LONDON, UK – 28 May 2025 — The 33rd Raindance Film Festival, one of the UK’s most influential indie film events, has revealed the official jury award nominees ahead of its much-anticipated return from 18 to 27 June at Vue Piccadilly, London.
Celebrating cinematic excellence from around the world, Raindance will honour feature and short films across 10 feature categories, including Best International Feature, Best UK Feature, Best Documentary, Best Debut Director, and the coveted Spirit of Raindance Award. As an Oscar®-qualifying festival, Raindance continues to shine a spotlight on emerging voices and daring storytelling.
Among the Best International Feature nominees are Abducted Files (Brazil), a UFO conspiracy mockumentary; Love Song from Hiroshima (Japan), a poetic alien odyssey; and No Beast. So Fierce. (Poland/France/Germany), Burhan Qurbani’s bold adaptation of Richard III set in Berlin’s criminal underworld.
In the Best Documentary Feature category, standout contenders include Children in the Fire (Ukraine), spotlighting the harrowing experiences of war-affected Ukrainian children; Emma: One Last Dance (UK), a behind-the-scenes look at the final season of legendary football manager Emma Hayes; and The Social Trap: 5 Women vs The Big 5 (France), a powerful investigation into the harms of big tech on youth mental health.
The Discovery Award for Best Debut Feature showcases groundbreaking first-time filmmakers. Nominees include Granny Must Die (Taiwan), a wild intergenerational dark comedy; God Teeth (Costa Rica), created entirely from found footage; and Snatchers (Australia), a gory, irreverent horror-comedy with a twist.
British cinema shines with a strong showing in the Best UK Feature category. Notable nominees include Breakwater, a touching intergenerational romance; Dirty Boy, a psychological thriller set in a cult; and Heavyweight, a hard-hitting boxing drama starring Nicholas Pinnock and Jason Isaacs.
Acting nominees in debut features and UK films include Amata Masmalai (Dream!), Mehazabien Chowdhury (Saba), Graham McTavish (Dirty Boy), and Bella Dayne (Row), among others.
The Best Director of a UK Feature category includes both rising and established talents such as Doug Rao (Dirty Boy), Mickey Angelov (Dali), and Tristan Loraine (Our Journey with Lobular Breast Cancer). Meanwhile, the Best UK Cinematography nominees celebrate technical excellence from films like The Lonely Musketeer, Poised, and Row.
Winners will be announced at the Jury Awards Ceremony on Friday 27 June, closing out the festival’s 10-day run. The full list of nominees is available at raindance.org/festival/nominees-2025, and press accreditations are currently open.
About Raindance:
Founded in 1992, the Raindance Film Festival is the UK’s largest independent film festival and has served as a launchpad for directors like Christopher Nolan, Guy Ritchie, and Edgar Wright. With its focus on bold, innovative storytelling, Raindance continues to champion emerging talent and original voices in cinema.
For further information and interviews, please contact the Raindance Press Office or visit www.raindance.org/festival.