Rentals
Backed by BFI
Highlighting some of the astonishing and engaging work that has been supported by the UK public, including the National Lottery funding through the BFI, over the last 60 years.
The BFI invests National Lottery funding into developing and supporting filmmakers with diverse, bold and distinctive projects, that have a cultural relevance or progressive ideas and which reflect people from different backgrounds. We support filmmakers who are early in their career, taking risks and offering a fresh take or new perspective.
We support the development of more than 100 feature films each year, and the production of a further 30 including documentaries through our partnership with Doc Society.

CensorCensor
Horror202184 minsDirector: Prano Bailey-Bond
A video nasties film censor becomes absorbed in her work in Prano Bailey-Bond's brilliantly adventurous first feature.
WildfireWildfire
Drama202084 minsDirector: Cathy Brady
Sisterly bonds are pushed to breaking point in this simmering drama set on the Irish border, the debut feature from acclaimed shorts director Cathy Brady.

SweetheartSweetheart
Comedy2021103 minsDirector: Marley Morrison
AJ discovers it’s not so bad being on a family holiday when she meets flirtatious lifeguard Isla in this smart and funny first feature.

SurgeSurge
Drama2019100 minsDirector: Aneil Karia
Ben Whishaw is superb as a man on a bold and reckless journey of self-liberation in this highly strung, stripped-back thriller.

A Brixton TaleA Brixton Tale
Drama202176 minsDirector: Darragh Carey
Affluent YouTuber Leah is drawn to shy youth Benji as the subject for her Brixton documentary, but her desire for edgy footage leads them both down a dangerous path.

A Space in TimeA Space in Time
Documentary202188 minsDirector: Nick Taussig
Candid and intimate portrait of one family’s journey to transcend a fatal muscle wasting disease, Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

Saint MaudSaint Maud
Horror201981 minsDirector: Rose Glass
A mysterious nurse becomes dangerously obsessed with saving the soul of her dying patient in director Rose Glass’ divine debut.

The 8thThe 8th
Documentary202095 minsDirector: Aideen Kane
Impassioned and urgent documentary tracing the dramatic story of Irish women and their fight to overturn one of the most restrictive abortion bans in the world.

Ahead of the CurveAhead of the Curve
Documentary202098 minsDirector: Jen Rainin
Uplifting documentary tracing the power of lesbian visibility from the early ‘90s to the present day through the story of Franco Stevens' best-selling lesbian magazine, Curve.

IWOW: I Walk on WaterIWOW: I Walk on Water
Documentary2020199 minsDirector: Khalik Allah
The monumental new diary film from New York-based director and photographer Khalik Allah.

Truman and Tennessee: An Intimate ConversationTruman and Tennessee: An Intimate Conversation
Documentary202186 minsDirector: Lisa Immordino Vreeland
Creative dual-portrait documentary of Truman Capote and Tennessee Williams, two of the greatest figures in 20th Century American Literature.

UndergodsUndergods
Fantasy202092 minsDirector: Chino Moya
A series of intense and increasingly disturbing allegories about humanity's darker instincts culminates in a grotesque and compelling debut feature from Chino Moya.

Locked In - Breaking the SilenceLocked In - Breaking the Silence
Documentary202075 minsDirector: Xavier Alford
An intimate, personal and surprisingly life-affirming story with a rare illness at its heart.

Make UpMake Up
Drama201986 minsDirector: Claire Oakley
The debut feature from acclaimed short filmmaker Claire Oakley is a riveting psycho-sexual drama in which nothing is quite what it seems.

SummerlandSummerland
Drama2019100 minsDirector: Jessica Swale
Gemma Arterton stars in acclaimed theatre director Jessica Swale’s moving Second World War drama, as a woman rediscovering her ability to love.

The SouvenirThe Souvenir
Drama2018120 minsDirector: Joanna Hogg
Winner of Sundance 2019's Grand Jury Prize, The Souvenir is the compelling, semi-autobiographical drama from acclaimed writer-director Joanna Hogg.

Perfect 10Perfect 10
Drama201984 minsDirector: Eva Riley
An aspiring teen gymnast’s world is turned upside down with the arrival of the half-brother she never knew she had.

Fanny Lye Deliver'dFanny Lye Deliver'd
Drama2019112 minsDirector: Thomas Clay
The wife of a puritanical farmer seems resigned to her lot, until she has her head turned by the arrival of a young couple in Thomas Clay’s provocative period drama.

YardieYardie
Crime2018102 minsDirector: Idris Elba
In his thrilling directorial debut, Idris Elba brings to life Victor Headley’s cult crime novel.

XY ChelseaXY Chelsea
Documentary201894 minsDirector: Tim Travers Hawkins
Telling the historic story of whistleblower Chelsea Manning; the journey of her fight for survival and dignity, and her transition from prisoner to a free woman.

RunRun
Drama201976 minsDirector: Scott Graham
Mark Stanley plays the petrol-head who never left town, in this Bruce Springsteen-inspired tale of thwarted dreamers.

High LifeHigh Life
Science Fiction2018113 minsDirector: Claire Denis
The messiness of sex, the mysteries of birth and the moving spectacle of devoted parenting in the face of impending oblivion create a potent atmosphere in Claire Denis’ English-language debut.

MuscleMuscle
Thriller2019111 minsDirector: Gerard Johnson
A directionless call centre salesman gets more than he bargained for when he joins a local gym, in Gerard Johnson's stunning dissection of masculinity.

ColetteColette
Biopic2017112 minsDirector: Wash Westmoreland
This witty, Belle Époque-era biopic stars Keira Knightley and Dominic West as literary couple Colette and Willy, whose relationship rewrote social and gender rules.

Under the SkinUnder the Skin
Horror2013108 minsDirector: Jonathan Glazer
An alien Scarlett Johansson prowls the streets of Glasgow in Jonathan Glazer’s astonishing, mind-bending mixture of existential sci-fi and inner-city realism.

You Were Never Really HereYou Were Never Really Here
Thriller201790 minsDirector: Lynne Ramsay
Lynne Ramsay journeys with Joaquin Phoenix into the mind of an ex-soldier gun-for-hire whose own demons are as brutal as the actions of his adversaries.

Tell It to the BeesTell It to the Bees
Drama2017108 minsDirector: Annabel Jankel
Anna Paquin and Holliday Grainger star as two very different women who fall in love in this 1950s-set romantic drama.

Lady MacbethLady Macbeth
Period drama201689 minsDirector: William Oldroyd
Florence Pugh shines in this exceptional British debut of a young wife's need for freedom, whatever the cost.

God's Own CountryGod's Own Country
Drama2017105 minsDirector: Francis Lee
A troubled young sheep farmer falls for a hired hand in this stunning debut from Francis Lee.

45 Years45 Years
Drama201495 minsDirector: Andrew Haigh
One of the most acclaimed British features of recent years, starring Charlotte Rampling and Tom Courtenay as a couple rocked by news from the past.
Explore further

Backed by BFI - Features
21st Century British Cinema is in rude health. Internationally acclaimed, with success at festivals and the box office, the BFI is proud to support the breathtaking range of the UK’s filmmaking talent.

Backed by BFI - Shorts
Skill and vision fuel the best short films, as these early experiments from revered directors illustrate.

Backed by BFI - Documentaries
Fresh perspectives on familiar themes give a new relevance, as proven by our choice of the best in modern documentaries.