Projects in genres: Woman Director

Synopsis

Filmed over seven years in England and the United States, Dance of Identity is an intimate, powerful portrait of love, resilience, and family against the backdrop of a global culture war. The documentary follows Sophie, a British trans woman and amateur ballet dancer, and her partner Sandi, as they build a life together. From Sophie’s triumphant public ballet performances to the couple’s fairytale wedding and the high-stakes birth of their child, their personal joys constantly clash with a shifting political landscape. As politicians and media headlines weaponise trans existence, the couple faces rising hostility, social media attacks, and legal threats to Sophie’s fundamental rights. Yet, through nine years of waiting for gender-affirming healthcare and navigating bureaucratic hurdles, theirs is a story of defiant hope. Dance of Identity reveals the profound impact of political rhetoric on the private sanctuary of a family, ultimately celebrating the triumph of love over systemic adversity.

Synopsis

Anna is a single mother balancing work with raising her nine-year-old daughter, Thea, a bright, sensitive child experiencing severe school- related distress and stuck on a three-year waiting list for an autism assessment. At home, Thea is creative, affectionate and deeply vulnerable. At school, her psychological distress is mistaken for truancy, fabrication or bad parenting. As Anna fights for support, she faces mounting scrutiny from the school and local authority. She is blamed for Thea’s behaviour, instructed to attend parenting courses and ultimately served financial fines for repeated “unauthorised absence”. Her daughter’s needs remain unrecognised, the morning routine is reduced to a battle of increasing violence, and Anna is pushed to breaking point. Threatened with criminal prosecution, on the brink of losing her job and now in a state of complete exhaustion, Anna attempts a final school drop- off. Thea, in a state of sensory overwhelm, takes desperate measures to avoid a public meltdown which ends in unspeakable tragedy. Yet, the calls from the school continue: a relentless reminder that, to the system, Anna's young daughter remains little more than another “unauthorised absence”.

Synopsis

Loyal butler Jonathan is sent to rescue the failing Blueberry Inn, unaware his blinkered Lord plots to leave it to him and three chaotic staff as a social experiment. When the Lord dies suddenly, Jonathan discovers he's a co-owner of the Inn and has just one month to save it. Battling sabotage from furious heirs, the mismatched team (and a pig!) rally their communities, securing the Inn's future against all odds.

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As Mike is leaving his London life behind, an old friend reappears to say goodbye. Official Selection BFI London Film Festival 2026

Synopsis

AT NIGHT follows six women in Paris, as they traverse the neon soaked anxiety of the city after dark. A filmmaker struggles to understand the film she is making. A black single mother revolts against oppression. A former sex worker reflects on her past. A poet gives up trying for a child. Taking place over the course of a single night and inspired by the writings of cult literary figure Alice Notley, as well as June Jordan, Kathy Acker and Bernadette Mayer, Beatrice Gibson's debut feature film intertwines dream, fiction and reality, each liquefying one into the other. Official Selection Locarno Film Festival 2026 - World Premiere

Synopsis

Bel was a Kenyan-Scottish woman who dreamt of singing to the whole world. A gifted musician, singer, and writer, she performed under the stage name Heir of the Cursed and in 2021 was on the absolute cusp of wider fame. But just as the world was finally about to discover her name, Bel took her own life, leaving behind poignant video diaries and a mobile phone full of amazing, unreleased songs. She was a brilliant artist fighting to be heard, yet she remains largely unknown today. Her untimely death and a small but beautiful body of work form her legacy now. Much like the legendary musician Nick Drake who also died young, the power and mystery of Bel’s music lies within the heavy pathos of her life's sudden end. Whatever deep internal struggles led to her tragic death were also at the very heart of what powered her mesmerising art. This documentary tells the story of an artist on the edge of stardom, and her sister Leah’s fierce determination to fulfil Bel's dream: releasing her final record and sharing her with the world. Official Selection Edinburgh International Film Festival 2026 - Closing Night Film - World premiere

Synopsis

A bored woman goes to extreme lengths to feel brand new. Official Selection BFI London Film Festival 2026

Synopsis

Burdened by traditions and her mother’s silence, a girl tries to sift through the desert sand to find her identity card in order to enroll in the Beijing Opera academy.

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A woman's New Year's Eve plans are thrown off course in a taut and tense thriller.

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Krish is throwing the perfect birthday party for his girlfriend, Tanya. But while preparations begin and friends arrive, something is about to go terribly wrong.

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Angela is living a life devoted to everyone but herself. Caught between revolving identities, she has stepped into roles that generations of women before her have occupied. Disconnected from her husband, Malcolm, and struggling to articulate her dissatisfaction, she leaves home the night before her family is set to attend a wedding, and finds herself confronted by the silence that has stretched between them.

Synopsis

Mary, a young mixed-race librarian, becomes convinced that a neighbour’s St George’s Cross is connected to her growing anxiety and disrupted sleep. As her unease intensifies, she struggles to distinguish reality from perception and must find the courage to speak up before she begins to unravel.