OUR STORY
EFN Short Film Festival (Emerging Filmmakers Night) is a BIFA qualifying international festival that showcases, educates and promotes emerging filmmakers.
Through our annual edition in September and special events throughout the year, we showcase the work of emerging filmmakers from all socio-economic backgrounds and age groups to the industry and give them the tools to navigate it intelligently and with confidence.
Every September, in our annual Awards Night, the directors are given the opportunity to present their films, get feedback from a panel of industry experts, interact live with our audience, and win awards and industry-related prizes.
With 1.8K of annual rewards from our sponsors, we pride ourselves to be one of the most affordable festivals in the world for the rewards and the exposure we offer.
OUR ETHOS
EFN aims to demystify the industry to newcomers that often feel excluded by it and help authentic talent to shine. Our team of filmmakers and programmers, has an eye for raw talent and is particularly interested in highlighting unique and authored voices. (We don’t like copycats!)
We are a disability friendly festival with screenings and events accessible to the d/Deaf and HoH community. All our 2022 films were screened with Descriptive Subtitles and the panel discussions were supported by a certified BSL interpreter. Our goal is to maintain this practice in all future festival editions.
Over the last couple of years, we have curated two events that address ableism and accessibility issues. In 2021, we curated the “Disability on Screen” event at Genesis Cinema and on May 11th 2023 we curate “Stories of Access: Shorts Programme and Panel Discussion '' at The Garden Cinema.
History
EFN Short Film Festival was created by Filmmaker Erifili Missiou in response to the lack of opportunities for emerging filmmakers in the industry and to celebrate gems by new directors.
It all started in March 2018 above a pub in Bermondsey as Emerging Filmmakers Night - a monthly short film exhibition with lively Q&As between filmmaker and audience. Hosted by comic Mike Sheer, the atmosphere stayed light without compromising depth. What started as a hobby steadily gained momentum, and soon the combination of exceptional programming, audience interaction, comedian host and industry networking made it a popular night out for cinephiles and the filmmaking community.
After COVID 19 lockdown restrictions in March 2020, the team took EFN online with a live-stream format that kept the collaborative and fun atmosphere of the live nights. The subsequent global viewership and support allowed EFN to break into the mainstream and become a fully fledged festival. Because of its outstanding programming and accessibility features, in 2021, EFN was awarded a BIFA qualification.
EFN has established a reputation in the industry for scouting new talent. Over the last 2 years, we’re proud to have showcased work by award-winning directors, such as Anna Fredrikke Bjerke, Ashley Eakin, Zillah Bowes, Duncan Cowles, Dorothy Allen-Pickard, Ben Mallaby, Dima Hamdan, Katie Herron, Ross Domoney, Janet Mannett, Andy Sowerby, Lara Zeidan, Lauran Cooney, Hannah Hill, Beau Fowler and more.