ANZ FILM FESTIVAL
FRIDAY 30 January - SUNDAY 1 FEBRUARY
Finsbury Park Picturehouse
Unit 1, Cinema LS, 17 City N Pl, Finsbury Park, London N4 3FU
Proudly presented by the London Australian Film Society & FANZA
A carefully curated Australian and New Zealand film selection to mark Australia Day & Waitangi Day
FRIDAY 30 JANUARY 2026
2025 / Australia / Documentary
93 mins + short film
Age Guidance: 15+ - pending
Director: Lorin Clarke
Cast: John Clarke, Sam Neill, Stephen Fry, David Wenham, Ben Elton, Jana Went, Wendy Harmer
This year’s festival opens with NOT ONLY FRED DAGG BUT ALSO JOHN CLARKE, a warm-hearted and hilarious documentary tracing Clarke’s life and career from the gumbooted adventures of Kiwi farming icon Fredd Dagg, to his legendary partnership with Brian Dawe, whose pointed, deadpan satire took aim at all corners of the Australian political landscape.
ANZ SNACK & GIFT SHOP
During the whole festival Australian and New Zealand snacks and sweets will be on sale in the main foyer
you don't even need a ticket to get your fix!
Pineapple Lumps, Burger Rings, Cherry Ripes, BBQ Shapes, tea towels, kiwi & koala jewellery and loads more goodies
SATURDAY 31 JANUARY 2026
A wonderful film for the whole family
UK premiere
2025 / Australia / Family Comedy
107 mins + short film
Rating: BBFC: PG
Director: Kate Woods
Cast: Ryan Corr, Lily Whiteley, Deborah Mailman, Rachel House
A Saturday afternoon treat for the entire family, KANGAROO is a heart-warming family comedy about ex-TV personality, and a young Indigenous girl who team up to rescue and rehabilitate orphaned joeys.
Inspired by the story of Chris ‘Brolga’ Barns - founder of The Kangaroo Sanctuary and star of BBC nature series Kangaroo Dundee - and from the studio that brought us Paddington
Finsbury Park Picturehouse
A mining disaster that the government tried to bury
UK premiere
2025 / New Zealand / Drama
131 mins + intro
Rating: BBFC: 15+
Director: Robert Sarkies
Cast: Melanie Lynskey, Robyn Malcolm, Erroll Shand
A mesmerising drama about human perseverance, based on the real story of New Zealand’s Pike River Mine disaster.
Fellow film-maker Gaylene Preston calls it a perfect film. Critics love the cinematography.
Finsbury Park Picturehouse
Daisy Ridley in Tasmania fighting zombies - what's not to like?
UK premiere
2025 / Australia / Horror-Thriller
94 mins + intro
Rating: BBFC: 15
Director: Zak Hilditch
Cast: Daisy Ridley, Brenton Thwaites, Mark Coles Smith
A very special preview (and London premiere!) of Zak Hilditch’s dystopian zombie thriller, WE BURY THE DEAD.
Star Wars alum Daisy Ridley stars as a woman desperately searching for her husband in the aftermath of a catastrophic military experiment in Tasmania.
Screened ahead of its digital release from Signature Entertainment, this will be your only chance to catch it on the big screen in London!
SUNDAY 1 FEBRUARY 2026
Finsbury Park Picturehouse
Showcasing some of the UK's best antipodean talent
UK premiere
2020-2025 / Australia-New Zealand-UK
50 mins + Q&A
Age Guidance: 15+
Director: various
Cast: various
Following last year’s showcase of documentaries by UK-based Antipodean filmmakers, we are proud to present another programme of Australian and New Zealand shorts from creatives based in the UK and Europe, many of whom will join us for a post-screening Q&A.
ANZ FILM INDUSTRY NETWORKING DRINKS
Do you work in film and televsion in the UK and looking to network with other ANZ ex-pats or UK industry folk?
The London Australian Film Society and FANZA are holding some networking drinks between screenings at the ANZ Film Festival.
4pm - 5pm Sunday 1 February 2026 - Finsbury Park Picturehouse members room
Bookings are essential - click here to register your interest & we look forward to seeing you on the day
A visually rich, Māori road movie with dream-like qualities
UK premiere
2025 / New Zealand / Drama
90 mins / Drama / Age Guidance: 15+
Director: Kath Akuhata-Brown
Cast: Hinetu Dell, Darneen Christian, Te Kohe Tuhaka
A Maori elder and a troubled youth team up for a meditative, spiritually-driven film where silences and visual storytelling honour te ao Māori (Māori worldview).
This debut film by Kath Akuhata-Brown is non-linear and looks like several million bucks.
Coming of age in post-punk 1970s Christchurch
UK premiere
2024 / New Zealand / Comedy-Drama
98 mins / Age Guidance: 15+
Director: Jonathan Ogilvie
Cast: Ed Oxenbould, Trendall Pulini, Roxie Mohebbi
A heartfelt, messy, nostalgia trip through the vibrant post-punk music scene in Ōtautahi Christchurch in the 1970s and 80s.
We meet Angus (Ed Oxenbould) at an age where a haircut can change everything.
A hymn to pre-digital analog pace which spits in the face of cultural cringe.
RAFFLE PRIZES TO BE WON
Before each screening we will be running raffles with bottles of Australian and New Zealand wine, books and snacks to be won.
Come early to get your tickets & we wish you the best of luck!
