This episode takes you right to the heart of the Girls On Film Awards 2026. The prestigious awards attract a glittering array of guests and shine a light on the remarkable achievements of women and non‑binary creatives across the film industry.

Hosted by Girls On Film co‑founders Anna Smith and Hedda Lornie Archbold, the evening unfolds with inspiring speeches, and conversations with standout guests, showing us once more what brilliant things we can achieve if we stand together and lift each other up.

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Thanks to our wonderful presenters Ronni Ancona, Teanne Andrews, Sarah Niles, Lesley Sharp, Priya Kansara, Kerry Fox, Dame Twiggy Lawson, Hannah Onslow, Ita O’Brien, Col Needham, Maïwenn le Mouée, Blair Barnette, Meera Syal and Sally Phillips.

This episode also features Emilie Levienaise-Farrouch, Autumn Durald Arkapaw ASC, Zoe Mutter, Andrea Riseborough, Idil Ahmed, Posy Sterling, Daisy-May Hudson, Nadia Fall, Suhayla El-Bushra, Nicky Bentham, Geeta Gandbhir, Jessie Buckley, Ronkẹ Adékọluẹ́jọ́, Ann Akinjirin, Joy Gharoro-Akpojotor, John Maclean, Jon M. Chu, Tamara Deverell, Pippa Harris and Liza Marshall.

Thanks especially to the sponsors and partners who made the event possible:

CrewHQ

DISAUTHORITY

EON Productions

IMDb

Intimacy on Set

Andrew Jose Salon

Astella Jewellers

Curzon

Elstree Studios

Lilac Grove Entertainment

Netflix

Papa Salt Gin

Stephen Webster Jewellers

Deadline

British Cinematographer magazine

DDA Global

Ask Mummy & Daddy Gourmet Confectionery

Girls on Tops

WorkWise for Screen

Thanks to our production team:

Oli Fyne - Awards producer

Charlotte Homeshaw - Sound Recordist

Claudia Vyvyan - Digital Assets Designer

Richard Gay - Videographer

Adam Southgate - Videographer

Ciaran O'Brien - Gaffer

Joanne Davidson - Photographer

Thanks to each and every one of the volunteers who helped pull it all together on the night:

Anna Penney

Blair Barnette

Elliana Hamer

Hattie Morris

Heather Dempsey

Jade Evans

Jo Rogers

Ruby Rose Bradshaw

Tallulah Treadaway

Tom Oliver Tew

Yvonne Potter

Winners in order of appearance on the podcast:

Best Composer: Emilie Levienaise-Farrouch – H is for Hawk

Best Cinematography Sponsored by CrewHQ: Autumn Durald Arkapaw, ASC – Sinners

Best Editing Sponsored by DISAUTHORITY: Olivia Neergaard-Holm – The Chronology of Water

Best Ensemble Cast: Goodbye June

Best Female Friendship on Screen: Brides and Lollipop

Best Documentary: The Perfect Neighbor (Geeta Gandbhir)

Best Performance in a Supporting Role: Teyana Taylor – One Battle After Another

Best Performance in a Leading Role: Jessie Buckley – Hamnet

Intimacy Award Sponsored by Intimacy On Set: Dreamers (Ronkẹ Adékọluẹ́jọ́, Ann Akinjirin, Joy Gharoro-Akpojotor)

Ally Award Sponsored by IMDb: Jon M. Chu – Wicked: For Good

Best Production Design: Tamara Deverell – Frankenstein

Best Director: Chloe Zhao – Hamnet

Best Feature Film Sponsored by EON productions: Hamnet

Activist Impact Award: Daisy-May Hudson

Commendations:

Best Composer – Nala Sinephro – The Smashing Machine

Best Documentary – Sadie Frost – Twiggy

Ally Award – John Maclean – Tornado

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Credits:

Girls On Film is an HLA production.

Host: Anna Smith and Hedda Lornie Archbold

Executive Producer: Hedda Lornie Archbold

Awards Producer: Hedda Lornie Archbold and Oli Fyne

Social Media Producer: Dr Jade Evans

Intern: Ruby Rose Bradshaw

Sound Recordist: Charlotte Homeshaw

Audio Editor Extraordinaire: Benjamin Cook

House Band: MX Tyrants

Principal Partners: Peter Brewer and Vanessa Smith

Episode Sponsor: Lilac Grove Entertainment

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In today’s on Girls On Film we’re unpacking The Perfect Neighbor - a powerful Netflix documentary that’s up for an Oscar and a BAFTA.

It investigates the shooting of Ajike Owens, a mother of four who was beloved in her tight-knit community in Florida. Owen’s neighbour shot her in 2023, after a years-long campaign of harassment that sewed division in their shared neighbourhood. Using police body-cam footage, the documentary pieces together the events that led to this tragedy and asks important questions about what enabled it to happen.

Anna sits down with its director and producer Geeta Gandbhir to talk about the making of this tough and urgent film, why its story needs to be brought to the screen, and how filmmaking like this can be a tool for social change.

This episode is in partnership with Netflix.

The Perfect Neighbor is on Netflix now.

