5–6 December 2026Live and online with one year access
The Indie Film Summit '26
Two days online with the people who get independent films made. Pay what you like.
From the team behind The London Screenwriters' Festival
- Starts
- Saturday 5 December 2026, 13:30 UK time
- Time until the first session
- Replays
- Watch again until 6 December 2027
“This two day online event was insane in the best possible way… the back to back to back quality conversations were an adrenaline rush, the crew hosting were a party and the vibe was always up! I don’t even know any of these people but I love them already, and am so inspired to start writing my stories. This community is seriously the new happy place, and I hope for many collaborations in person. Thankyou LSF!”
On Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 December 2026 we are running a two-day online summit for filmmakers, screenwriters, actors... anyone who is tired of waiting for someone else to greenlight, and wants to take charge of THEIR destiny . You can watch the whole thing and pay what you can afford.
Back-to-back one-hour sessions with working filmmakers on getting a film financed, shot, finished and seen. Plus live chat with others in the same boat - find your collaborators. Sessions and speakers are being added now.
What will you get?
- Insight into HOW to get your film made in 2027.
- Budget schedule, finance, casting... we will go through it all.
- Two full days CRAMMED with experience, passion, expertise and NEXT STEPS.
- Live chat, so you can meet other filmmakers while you watch.
- Watch on your desktop, laptop, phone or tablet.
- And yes, BOOM! Rocketfuel to the creative soul. It's our brand!
- Replays to watch again until 6 December 2027.
Get tickets
Schedule
Day 01Saturday 5 December 2026
13:30–14:00UK
Summit Opening
Chris Jones and Bob Schultz
Join the online LondonSWF opening event and get primed to have the most outstanding weekend as well as prepare for knockout main festival in April.
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14:00–15:00UK
I Swear Case Study with Kirk Jones
Kirk Jones · moderated by Chris Jones
How Kirk Jones wrote, directed, produced and financed I SWEAR — and took it to three BAFTA wins.
Read more
15:00–16:00
Session TBC
Speaker TBC
A practical session from a working filmmaker, packed with things you can use on your next film. Full details announced soon.
16:00–17:00
Session TBC
Speaker TBC
A practical session from a working filmmaker, packed with things you can use on your next film. Full details announced soon.
17:00–18:00
Session TBC
Speaker TBC
A practical session from a working filmmaker, packed with things you can use on your next film. Full details announced soon.
18:00–19:00
Session TBC
Speaker TBC
A practical session from a working filmmaker, packed with things you can use on your next film. Full details announced soon.
19:00–20:00
Session TBC
Speaker TBC
A practical session from a working filmmaker, packed with things you can use on your next film. Full details announced soon.
20:00–21:00
Session TBC
Speaker TBC
A practical session from a working filmmaker, packed with things you can use on your next film. Full details announced soon.
Day 02Sunday 6 December 2026
14:00–15:00
Session TBC
Speaker TBC
A practical session from a working filmmaker, packed with things you can use on your next film. Full details announced soon.
15:00–16:00
Session TBC
Speaker TBC
A practical session from a working filmmaker, packed with things you can use on your next film. Full details announced soon.
16:00–17:00
Session TBC
Speaker TBC
A practical session from a working filmmaker, packed with things you can use on your next film. Full details announced soon.
17:00–18:00
Session TBC
Speaker TBC
A practical session from a working filmmaker, packed with things you can use on your next film. Full details announced soon.
18:00–19:00
Session TBC
Speaker TBC
A practical session from a working filmmaker, packed with things you can use on your next film. Full details announced soon.
19:00–20:00
Session TBC
Speaker TBC
A practical session from a working filmmaker, packed with things you can use on your next film. Full details announced soon.
20:00–21:00
Session TBC
Speaker TBC
A practical session from a working filmmaker, packed with things you can use on your next film. Full details announced soon.
21:00–22:00
Session TBC
Speaker TBC
A practical session from a working filmmaker, packed with things you can use on your next film. Full details announced soon.
