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I Will Tell International Film Festival announced its return to London cinemas, with additional outdoor and virtual screenings of films from around the world including the UK, US, Canada, Iran, India, Ukraine, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica and Australia. The long running festival expands throughout London with screenings at venues across the city, including Prince Charles Cinema in Leister Square, The Tabernacle in Notting Hill and a special outdoor screening at Portobello Green, Notting Hill as part of Community Day, as well as offering virtual screenings via the Festival’s streaming platform, iwilltell.com/virtual.

The I Will Tell International Film Festival Opening Night Gala will be hosted by BFI Southbank on 7th July where the film CLOCK, a British urban coming of age story directed by Lola Atkins, will premiere. The film is led by an ethnically diverse, and predominately female, cast and crew and will set the for the festival’s 16th annual lineup. which includes inspirational untild stories from around the world.

Justin Johnson, Lead Programmer at BFI Southbank says, “We’re delighted to host the Opening Night of the I Will Tell International Film Festival at BFI Southbank this year and to be supporting director Lola Atkins and the cast and crew of CLOCK. We look forward to welcoming audiences to a Festival that has been working tirelessly to champion underrepresented filmmakers for more than 15 years”

CLOCK director Lola Atkins has stated, “I’m delighted that we have phenomenal platforms like I WILL TELL, which have deliberately chosen to be the voice and legs for those who have often not been included in the conversation.” She adds, “To be a part of the Opening Gala at the esteemed BFI Southbank, where many great works have graced the screens for an impeccable select few is an incredible opportunity.”

Ahead of its 16th edition, I WILL TELL International Film Festival founder, Jenny Lee, is challenging the film industry to better support greater inclusion and equality of ethnically diverse filmmakers within the industry. In the UK, more than 90% of films are distributed by a handful of distributors from a specific demographic with its own bias. “I Will Tell International Film Festival creates a space at the table to help adjust the current imbalance. It follows then that the festival would showcase the work of an exciting black female filmmaker alongside a Ukrainian epic,” says Lee.