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Visit https://www.girlsonfilm.org.uk/ for more information about the podcast.

Become a patron of Girls On Film on Patreon here: www.patreon.com/girlsonfilmpodcast

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Girls On Film is an HLA production.

Executive Producer: Hedda Lornie Archbold

Producer: Heather Dempsey

Intern: Ruby Bradshaw

Audio editor: Alex Jones

Host: Anna Smith

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On today's Girls on Film we’re getting conspiratorial with COVER-UP - a BAFTA-nominated documentary following the career of investigative journalist Seymour Hirsch. He was an expert at exposing government corruption and scandal in the United States, and this documentary has exclusive access to him. Co-director Laura Poitras will be giving Anna the story behind the story of this thrilling film.

Laura has been three times Oscar nominated for My Country, My Country, All The Beauty and The Bloodshed, and Citizenfour—for which she won. Alongside her co-director Mark Obenhaus, she's putting another gripping story onscreen here. We talk career inspirations, the art of the expose, and how being underestimated can be a woman's secret weapon.

This episode is in partnership with Netflix.

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Girls On Film is an HLA production.

Executive Producer: Hedda Lornie Archbold

Producer: Heather Dempsey

Intern: Ruby Bradshaw

Audio editor: Alex Jones

Host: Anna Smith

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This episode of Girls on Film is all about Frankenstein – and we’re ‘a-live’ onstage from our special Q&A screening of Guillermo del Toro’s adaptation with its Production Designer Tamara Deverell and costume designer Kate Hawley. Our host Anna Smith sits down with these two exceptionally talented female heads of department – both of whom have been BAFTA and Oscar nominated for their work on the film – to find out how they created this movie’s extraordinary visuals. It’s based on a classic tale, over 200 years old and first written by a teenage girl – the 18-year-old Mary Shelley. Del Toro’s new take has garnered 9 Oscar nominations and 8 BAFTA nominations. We’re giving you the low down from the women who helped bring it to life and up-to-date on the big screen. Plus they answer questions from you lovely Girls On Film listeners in our audience Q&A.

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Watch Girls On Film on the BFI’s YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLX…L89QKZsN5Tgr3vn7z

This episode of Girls On Film is in partnership with Netflix.

Become a patron of Girls On Film on Patreon here: www.patreon.com/girlsonfilmpodcast

Follow us on socials:

www.instagram.com/girlsonfilm_podcast/

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www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLX…L89QKZsN5Tgr3vn7z

Girls On Film is an HLA production.

Executive Producer: Hedda Lornie Archbold

Producer: Heather Dempsey

Intern: Ruby Bradshaw

Audio editor: Jack Howard

Host: Anna Smith

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Philippa Lowthorpe, the writer-director behind H is For Hawk, and the film’s star, Claire Foy, join Anna Smith to discuss the moving adaptation of Helen Macdonald’s hit memoir, co-starring Brendan Gleeson, Denise Gough, Lindsay Duncan and Sam Spruell. Philippa speaks frankly to Anna about the film’s poetic embodiment of the experience of grief, which produces a story that is both powerful and inspiring. Claire and Philippa discuss the process of collaboration, and consider how the on-set dynamics allowed for an element of freedom in Claire’s performance. Claire’s embodiment of Helen is represented beautifully by Philippa, whose documentary background informed her process of capturing the moment. No film made with live, wild animals is without its challenges, and Claire and Philippa speak to Anna about the incredible experience of working with hawks on set, Claire’s own personal reflections of working with them, and the intense, ethical falconry techniques and training involved. Finally, Philippa and Claire discuss bringing the role of Helen to life in all her messy complexity with the support of the film’s producer Dede Gardner.

This episode is in partnership with Lionsgate.

H is For Hawk is in select UK cinemas on 23 January.

Philippa Lowthorpe has also appeared on episodes 28 and 145 of Girls On Film, when she attended the Girls On Film Awards.

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www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLX…L89QKZsN5Tgr3vn7z

Girls On Film is an HLA production.

Host: Anna Smith

Executive Producer: Hedda Lornie Archbold

Intern: Ruby Bradshaw

Audio Editor: Benjamin Cook

Principal Partners: Peter Brewer and Vanessa Smith

© HLA Agency

Kate Hudson joins Anna for an exclusive, in-depth conversation about her leading role in the film Song Sung Blue, an inspiring true story about a Neil Diamond tribute act, directed by Craig Brewer and co-starring Hugh Jackman. She shares the joys and challenges of taking on the role of Clare, a complex real-life character who has a dramatic journey.

Kate talks frankly about the film’s exploration of mental health, about the responsibilities of playing a real character, and about the importance of maintaining a happy film set: something she and Hugh Jackman both feel strongly about.

She shares how the love story personally inspired her and gives the inside track on the song recordings. Having been Oscar-nominated for Almost Famous in 2000, Kate talks about being in the awards conversation in 2026 alongside actresses she adores. She also shares how she feels about body image and women ageing in Hollywood.

This episode is in partnership with Song Sung Blue.

Song Sung Blue is in UK Cinemas now.

You can also hear Kate Hudson on episode 134 of Girls On Film, talking about Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery.