What people said about our sister event, the London Screenwriters' Online Festival
“The weekend was wall-to-wall electric, mind-blowing, redefining, inspirational, and thought-provoking. I would even go as far as life-changing!”
“I am blown away by the amazing programm, the wonderful chair-dances that lift up any writer’s spirit, the impressive and well rounded line-up of highly competent and accomplished guest speakers, the great moderators : amazeballs from A to Z!”
“Thank you for today! An epic conference!”
“Great energy, lots of solid movie examples. Great hosts and guests.”
“Five star tutors live, with chances to ask questions and network with other writers, plus writing exercise prompts in between the sessions and epic trailer music…”
“I loved the chat function and finding out what people do.”
“It was amazingly informative. This is my first LSF event so I wasn’t sure what to expect, I’m so happy that I tapped in. These spaces are rare in the UK, but invaluable knowledge has been shared in such an accessible way. The Virgin’s Promise was a real lightbulb moment for me. I’d been writing this without knowing that there was already a framework for it.”
“This was the best, new fest I have experienced all year. All about writing, all about the art and different perspectives. Loved it.”
“Everything was a light bulb moment for me! Such a variety of experienced speakers sharing their knowledge, wisdom and skills about all aspects of the writing craft”
“I don’t think I had fully grasped the idea of creating to create, not for success, before attending London Screenwriter’s festival 2025”
“Thanks for everything! Such great speakers! (Thanks for the replay! I watched a couple of the sessions two times!) The Hero’s Journey segments were AMAZING! Thanks, Thanks, Thanks!”
The Summit Beatsheet
Just like a great movie, it has a beginning, middle and a spectacular end.
Make
Finance + production
How do you get a film made on the money you can actually raise?
- Raising the first £100k: private investors, tax relief and crowdfunding that closes
- What a micro-budget feature really costs, line by line
- Shooting fast without the film looking cheap
- AI and new kit: what saves money now, and what doesn't yet
- Attaching cast on an indie budget
- Packaging a project so financiers say yes
The goal isn't a bigger budget. It's a better film for the money you've got.
Distribute
Festivals + sales + streaming
Who will see it, and who will pay for it?
- Festival strategy: where to premiere, and where not to bother
- Sales agents and distributors: what the deals really say
- Self-distribution: YouTube, TVOD, AVOD and FAST channels
- What streamers and broadcasters are buying right now
- Deliverables that won't sink your sale
- Building an audience before you shoot
Finishing the film is half the job. Getting it seen is the other half.
Career
Next film + reputation
How does one film become a career?
- Turning a festival run into meetings
- Agents and managers, and when you actually need one
- Pitching the second film while the first is still out
- Making a living between projects
- Short to feature, feature to series
- The network that keeps you working
One film is a calling card. A body of work is a career.
Speakers
Kirk Jones
Writer and Director
BAFTA-nominated writer-director of Waking Ned Devine and Nanny McPhee, whose self-financed I SWEAR won three…
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Chris Jones
Founder LondonSWF // Director and Writer
Credits include the Oscar®-shortlisted Gone Fishing; author of the Guerilla Handbooks, Mission Impossible 7…
Read more
Bob Schultz
Screenwriter // Producer
Screenwriter, producer and teacher Bob Schultz has 20+ credits and a knack for high concept stories on a…
Read more
Speakers Being Added
Line-up growing
More speakers are being confirmed right now. Get your ticket and you'll be first to hear each new name.
Get tickets5–6 December 2026
Two days online with the people who get independent films made. Pay what you like.
He also runs the Guerilla Filmmakers Masterclass and setup the London Screenwriters Festival. He has made three low-budget features, and his short Gone Fishing won over 40 awards and was shortlisted for an Oscar. More recently he co-exec produce the AppleTV show The Enfield Poltergeist and directed second unit / splinter unit on Mission: Impossible 7 and 8.
Few people have helped more independent filmmakers get their films made, which is why he's hosting the Indie Film Summit.
Sponsors
