About LIFFF

Mission Statement

The London International Fantastic Film Festival (LIFFF) is dedicated to celebrating the extraordinary, championing the imaginative, and showcasing the most innovative and captivating films from around the globe. Our mission is to provide a vibrant platform for visionary filmmakers to present their work, fostering a community where creativity knows no bounds. By embracing genres that push the limits of storytelling, including science fiction, fantasy, horror, experimental and the surreal, LIFFF aims to ignite the imagination of audiences and inspire a deeper appreciation for the art of cinema. Through screenings, awards, workshops and discussions, we strive to promote cultural exchange, encourage artistic dialogue, and support the growth of the global film industry. The LIFFF is where the future of cinema begins – a place for discovering groundbreaking narratives, connecting with fellow cinephiles, and celebrating the magic of film in the heart of London.

About the Team

Festival Director Kanako Fujita is a London-based Japanese film producer, and founder of Felis Pictures Ltd. Her films have won international awards, including “Push-Button Syndrome”, which received the Asian Discovery Award at the Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival. She also works as an international sales agent and as a critic, with bylines at Japan Forward, EasternKicks, Cineuropa, and Zippyframes

Features Programmer Blake Simons is a journalist and film programmer with a taste for the self-reflexive, sentimental, and surreal. They’ve written for BFI, Metrograph, The Film Stage, ScreenAnarchy and more about queer and Japanese cinema, and they enjoy speaking with filmmakers about what makes them and their films tick.

Shorts Programmers 1999 are a dynamic film collective founded by Zhuoling Shi, Meixuan Yi, and Bingxin Zhang, three graduate students with backgrounds in Film Studies, Media, and Communication. Passionate about bridging cultural landscapes, they’re dedicated to bringing innovative film, theatre, and art projects to China and the UK. With a focus on storytelling that transcends borders, they collaborate with artists, directors, and stakeholders on compelling narratives that reflect diverse perspectives, aiming to foster a deeper cultural exchange between East and West.

Our Juries

Features Competition Jury

Anton Bitel
Joshua Trigg
Amber T
Olivia Popp
Simon Ramshaw
  • Anton Bitel: Anton Bitel is a freelance film critic specialising in genre cinema. He programmes for the London Korean Film Festival. His own website is ProjectedFigures.com.

  • Joshua Trigg: Joshua Trigg is a British film director and screenwriter best known for his debut feature, ‘Satu – Year of the Rabbit’ (2024). The film has earned critical acclaim, receiving a nomination for the prestigious BIFA Raindance Maverick Award, a spot on the BIFA/Raindance Directorial/Aesthetica Debut longlist, and winning the Golden Shika Award (Grand Prix) at Naomi Kawase’s Nara International Film Festival. In addition to his narrative work, Trigg has an impressive commercial portfolio, having collaborated with notable personalities such as Paul Smith, Chiara Ferragni, Dannii Minogue, and Pierce Brosnan. His creative vision extends into photography, where he has directed projects for prominent clients like The Rolling Stones, Stella McCartney, and Singapore Airlines, among others.

  • Amber T: Amber T is News Editor and staff writer for FANGORIA, as well as writing for physical media releases from Arrow Video, Second Sight Films, 88 Films, Error 4444 and Terror Vision. She specialises in Japanese horror cinema and regularly works with Leeds International Film Festival, hosting their Night of the Dead all night horror marathon.

  • Simon Ramshaw: Simon Ramshaw is a Newcastle-based film critic with a specialism in genre cinema, having written for Asian Movie Pulse and The Geek Show for the past two years. This is his fourth time on a jury panel, after stints in the 28 Times Cinema Jury in Venice in 2015, the Brussels International Film Festival Youth Jury in 2019, and the Five Flavours People’s Jury in Warsaw in 2022.

  • Olivia Popp: Olivia Popp is a film writer, critic, programmer, and longtime genre cinema fan based in Berlin. Her writing can primarily be found in the European trade publication Cineuropa alongside bylines in MUBI Notebook, Screen Slate, Crooked Marquee, Zippy Frames, and others. She also supports the editorial team of International Film Festival Rotterdam and is a programmer for One World Slovakia Documentary Film Festival. 

Shorts Competition Jury

Emily Jisoo Bowles
Jane Lo
Mykolas Vosylius
  • Emily Jisoo Bowles: Emily Jisoo Bowles is a British-Korean writer, translator, and film programmer based in London. They work with Queer East Festival to curate short film programs, and currently run a community cinema club called Jjambbong film, which is centred around participatory spectatorship and fansubbing lesser-seen Asian films. They also write about cinema and were a Young Critics Workshop participant at the 2024 International Film Fest Gent.

  • Jane Lo: Jane Lo is a sound designer for Film and TV based in London. After graduating from University of Westminster with first class honours in Film, she pursued freelance work in post-production sound, from working on short films and commercials, to recording voiceovers and mixing documentaries. She is currently a sound effects editor working across high end TV dramas for broadcasters and streamers such as Sky, Apple, and Netflix. Her TV credits include Black Mirror (2023) and One Day (2024), and her feature film credits include DASHCAM (2021) and The Sound of 007 (2022). In 2024, she was nominated for an MPSE award for her work on Black Mirror’s Beyond The Sea.

  • Mykolas Vosylius: Mykolas Vosylius is a Lithuanian emerging producer, whose previously produced short film “Naiku” won a Grand Prix award in the Yubari International Fantastic Film Festival. He is currently working in Film and TV productions in Scotland.