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Anna Smith goes behind the scenes on one of the biggest films of the year, and one of the biggest contenders in film awards season: WICKED: FOR GOOD.

This sequel to WICKED came to our cinema screens in late November and Anna is thrilled to sit down with four women who helped create both films, which are a key influence in shaping the lives of young viewers today.

Anna talks first with Screenwriter Dana Fox and Casting Director Tiffany Little Canfield, and then with DOP Alice Brooks ASC, and Hair & Make-Up Designer Frances Hannon. They speak about collaboration, female empowerment, the intricacies of their jobs and about working with the whole crew, including director Jon M Chu and co-writer Winnie Holzman.

Tiffany, Alice and Frances were all shortlisted for the Oscars the day before this podcast was published.

This episode is in partnership with WICKED: FOR GOOD

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Girls On Film is an HLA production.

Host: Anna Smith

Executive Producer: Hedda Lornie Archbold

Assistant Producer: Negin Nia

Intern: Tallulah Treadaway

Audio Editor Extraordinaire: Benjamin Cook

Thanks to Girls On Film principal partners Vanessa Smith and Peter Brewer

© HLA Agency

In this episode of Girls On Film, we speak with Laura Mulvey, British feminist film theorist, filmmaker, and Patron of Girls On Film, who was awarded the prestigious BFI Fellowship in November.

Laura has curated a selection of Big Screen Classics running throughout December 2025 at London’s BFI Southbank, featuring titles such as Morocco, Man with a Movie Camera, and Through the Olive Trees. A wonderful opportunity to revisit, or discover, these influential films.

And in the episode we introduce a new category in the 2026 Girls On Film Awards: The Girls On Film Award for Best Editing sponsored by DISAUTHORITY.

Anna chats with Maria Shevtsova, Vice President of DISAUTHORITY and Head of DISAUTHORITY Originals, about the award category, and the exciting partnership. The 2026 awards will take place on February 2nd, and we’re delighted to celebrate this new addition.

Thank you to Lilac Grove Entertainment for partnering with us on this episode.

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www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLX…L89QKZsN5Tgr3vn7z

Girls On Film is an HLA production.

Host: Anna Smith

Executive Producer: Hedda Lornie Archbold

Producer: Negin Nia

Intern: Ruby Bradshaw

Audio Editor: Benjamin Cook

Principal Partners: Vanessa Smith and Peter Brewer

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In this live episode of Girls On Film, host Anna Smith sits down with the extraordinary women behind THE THING WITH FEATHERS, a moving new feature film adapted from Max Porter’s award-winning novel.

Recorded at an exclusive Girls On Film screening of the film on 18 November at Vue West End in London, Anna speaks with:

Lucy Sullivan: artist, author, and comic book creator

Nicola Hicks: acclaimed sculptor and designer of Crow

Leah Clarke: one of producers with THE THING WITH FEATHERS

Tahra Zafar: who worked on creature and costume effects

Together, they delve into the unique challenges women face in their respective fields, reflect on the artistic processes that shape their work, and celebrate the power of creative communities in sustaining and inspiring their careers.

Directed by Dylan Southern and starring Benedict Cumberbatch, Vinette Robinson, and David Thewlis, THE THING WITH FEATHERS is a lyrical exploration of love, loss, and the mysterious ways we heal.

A huge thank you to Vue Lumiere for partnering on this event, and to everyone who joined us for this live conversation.

THE THING WITH FEATHERS is released in select UK cinemas on 21 November 2025.

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Girls On Film is an HLA production.

Host: Anna Smith

Executive Producer: Hedda Lornie Archbold

Producer: Negin Nia

Intern: Ruby Bradshaw

Audio Editor: Jack Howard

Principal Partners: Vanessa Smith and Peter Brewer

Podcast Cover: @charleston51

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In this episode of Girls On Film, Anna Smith takes you out of the studio and straight to the sunny shores of Mallorca!

Recorded live at the Evolution Mallorca International Film Festival, Anna hosts a Girls On Film panel on Women in Leadership, featuring a talented group of women shaping the industry with creativity and vision.

Joining Anna on stage are filmmaker Alex Burunova, whose psychological drama SATISFACTION explores the delicate bond between composers Lola and Philip; BAFTA-nominated producer Sarah Brocklehurst, founder of Brock Media and known for THE OUTRUN; and Abi Harris, founder of Altitude Management, who helps artists take their creative projects to new heights.

Anna also catches up with acclaimed actor Maria Dragus, known for THE WHITE RIBBON and MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS, who was in the audience at the Girls On Film panel.

A huge thank you to Sandra, Maria, Vicka, and the wonderful team at Evolution Mallorca! We are already counting down to see what they have in store for next year. Do keep an eye out for dates.

Learn more about Evolution Mallorca International Film Festival here: https://www.evolutionfilmfestival.com/

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Girls On Film is an HLA Agency production.

Host: Anna Smith

Executive Producer: Hedda Lornie Archbold

Producer: Negin Nia

Intern: Chloe Fonge

Audio Editor: Benjamin Cook

Principal Partners: Vanessa Smith and Peter Brewer

© HLA Agency