South Korea.
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Dare Gala
Judy & Punch
Dir-Scr Mirrah Foulkes | Australia
Writer/Director Mirrah Foulkes delivers an audaciously brilliant first feature, with Mia Wasikowska splendid in this fairy tale with a feminist twist.
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Cult Gala
The Lighthouse
Dir Robert Eggers | USA
Robert Eggers, the Sutherland Award-winning director of The Witch, returns to terrorise the LFF with his masterful maritime shocker.
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Debate Gala
Official Secrets
Dir Gavin Hood | UK-USA
Gavin Hood follows up Eye in the Sky with a sharp political thriller about a key moment in the history of the Iraq conflict.
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Love Gala
The Peanut Butter Falcon
Dir-Scr Michael Schwartz, Tyler Nilson | USA
The spirit of Mark Twain lives on in this effortlessly charming buddy movie about a young man in pursuit of his dreams.
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Journey Gala
The Two Popes
Dir Fernando Meirelles | Italy-Argentina
Anthony Hopkins and Jonathan Pryce tussle over the future of the Catholic Church in this thrillingly cinematic two-hander from Fernando Meirelles (City of God, The Constant Gardener).
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Create Gala
Western Stars
Dir Thom Zimny, Bruce Springsteen | USA
Bruce Springsteen performs the entirety of his latest release, Western Stars, in this captivating hybrid of concert documentary and memoir.
