Four years on and EFF continues to mature and grow. We’re proud to say 2026 marked the beginning of a search for our own visual identity and taking the growth of the festival seriously.
Guest Speakers
For this years festival we were joined by sound engineer, arts consultant, and award winning musician Lewis Chadwick. Additionally we had the crew of ‘The Cycling Adventures of Lettice Bly’ joining us to share their experience and expertise.
Out of Competition
Life in Motion
This year also featured a micro-short film, performed and directed by our very own Katya Jacobs.
EFF 26 Awards
This year brought a more purposeful approach to voting for films, with a 50/50 split between the audience and our own panel of judges. This brought the pleasant surprise of us having a tied audience award and an honorary presented to a certain film that consistently received many votes in many categories but never quite won.
Final Act
After witnessing the death of a famous actress, Mateus Santos, a journalism intern, has the unique chance to investigate the case alongside his idol, the renowned journalist Miriam Matos. Together, they interrogate three suspects in pursuit of the truth behind the killer’s motive.
Babi Astolfi, Lisa Soares
Pigeonman
A director plans to make a viral video in order to get famous. Alongside his assistant, Pepsi, the two attempt to film a local man who thinks he can control birds. Pigeonman doesn’t think he can control birds. He knows it. As time progresses and the directors nasty true intentions show, Pepsi begins to have a change of heart, eventually joining Pigeonman in his strange hobby.
Connor Pearce
Why We Cry
Grief and fear hang heavy in Nicky’s quiet home, where sympathy cards and fading flowers remind her of the heartbreaking reality her husband, the man who has been by her side through it all, is dead.
Alone, aching and unsure of the future, she moves through her days numb to the passing of time – until a chance encounter with a neighbour’s dog, Monty.
Nadine Coulson
The Cycling Adventures of Lettice Bly
In 1890s Britain, women cycling shocks the nation. Lettice Bly sets forth, armed with her new bicycle and scandalous bloomers. But cycling isn’t as easy as she thought, and passerby science geek Millicent Frimley-Pratt aims to help her soar with the power of physics.
Nicole Sarah Fry
Trading Cards
An enigmatic man journeys back in time to find his younger self, seemingly to revisit the nostalgia of trading cards. An exploration of identity, mental health and the erosion of childhood innocence, Trading Cards is a dark fantasy animated film about the weight of living with Obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Radheya Jang
The Shop
Our market stand has never been so colourful! This year our raffle was bigger than ever and we sold our first pieces of merch, these wonderful stickers!
Reviews
Fantastic, supportive atmosphere with a diverse selection of films!
Have a read through our reviews! All reviews are left anonymously within a week of the festival ending.
Really nice short film festival that feels so homey and like a little community of film makers/lovers.
Loved how inclusive, accessible and chill it was.
Great vibes, great people, great films.
A fantastic short film festival and a great space for filmmakers to network and meet.
An engaging, community driven, cinematic experience. Providing a lovely atmosphere to celebrate establishing filmmakers and creators.
Very well organised, professional and supportive environment – excellent film selection.