Film Catalogue — Award-Winning Short Films Available for UK Screening

Born in 1980, Gianluca Zonta studied Computer Science and Cinema at DAMS and attended the Carlo Mazzacurati Screenwriting Master. In 2009 he created Italy's first web series, COPS, marking his early exploration of digital storytelling. In 2015 he was a finalist for the Solinas Award. He has directed several acclaimed short films, including Pizza Boy (2019), presented at the Rome Film Festival and winner of over 50 awards worldwide; The Right to Vote (2021), awarded at festivals in Spain; and The Aquarium (2024), premiered at Cortinametraggio and winner of more than 70 awards at Italian and international festivals.

Is it possible to find a way not to make errors in love? Maybe AI is the answer.

With The Aquarium, I want to tell, through a romantic and light story, how artificial intelligence influences human relationships today. From this emerges the core theme of the short: is it better to follow the technology's suggestions, risking the loss of one's own authenticity, or to trust one's instincts, accepting the risks and unpredictability of love? The Aquarium does not aim to provide definitive answers, but invites reflection on a highly relevant topic, highlighting both the challenges and potential of new technologies, with lightness and a touch of irony. — Gianluca Zonta

Hristo Todorov was born on June 20th, 1980 in Veliko Tarnovo, Bulgaria. He graduated of the National Academy for Theatre and Film Arts in Sofia (2002 - Film Critics and Film Directing). Between 2007 and 2016 Hristo edited 3 feature movies, also TV series, documentaries, trailors and TV programs. Since 2017 Hristo lives in Paris and makes short films as an independent director. Many of his works have been selected for French and international festivals. Hristo has also been member of the jury of international festivals in France and Italy.

Disappointed of her life in Paris, Emma is ready to go back to her home country. But the morning before the flight she wants to fulfil her last Parisian dream — to make a photo shoot in front of Notre-Dame. And here something unexpected will happen…

Raised on The Wages of Fear, Guillaume Chevalier has long been fascinated by spectacular imagery and characters on the brink. He began his career in an SFX team, working on action films. After The Deep Ones (2016) and Draining (2021), Frenzied is his third short film. His debut feature as screenwriter, Gibier, directed by Abel Ferry, will be released in early 2026.
Frenzied has been selected at Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival, Dallas International Film Festival, Okotoks International Film Festival.

When she gets fired from the cheese factory where she works, Jessica decides to organise a burglary. But stealing a ton of cheese is no easy feat, especially when you're burning with rage.

With Les Forcenés, Guillaume Chevalier takes an unlikely, wildly entertaining heist story and turns it into a film about anger and the violence of working life. Set inside the cold, relentlessly mechanical world of an industrial cheese plant, the film follows Jessica, a factory worker who has just been fired and decides to take back what was taken from her — no matter how far she has to go. The story moves forward with a dark, sometimes biting sense of humour, as violence gradually takes centre stage. The result is a gripping thriller anchored by a female lead who is both deeply sympathetic and impossible to predict. — Guillaume Chevalier

Steve Ramsden is an award-winning British filmmaker who has worked across Asia, Africa, and the USA as a director, cameraman and editor. In 2016 he founded Unexplored Films. His short films have screened at LIFF, LSFF and internationally, winning awards at Venice Shorts, California Indies and the LA International Short Film Festival.

An overworked and arrogant lawyer describes the terrifying incident he has just experienced on his drive home from the office… but his night may not be over yet.

"Road Kill was written during Covid lockdown as a film I could make with very few resources. It is a short thriller with horror and dark comedic elements — exploring the morality of a crime no-one sees, taking responsibility for your actions, and the value of a human life versus a career." — Steve Ramsden

Heidi Nyburg is a California-based writer/director and former Netflix product manager. Her work centres on female-driven stories exploring motherhood, identity, and resilience. Five and a Half has won 8 international awards including Best Director at Big Sur International Short Film Screening Series and Best Narrative Short at the San Francisco International Film Awards.

Based on a true story, a sheltered little girl spends an unnerving afternoon with her estranged father where she's left with only her imagination to stop time and escape impending disaster.

So often, addiction stories are told from the addict's perspective. I wanted to tell that story from a child's point of view. FIVE AND A HALF is my dark memory of parental addiction seen through a five-year-old's eyes — I'm still not sure how I survived that mountain road, my incapacitated, drug-addicted father behind the wheel, my imaginary brake useless no matter how hard I tried. When I became a writer, and especially after my own children were born, I knew I had to tell this story. — Heidi Nyburg

Dan Hertzog studied at the USC School of Cinematic Arts and went on to receive his MFA in Cinematography from the American Film Institute. He founded the production company In the Wee hours, working across commercials, film and digital media. He was recognised by the International Cinematographers Guild at the 2006 and 2016 Emerging Cinematographer Awards.

A troubled mechanic races across the Mojave Desert with his best friend in tow to ditch the body of a small-town waitress before being caught — the question is, by whom?

