Lovers Rock SMALL AXE

The BFI London Film Festival has added Steve McQueen’s Lovers Rock to the programme which will run from October 7-18).

It forms part of McQueen’s Small Axe anthology series; the festival opens with Mangrove, another film in the series. 

Two screenings of Lover’s Rock will play at the BFI Southbank in London as part of the Love strand on the festival’s closing day, Sunday October 18. 

The film tells the fictional story of young love and music at a house party in 1980. It stars newcomer Amarah-Jae St Aubyn opposite Blue Story’s Micheal Ward, with Shaniqua Okwok, Kedar Williams-Stirling, Ellis George, Alexander James-Blake, Kadeem Ramsay, Francis Lovehall, and Daniel Francis-Swaby round out the cast.

The film was co-written by McQueen and Courttia Newland.

Small Axe comprises five original films created by McQueen for BBC One, telling different stories involving London’s West Indian community from the late 1960s to mid-1980s.

“I hope this film will bring back memories of parties past and look to the future of parties to come,” said McQueen.

The 64th LFF is screening 58 features to audiences across the UK in a combination of physical screenings and online films.