LSFF - Promotional Video Clip

My connection with the London Short Film Festival (LSFF) dates back to 2009 when festival director Philip Ilson invited me to bring my projectors to the ICA. He had seen my liquid light projections during a performance with The Oscillation the year before and thought they would create a captivating backdrop for guests as they arrived and mingled before the night’s events. That first collaboration sparked a long-standing relationship with the festival, and over the years, I’ve been invited back multiple times to project at various audiovisual events across London.

Beyond my live projection work, LSFF has also supported my filmmaking journey, screening several of my short films and music videos in its experimental film programs. In 2017, with our creative partnership well established, Philip reached out again—this time to commission me to create the festival’s 2018 teaser trailer.

Read on to discover more about the trailer’s development and its unforgettable screening on the world-famous Piccadilly Lights Big Screen in 2023.

Phase 1 - Production

LSFF 2018 Teaser Trailer – A Super 8mm Ode to London’s Night Glow

Each year, the London Short Film Festival (LSFF) commissions an independent filmmaker to craft a unique teaser trailer, setting the tone for the festival. For the 2018 edition, I was honoured to take on the challenge, bringing my signature Super 8mm aesthetic to the project.

With the budget dedicated entirely to film cartridges, I set out into London’s streets after dark, capturing the city’s electric energy in a playful and experimental fashion. The result is a vivid, abstracted journey through London by night—a celebration of its glowing lights, shifting shapes, and architectural contours, all recorded in rich, textured celluloid.

The film embraces the imperfections and beauty of analog filmmaking: flickers, light flares, colour bleeds, and multiple exposures combine to create a dynamic and immersive experience. Macro close-ups meet sweeping cityscapes, blending the micro and the macro, the intimate and the grand. People appear too, but always in an abstracted form—silhouettes, reflections, and fleeting impressions.

To complete the experience, Demian Castellanos of The Oscillation provided a driving, electrifying soundtrack. His track, Visitation Exit, pulses beneath the imagery, amplifying the energy and movement of the piece.

Screened in the lead-up to and throughout LSFF 2018, this dazzling strip of film was designed to entice festival-goers and filmmakers alike—a visual and sonic invitation into the world of bold, experimental cinema.

frame from an experimental film depicting flashing neon signs and city lights

Phase 2 - Screening

The London Short Film Festival Teaser – Piccadilly Big Screen Screening

In 2018, I had the honour of creating the official teaser trailer for the London Short Film Festival (LSFF)—a fast-paced, neon-infused Super 8mm short inspired by the energy and glow of London’s nightlife. Fast forward to 2023, and that very film found itself in the most fitting of locations: the iconic Piccadilly Circus Big Screen.

Piccadilly Circus has long been synonymous with dazzling lights and animated advertising displays, and my film—built around London’s flashing neon, glowing billboards, and vibrant city motion—felt right at home on this legendary screen. It was as if the piece had come full circle, returning to the very source of its inspiration.

As a child, I was captivated by the neon lights of Piccadilly, their pulsing colours leaving an indelible mark on my imagination and shaping my visual language. Seeing my own work flickering high above the city streets in that same space was nothing short of surreal. For a brief moment, my film became a site-specific installation, blending seamlessly into London’s luminous urban canvas.

The screening was part of LSFF’s special showcase on the Piccadilly Lights, featuring festival trailers from past years alongside the 2023 edition by filmmaker Andrew Kötting. Watching my work light up one of Europe’s largest screens was an unforgettable experience—one of those rare moments where a personal creative journey collides with the fabric of the city itself.

It’s funny to think that this very project also served as a submission for my MA in Moving Image and Sound at Norwich University of the Arts. From a university assignment to one of the biggest screens in the world—what a journey!