"Not unlike the United States, the world of Domino Springs is filled with everyday folks from all over the globe — an assortment of races, ethnicities, nationalities, and so on. Now… imagine that world also populated with people from a dozen different decades over the past two centuries. At its core, Domino Springs is a story about two friends ultimately divided by their differing values of family and friendship. At some point in your life comes the question... what's more important, the history of your family, or the history you make for your future family?" — Dan Hertzog

Lola Mei Ellis is an independent director and cinematographer based in NYC. She holds a bachelor's degree in Film Studies and Political Science from Boston College. Ellis has directed, shot, and produced award-winning short films that have showcased at film festivals nationally. She is currently in post-production on her upcoming film, Velvet.

A short documentary shining a light on the plight of widows in India and their paths to overcoming hardships concerning inequality and poverty.

Colombian writer and director based in Western Australia, working across documentary and narrative drama. Her work explores mental health, intergenerational trauma, and identity, often blended with magical realism. Recognised for her award-winning short E-Mum (Best WA Short Film, CinefestOZ) and documentary Horsepower, and her role as Second Unit Director on He Ain't Heavy (SFF, MIFF; Netflix).

Ian, a young farrier haunted by lifelong battles with his mental health, discovers a profound sanctuary in the gentle presence of his horses, embarking on a transformative journey of self-discovery and healing.

"I set out to explore the profound connection between humans and horses — particularly in the context of men's mental health. Through Ian, a young farrier battling his mental health, we witness the transformational power of this bond. I hope this film fosters empathy and conversation around men's mental health: an often overlooked and stigmatised topic." — Jessica London

Steve Ramsden is an award-winning British filmmaker who grew up on Tyneside and has worked worldwide as a director, cameraman and editor. He founded Unexplored Films in 2016, producing short films including Road Kill (2023) and Pay Back (2023). He is also a prolific YouTuber with over 340,000 subscribers.

A wealthy property developer goes to the top floor of an art gallery to pay the ransom for his kidnapped son. But when the lift mysteriously stops halfway up the building, he must quickly work out if the young man he is trapped with is just an innocent tourist — or the kidnapper.

I wrote Pay Back to be a gripping thriller that keeps the audience guessing right until the end. I set the story in the North East — using the Baltic Centre with its famous glass lifts as the centrepiece — drawing on fond memories of learning to make films as a teenager around Tyneside. — Steve Ramsden

Born in Brussels, Belgium in 1984, Toni Hilgersson graduated from INRACI in cinematography. Father of two children, he has been responsible for their education in a rural environment since 2012. He directs short fiction films for cinema and television, and videos for the internet, in a very personal style close to magical realism.

Some say Jeanne is mad — because she doesn't let boys push her around, which doesn't sit well with everyone. To protect herself, she decides to say stop. From now on, consider yourself warned: don't touch Jeanne. She stings.

Born and bred in the West Midlands, Martin Hemingway-Moseley has built a decade-long career in film and television, progressing from camera crew to producing and directing. He has worked on projects for Netflix, Warner Bros, Twentieth Century Fox, and National Geographic. A Memory Owed is his narrative debut — a project over ten years in the making, powered by 726 donors and 146 crew members.

Bound by unspoken grief, a reclusive 91-year-old WWII veteran and his young carer find unexpected solace on the windswept plains of a former bomber airfield, where memory still lingers.

With A Memory Owed, I set out to build an emotional bridge between past and present by exploring the legacy of RAF Bomber Command — a chapter of history long overlooked until the 2012 unveiling of a long-awaited memorial in Green Park, London. As the voices of the WWII generation grow quieter, I felt a responsibility to tell a story that resonates today, while staying true to those who lived it. This film represents nearly a decade of work. It is a tribute to memory, sacrifice, and the enduring human need to connect. — Martin Hemingway-Moseley

Trapped in the loop of his own mind, with not much time left, a man meets a being beyond time. To taste her freedom, he must let go of the pain that anchors him.

Exchange emerged from the violent conflict between Mind and Surrender. Wilfred, cowering on the desolate shore with his kitchen knife, represents Mind; severed from life by his inability to let go, his perception defined by fear. An alternative, Surrender, is presented in the form of Barbara who appears on the shore before him, untethered to time or space and beyond Mind. Barbara represents the infinite while Wilfred is all of us, fighting to resist the tide of life. This story is about the cost of holding on — and the beauty in finally letting go. — Monty Chaudoir

Kitty Harper is a Birmingham-based award-winning writer and director with over 10 years of experience in short film. Her work has won Best LGBT Screenplay at the Chicago Script Awards, Best Thriller at Hollywood's Monthly Film Festival, and she was shortlisted for the Steven Knight Make It In Birmingham Competition. She has served as a panel judge and script reader for Lift-Off Global Film Festivals.

A young girl dealing with the loss of her mother gets bullied by her abusive French teacher, but soon discovers a deeper truth behind her teacher's actions.

Moroccan director and producer trained at ESRA Paris. Founded Pixel Factory in 2013. His short Hand Maid (2015) won the jury prize and audience award at Encounters Bristol International Film Festival. Seminal Animals won Best Screenplay at the Tangier National Film Festival and Best Picture at the Marrakesh Short Film Festival.

