The Screen Podcast

On this week’s episode of The Screen Podcast, the team behind new UK indie Sunny Dancer reveal how they made the tricky jump to a second feature and discuss the film’s pre-sales, budget manoeuvres and festival launch. Filmmaker and producer George Jaques, a 2022 Screen Star Of Tomorrow, and producer Ken Petrie talk to Screen’s senior UK and international reporter Ben Dalton about making their new feature Sunny Dancer, which is set at a summer camp for teenage cancer survivors. The film made a significant number of pre-sales at Cannes 2024 via Embankment.Sunny Dancer is Jaques’ second feature following his 2023 debut Black Dog, a DIY indie made on a budget of £500,000. While Sunny Dancer was a big step up, Jaques discussed how he navigated budget limitations. Read Screen's review of the film here: https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/sunny-dancer-review-bella-ramsey-heads-confident-and-upbeat-uk-teen-drama/5213822.article The Screen Podcast is produced by Ellie Calnan, with Wendy Mitchell serving as editorial director. New episodes every Thursday.

On this week’s episode of The Screen Podcast, the team delves into the appointment of Isabel Davis as the new head of the BFI Filmmaking Funds and what it means for the future of the UK independent film sector.First, Screen’s editor Matt Mueller checks in with senior UK and Ireland reporter Mona Tabbara, who spoke to the industry this week about the appointment.Mueller is then joined by producer Nicky Bentham of Neon Films, who is also co-chair of Pact’s Film Producers’ Group, to discuss what potential changes Davis could bring in. Finally, Wendy Mitchell speaks to producer and filmmaker Joy Gharoro-Akpojotor, who shares her thoughts on Davis’s international impact.The Screen Podcast is produced by Ellie Calnan, with Wendy Mitchell serving as editorial director. New episodes every Thursday.Read more on this story here: https://tinyurl.com/9vmx25hh

On this week’s episode of The Screen Podcast, the team delves into the lineup for the 2026 Venice Film Festival, which was announced earlier today. Host Wendy Mitchell is joined by Screen’s editor Matt Mueller and senior international critic Wendy Ide to discuss what themes emerged from this year’s programme, including the absence of Hollywood studios once again, the lengthy documentary section and the inclusion of just one woman in competition. Read more here: https://www.screendaily.com/news/venice-film-festival-reveals-2026-lineup/5218820.article

On this week’s episode of The Screen Podcast, we hear about why the early summer film festivals of Transilvania, Munich, Galway and Karlovy Vary are must-attend, fun and lively events for savvy international execs.First host Wendy Mitchell talks to senior UK and Ireland reporter Mona Tabbara about her time at the Transilvania and the Galway Film Fleadh. Mitchell is then joined by senior UK and international reporter Ben Dalton to get the lowdown on the Karlovy Vary film festival and share her own thoughts on the Munich International Film Festival, including why she declined to take part in the (in)famous rafting activity. The Screen Podcast is produced by Ellie Calnan, with Wendy Mitchell serving as editorial director. New episodes every Thursday.Read more on https://www.screendaily.com

Razor Film co-founder Roman Paul and Komplizen Film co-founder Janine Jackowski explain why the German film sector is undergoing a major transition.Host Wendy Mitchell talks to Jackowski and Paul about some of the challenges facing production in Germany at the moment and the advantages of European co-production.Paul co-founded Razor in 2002 with Gerhard Meixner, and their credits include Waltz With Bashir, The Perfect Candidate and Quo Vadis, Aida?.Jackowski founded Komplizen in 1999 alongside Maren Ade, with Jonas Dornbach joining as managing director and producer in 2010. Their output has included all of Ade’s films, plus Pablo Larrain’s Spencer and Marie Kreutzer’s recent Cannes Competition title Gentle Monster.Both companies are part of The Creatives, the alliance of nine international production companies, which is also discussed in the podcast.The Screen Podcast is produced by Ellie Calnan, with Wendy Mitchell serving as editorial director. New episodes every Thursday.Find out more at https://www.screendaily.com

In this week’s episode of The Screen Podcast, the team delves into the talking points from European exhibition convention CineEurope, which took place in Barcelona last week (June 22-25). Host Wendy Mitchell is joined by Screen’s box office and awards editor Charles Gant, who takes us through all the studio presentations at CineEurope, and picks out some of the key titles. He picks out Zach Cregger’s 'Resident Evil' as one of the intriguing projects on show, and explains what was said (or not said) about the Paramount-Warner Bros merger. For more on the stories mentioned this week, go to https://www.screendaily.com/ Read more of Charles' insights into CineEurope below https://www.screendaily.com/features/seven-talking-points-from-cineeurope-2026/5218143.article