This piece was written by Martha Redfern, one of the Encounters Film Festival 2025 Roaming Reporters – a talent development scheme in partnership with BFI Film Academy South West.
Encounters Film Festival 2025 transcended glossy events and formulaic films. It showcased stories from passionate filmmakers with complex, imperfect characters. What stood out to me in particular was the extent of diversity within female stories and
characters in both the selected short films and the panel discussions. Shorts including ‘Koko Suzanne’, ‘Hunting’, ‘Dédé’, ‘There Will Come Soft Rains’ and ‘Full of Shit’ all gave refreshing female stories that left audiences inspired and empowered.
However, before seeing any of these films, my first impression of the festival was an event titled From Studio Shoots to Street Scenes: Supporting Filming in Bristol. This was a discussion and presentation by Katherine Nash, the Head of Studios at Bottle Yard; Adela Straughan, the Manager of Bristol Film Office; and Jane Coulter, the Programme Manager for All Set West. All three are women in senior managerial roles making key decisions for Bristol’s film industry. They all had ambitious, creative perspectives, pushing Bristol to the “forefront of global creative and cultural development”, as encompassed by Straughan. The all-female panel was the cherry on top of an inspiring talk that opened my eyes to film production and sector sustainability in Bristol.
The Best of British Live Action winner, ‘There Will Come Soft Rains’, embraces this driven female spirit in its protagonist, Mira, who, haunted by rising sea levels, becomes determined to move her father’s body to higher ground. Mira is a complex, layered character who is deeply anxious about climate change, yet yearns to do something meaningful for her family. She cares about the teachings of Islam, but weighs these up against her own personal values. She longs to rekindle her sisterhood but is not afraid of conflict for the sake of what she believes in. These intricate characterisations help
audiences warm to the protagonist on a raw, human level in a way that we so often miss out on in standardised two-dimensional female characters.
Another short that offers a fresh perspective on the female experience is ‘Koko Suzanne’, which reveals the misunderstanding and mistreatment of those suffering from dementia. This film immediately draws you into the central relationship between a child
named Prisca and her grandmother (Suzanne), who has dementia but is being accused of witchcraft. As a young girl, Prisca is protected from the “evil” being brought into the home by Suzanne, but it is this distance that allows her to realise her grandmother is
still the woman she loves and who loves her. Their intertwined stories create a poignant intergenerational portrait of the female experience in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which resonates worldwide.
I have outlined just a few snippets of the diverse multitude of female stories at Encounters 2025. Throughout the week, not only did I observe female narratives on screen and at industry events, but I also spoke to countless women at the festival who were passionate about film and storytelling. Encounters Film Festival 2025 truly was an unforgettable experience that brought together creatives and empowered all its audience members.
