Manchester Film Festival to open with “The Penguin Lessons”; packed with world premieres

The 2025 Manchester Film Festival, set to run from 14-23 March, will open with a screening of The Penguin Lessons, directed by Peter Cattaneo and starring Steve Coogan. The film, based on the best-selling memoir, delves into an Englishman’s journey of personal and political awakening in Argentina during a tumultuous period, all sparked by his unlikely bond with a penguin.

This year’s festival promises an impressive lineup, featuring 37 films, including 15 UK premieres and four world premieres, all making their Manchester debut. Among the highlights is the Manchester premiere of the UK’s official Oscar submission Santosh, directed by Sandhya Suri, alongside Good One by India Donaldson, a hit from Sundance and Cannes, and Kyle Hausmann-Stokes’ My Dead Friend Zoe, which won the South by Southwest Audience Award.

Audiences can also look forward to the UK premieres of Y2K, A24’s latest horror-comedy starring Fred Durst and directed by Kyle Mooney, and I Love You Forever, marking Cazzie David’s directorial debut. The festival will also showcase the newest film by Mother Schmuckers directors Harpo and Lenny Guit.

Festival director Neil Jeram-Croft expressed his enthusiasm for this year’s event, said, “We are looking forward to introducing a wonderful selection of films to audiences at the 11th edition of the Manchester Film Festival. We are so excited to be based at HOME, which feels like a perfect fit for our festival, our audience, and the Manchester film community. We look forward to celebrating in March for an exciting 10 days filled with thrilling premieres on the big screen and inspiring Q&As with filmmakers.”

With its exciting lineup and interactive events, the Manchester Film Festival promises to be a celebration of storytelling and creativity in the heart of the UK’s vibrant cultural scene.

Here is the list of full line-ups:

World Premieres

Phase – Jessica Vogt/UK

Two Big Feet – Noah Stratton-Twine/UK

Departures – Neil Ely & Lloyd Eyre-Morgan /UK

Kid – Ryan J. Smith/UK

UK Premieres

Aontas – Damian McCann/Ireland

Bang Bang – Vincent Grashaw/United States

Foul Evil Deeds – Richard Hunter/UK

Heads or Fails – Leny and Harpo Guit/Belgium

Hostages – Jim Owen/UK

I Love You Forever – Cazzie David/United States

McVeigh – Mike Ott/United States

Meta: The Dazzling Girl – Prasanth Mambully/India

Night Call – Michiel Blanchart/Belgium

Near Miss – Jamie Rafn/UK

Pet Shop Days – Olmo Schnabel/United States/United Kingdom

Quiet Life – Alexandros Avranas/France/Estonia/Sweden/Greece/Germany

Silent Notes – Toni Comas/United States

Transamazonia – Pia Marais/France/Germany/Switzerland/Taiwan/Brazil

Transplant – Jason Park/United States

The Line – Ethan Berger/United States

The Penguin Lessons – Peter Cattaneo/UK

Y2K – Kyle Mooney/United States

Manchester Premiere

Aïcha – Mehdi M. Barsaoui/France/Tunisia/Italy

Good One – India Donaldson/United States

In Our Blood – Pedro Kos/United States

Last Swim – Sasha Nathwani/United Kingdom

Motel Destino – Karim Aïnouz/Brazil/France/Germany

My Dead Friend Zoe – Kyle Hausmann-Stokes/United States

Red Path – Lotfi Achour/Tunisia/France

Santosh – Sandhya Suri/India/United Kingdom

Sebastien – Mikko Mäkelä/United Kingdom

Solo – Sophie Dupuis/Canada

The Draw – Tom Ruddock/United Kingdom

The Severed Sun – Dean Puckett/United Kingdom

Treading Water – Gino Evans/United Kingdom

Universal Language – Matthew Rankin/Canada

The Accident Spy – Anthony Wonke

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