In a near-future city where a new law grants impunity for crimes against women after 9PM, a single mother races home through gang-patrolled streets after an emergency keeps her at work past curfew — while her teenage son drifts closer to the very world she's running from.

London-based interdisciplinary storyteller and filmmaker. His dance-documentary series Moving Cities has reached over 50 million people. When You Left Me won Best Editing/Post-Production at the Lift-Off Season Awards 2025.

A father at breaking point does the unthinkable — leaving his young son on a London Underground platform. What follows is a desperate, guilt-ridden reckoning with the fragile thread that holds us together.

I'm sure I'm not alone. We all lose control, especially with children. I have 3 children and so this story was the familiar theme of frustration. I became fixated on the tether. What happens when you're at the end? Could you really abandon your child? When You Left Me tells the story of a father who does just that, leaving his son behind on the London Underground. It's a collision of two fears — losing a child in public and losing control as a parent. — Jevan Chowdhury

London-based award-winning photographer and director. Fighting Demons won Best Short Documentary at the London Lift-Off Film Festival 2025 and has screened at 9 international festivals including HollyShorts UK and the New York Independent Film Festival.

Four fighters step into the bare knuckle ring — not just to battle their opponents, but to confront their own inner struggles.

Bare knuckle boxing is often dismissed as brutal spectacle. I wanted to look beyond that. When I first encountered this world, what struck me wasn't the violence — it was the vulnerability. What I found were four deeply human answers. Paul, Tony, Tamlyn and Harvey each carry something into the ring that no opponent can touch — grief, identity, purpose, legacy. The bare knuckle arena, for all its rawness, became a place where those things could be confronted honestly. — Simon Stock

British filmmaker. A Great Love is a poetic documentary portrait of equine sculptor Charlie Langton and his lifelong muse.

In a poetic and personal reflection, a sculptor contemplates his life's work and the enduring power of his singular muse.

In an age of multi-hyphenates, it's rare to meet someone with a singular creative focus. This is what made meeting Charlie Langton so remarkable. For the past twenty years, he has worked as a sculptor, with his focus almost exclusively on one muse: the horse. There was something deeply calming about hearing an artist speak with such enduring wonder for a pursuit that has remained constant over time. — Aisha Schliessler

French writer-director. APNÉES won Best Drama Short at Aesthetica Short Film Festival 2024 and received a Special Jury Mention at Tribeca Film Festival 2024.

Pierre is diligently overseeing the completion of the tumultuous construction site under his responsibility. An eco-district is due to arise from this bustling construction site. But for now, Pierre is ensuring that progress doesn't come at the cost of safety.

With Apnées, I wanted to make a breathless social thriller — intimate and committed. In the arena of a construction site governed solely by the laws of supply and demand, I made the radical choice of intimacy: placing my camera as close as possible to reality and to my characters, capturing every nuance of an intricate subject. — Nicolas Panay

Sydney-based writer-director and cinematographer. YAKKA won Best Cinematography and was nominated for Best Short Narrative at the Lift-Off Global Network Season Awards 2024.

On a secluded Australian estuary, as two young brothers grapple for their neglectful father's approval, their usual pastime of exploring empty holiday houses goes awry, and a violent mistake will shatter their fragile bond forever.

The cycles of toxic masculinity are even more entrenched in families overrun with men and need to be addressed by the men caught inside them. Not only is this a love letter to my youth — it's also a coming of age story encouraging independence and challenging audiences to stand up for what they believe in, no matter what the consequences may be. — Jack Shepherd

Tokyo-based filmmaker and commercial director. 6 international award wins including Brooklyn SciFi Film Festival 2025, Amsterdam Independent Film Festival & Ghent International Film Week.

Set in the future shortly after singularity has happened, this is a story of a woman's decision in a world where the 'scenario' has come to present optimal solutions.

Life is made up of choices. From the smallest, everyday decisions to the larger, defining ones, we shape our lives through what we choose. And yet, in the moment, we can never truly know if what we chose was the right path. Meaning only reveals itself later, with time. But what if the answer had already been decided? scenario is a film that contemplates that question — and the quiet space between choice and inevitability. — Kazunori Miura

Documentary filmmakers. 13 festivals. Nominated Best Short Documentary — Lift-Off Global Network.

A celebration of the beautiful absurdity of tall bikes — and what happens when strange, joyful things roll through ordinary streets.

Luca is a British director and cinematographer with a focus on documentary. The Doula won Best Short Documentary at the Lift-Off Season Awards and Best Documentary at Soho Independent Film Festival.

An atmospheric portrait of Jo Piercey, a birth doula, mother and rebel, who is fighting to change the way we think about birth.

This film is deeply personal to me, as it's a film I made with my mother. My Mum's passion is her work as a 'doula': a modern birth partner. As the traditional family unit is diluted in the digital age, we are finding ourselves less educated and more fearful about giving birth, giving rise to huge numbers of high intervention birth and a rising tide of trauma. Jo has a different message about how we can and should be doing things. — Luca Piercey