The BFI London Film Festival reported a 6% rise in attendance for its 2019 edition, which wrapped on Sunday with the international premiere of Martin Scorsese’s “The Irishman.”
“The Irishman” gala premiere, which was attended by Scorsese and cast members Robert De Niro, Al Pacino and Harvey Keitel, was streamed via satellite from the Odeon Luxe in London’s Leicester Square to audiences in more than 80 cinemas in the U.K. and Ireland.
The BFI said there were 178,789 admissions for London screenings and events over the festival’s 12 days.
This comprised 161,059 public attendances, an increase of 6% on last year’s London public attendance. There were an additional 17,730 press and industry attendances across the festival. The festival also hosted satellite screenings at more than 100 venues around the British Isles.
The 63rd edition welcomed more than 868 international and British filmmakers, including Scorsese, Alex Gibney, Fernando Meirelles, Lukas Moodysson, François Ozon, Sarah Gavron, Mati Diop and Michael Winterbottom.
Guests included Adam Driver, Alicia Vikander, Anna Paquin, Annette Bening, Charles Dance, Dev Patel, Eddie Redmayne, Felicity Jones, Hugh Laurie, James Norton, Jennifer Ehle, Joely Richardson, Keira Knightley, Kristen Stewart, Laura Dern, Lily James, Mark Rylance, Mia Wasikowska, Shia LaBeouf, Steve Coogan, Tim Roth, Timothée Chalamet, and Willem Dafoe.
Some 78 countries were represented across short films and features, and 40% of films were directed or co-directed by women. Across all the competitive categories, 60% were directed or co-directed by women.
Alejandro Landes’ “Monos” was named on Saturday night as winner of the Best Film Award. Mati Diop’s “Atlantics” won the First Feature Competition, Rubika Shah’s “White Riot” took the Grierson Award for Best Documentary, and Soheil Amirsharifi’s “Fault Line” won the Short Film Award.