The BFI London Film Festival has announced the full programme for LFF Expanded, its showcase of immersive art, extended reality and video gaming, returning for the Festival’s 70th edition from 7–18 October 2026. Now in its sixth year, the strand continues to highlight “powerful new ways of telling stories on screen” .
This year’s line-up features nine projects spanning virtual reality, AI‑driven environments and interactive gaming, presented across multiple venues including St Martin‑in‑the‑Fields, BFI IMAX and BFI Southbank.
Immersive Special Presentation: WATER BODY
Running from 3–18 October, WATER BODY is a new site‑specific installation by Marshmallow Laser Feast, developed with author Robert Macfarlane and collaborators James Bulley and Ludmilla Balkis. The work explores water as “the connective tissue of life on our planet” and uses global Earth systems datasets to trace its movement through landscapes, oceans and living beings .
RED: THE OCEAN AROUND YOU
Making its installation premiere at BFI IMAX, RED: THE OCEAN AROUND YOU is a free immersive environment created by CROSSLUCID and writer Orion Facey. Guided by an AI oracle, the experience evolves through visitor interaction, posing the question: “What happens when AI starts asking the questions?” .
VR Lounge at BFI Southbank
Two works addressing rising waters and climate impact will be presented in the VR Lounge:
- SOLWATA — A mixed‑reality documentary narrated by Mark Ruffalo, immersing audiences in the saltwater communities of the Solomon Islands, where king tides and storms threaten daily life. The work “urgently presents a vanishing way of life” through 360° video, spatial sound and tactile objects .
- THE WORLD CAME FLOODING IN — An XR installation created with flood‑affected communities in Australia, reconstructing homes lost to flooding using cardboard, photogrammetry and sound. The piece offers “a lyrical passage through spaces of memory shaped by climate disaster” .
Games Lounge
The Games Lounge returns to BFI IMAX with five international titles:
- …AND ROGER — An interactive visual novel exploring memory, perception and dementia.
- THE DAY I BECAME A BIRD — A handcrafted adventure following a young boy’s journey of self‑expression.
- LOFSÖNG — A puzzle adventure set in vast brutalist landscapes, inviting players to uncover a hidden language.
- LOVE ETERNAL — A precision platformer where shifting gravity and memory‑based obstacles shape the narrative.
- MIXTAPE — A coming‑of‑age adventure following three friends on their last night of school, set to “the soundtrack of a generation” .
Festival Information
The 70th BFI London Film Festival runs from 7–18 October 2026, with tickets on general sale from 17 September. The Festival remains the UK’s leading celebration of screen culture, offering audiences access to international filmmaking, industry events and creative talent.
