Next Wave: Independent Film Night
Be part of a live cinema event elevating independent filmmaking!
Next Wave is a live cinema event that focuses on original storytelling and the craft of filmmaking. Join us for a specially curated programme of four short films by emerging filmmakers that brings together a range of genres and styles. Some lean towards humour, others towards tension, but all reflect thoughtful visual choices of original creative minds, while sharing an independent spirit.
This is not just a standard screening, but an in-person cinema experience. After the films, the filmmakers will take part in a live, interview-style Q&A, speaking about their processes, influences, and the making of their work, with time for audience questions. It’s an opportunity to hear directly from the artists and gain a closer look at the ideas and decisions behind their films.
Following the discussion, guests are invited to stay for a relaxed post-show social, offering space to connect with filmmakers, creatives, and fellow audience members in an informal and welcoming setting.
Whether you’re an aspiring creative, a regular filmgoer, or simply a looking for different kind of cinema experience, Next Wave promises an engaging, insightful, and community-driven night at the movies!
This Month's Short Fiction Edition
OVARY-ACTING
This animated short follows Eva, a thirty-something woman cornered by baby talk at her sister’s shower, who suddenly finds her private anxieties made horrifyingly (and hilariously) real. When an unexpected and surreal encounter forces her to confront her own biology face-to-face, Eva is thrust into a chaotic reckoning with motherhood, identity, and the pressure to conform. Darkly comedic and wildly imaginative, the film explores what it really means to choose your own path.
BAFTA Longlist (2026), Tribeca Festival – Nominee, Clermont-Ferrand – Official Selection
Runtime: 12 minutes
Genre: Animation
Director: Ida Melum
Editor: Lesley Posso - attending
Producer: Michelle Brøndum - attending
Writer: Laura Jayne Tunbridge - attending
NIGHTS
Friday night in A&E and senior doctor Gin, played by Susan Wokoma (Enola Holmes, Chewing Gum), is fighting a losing battle. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) have just announced a surprise inspection and Gina has less than an hour to get the waiting time under four hours. Gina pushes through her exhaustion but as the minutes tick by and the inspection grows closer, she finds herself pushed to her absolute limit and on the brink of losing control.
BFI London Film Festival – Premiere (2023)
Runtime: 12 minutes
Genre: Thriller
Director: Laura Jayne Tunbridge - attending
Writer: Laura Jayne Tunbridge - attending
Editor: Lesley Posso - attending
OTHER HALF
This uniquely stylised animation follows Ren, an Individual Being navigating a world built for Merged Couples, where partnership is seen as the only path to wholeness. Determined to find their missing piece, Ren enters a surreal labyrinth of potential suitors, reshaping themself again and again in pursuit of connection. But as the lines between love and self-erasure begin to blur, Ren is forced to question what it truly means to be complete.
Cannes Film Festival – La Cinéfondation Competition (2021)
Time: 13 minutes
Genre: Animation
Director: Lina Kalcheva
Writer: Laura Jayne Tunbridge - attending
REQUIEM
Requiem is a powerful coming-of-age story set in 1605 against the backdrop of the witch trials. The film follows Evelyn, played by Bella Ramsey (The Last of Us, Game of Thrones), as she becomes locked in a dangerous game of cat and mouse with her father, the formidable Minister Gilbert, in order to be with Mary, the woman she loves. When a misuse of authority leads to dire consequences, Evelyn’s grief transforms into defiance, leading her to rally the women of the village in a bold act of rebellion, a story of love, revenge, and the consequences of underestimating a woman’s power.
Royal Television Society Award Winner, Broadcast on Channel 4
Runtime: 23 minutes
Genre: Drama
Director: Em J. Gilbertson
Producer: Michelle Brøndum - attending
Writer: Laura Jayne Tunbridge - attending
Q&A Film Creator Guests
Michelle Brøndum (Producer)
Michelle Brøndum is a London-based producer and founder of Jante Films whose work includes the Cannes-nominated animation Other Half and the RTS Award-winning short Requiem. Her recent productions include BAFTA listed Ovary-Acting, nominated at Tribeca and Annecy, and the feature documentary The Other Fellow.
Laura Jayne Tunbridge (Writer & Director)
Laura Jayne Tunbridge is a BAFTA-nominated writer and director whose work includes Other Half (La Cinéfondation, Cannes 2021), RTS Award-winning Requiem, and BAFTA-nominated Night of the Living Dread. Her recent film Nights premiered at the BFI London Film Festival, and her animation Ovary-Acting was longlisted for a BAFTA and nominated for an Annie Award.
Lesley Posso (Editor)
Lesley Posso is an award-winning film editor whose work spans fiction, documentary and animation, with recognition from the BAFTAs, BIFAs and RTS. A graduate of the National Film and Television School, she won the RTS Craft Editing Award and the Avid Award for Excellence in Editing, and her recent film Ovary-Acting premiered at Tribeca Festival.