Jack O'Connell, Sandra Hüller, Taron Egerton, George MacKay, Rosalind Eleazar, Florian Zeller and others celebrated the London Film Festival at Variety's dinner.

To mark the start of awards season, filmmakers and rising talents including Jack O'Connell and Danny Boyle ("Essence"), Sandra Hüller ("Rose"), Taron Egerton ("Everybody Wants to Hit Me"), Rosalind Eleazar ("Foggy"), and Billy Piper ("Elzinf") attended Variety's intimate yet glamorous dinner at Soho Mews House […]

To mark the start of awards season, a host of filmmakers and talent including Jack O'Connell and Danny Boyle ("Ink"), Sandra Bullock ("The Rose"), Taron Egerton ("Everybody's Gonna Hit Me"), Rosalind Eliezer ("The Mist"), Billie Piper ("The Bunker"), Billie Piper ("The Bunker") at Variety's intimate yet glamorous dinner at Soho Mews House to celebrate the film festival BFI London attended.

The evening was Variety's first London dinner hosted by international editor Elsa Kaslasi alongside London-based colleagues Alex Rittman and Elise Schaeffer in association with Studiocanal. Related Stories Ice-T on 'Law & Order: SVU's longevity and cultural impact': 'I'm on a good treadmill and I want to stay on it' Charlemagne God on mental health, social media and prioritizing real-life connections: 'You have to constantly weed your garden'

The European powerhouse, which is part of the London-listed Canal+ Group, was on hand at the event with an impressive line-up of talent from its fall festival highlights in Venice, Toronto and Telluride, as well as the LFF. These included the director of the Venice opener Ink, who was joined by writer James Graham and star O'Connell. Stephen Beresford, author of "Elsinore" and singer-turned-actor, Piper. Zeller with "The Bunker" starring Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem. as well as "Everybody Wants to Touch Me" director Jonathan Shea and his lead actors Egerton and Mia McKenna-Bruce. StudioChannel president Anna Marsh, who traveled from Paris for the occasion, was there along with Ron Halpern, EVP of global production, and Joe Naftalin, VP of production and development. Popular in Variety

Holler, in a silk red dress, also attended with "Rose" director Marcus Schleinzer. In addition to "Rose," the German star is at LFF with Pawel Pawlikowski's "Fatherland," which could earn her a Best Actress nomination. Also in attendance was Elazar, whose first lead role in Chris Rock's "Foggy" earned Oscar buzz. Chan, who stars opposite Channing Tatum in the Sundance highlight "Josephine." and McKay, who is currently filming the "Ocean's Eleven" prequel in France and presented Calvin Demba's "Animals" at LFF.

The gathering also drew a mix of up-and-coming talent and filmmakers, including "The Outrun" director Nora Fingscheidt. Olivia Washington, who played Jeremy O. Harris in the West End production of The Slave Game. and Savannah Leaf, who made her directorial debut with Mother Earth.

The guest list reflects the breadth of the UK and international film industry, with Mubi founder Efe Cacarle, whose company's autumn line-up includes The Rose and The Fatherland, as well as France's Oscar nominee The Minotaur. and notable producers including Kathy Goodson of Searchlight Pictures, producer of "No Wild Horse"; Ed Guiney and Andrew Lowe of Element Pictures; Graham Broadbent and Pete Chernin of Blueprint Pictures; Rosie Allison of Heidi; Ed MacDonald from Plan B; Ben Browning of Pathé UK; Tanya Qureshi from LuckyChap International; and Roza Atab, an independent and upcoming producer; as well as Paris-based entertainment lawyer Elsa Huisman, Sally Long Innes, Managing Director of Independent Talent Group, BFI's esteemed Managing Director Ben Roberts and Ama Ampado, Senior Director of Production and Development. Christie Matheson, artistic director of the London Film Festival, who is in her fourth year at the festival, joined the dinner after presenting Andrew Hague's The Long Winter.

After a lively cocktail reception in the warmly lit lounge decorated with antique furniture, guests sat down to a four-course dinner around two long tables covered in white linen and softly lit by small lamps. The menu included smoked salmon with buckwheat blini, mardana with black figs, Suffolk chicken and baked potato gnocchi, followed by desserts including sticky toffee pudding and dark chocolate mousse.

In a short speech welcoming the guests, Kaslasi emphasized the importance of bringing together the international film community at a time of transformation and consolidation in the industry.

"We're here to celebrate the London Film Festival, but also to celebrate you - the filmmakers, talent, producers and directors who all have one thing in common: the desire to make films that are not only entertaining, but bold and meaningful," Keslassy said. "This event is about bringing this community together and showing how vibrant and diverse it is."

The evening also celebrated the close ties between the French and British film industries, with Studiocanal's strong presence at the festival reflecting the growing rivalry between talent, producers and financial partners on both sides of the Channel.

The French and the British may be the biggest rivals in many fields - including football - but when it comes to cinema, we are the best of allies! Kaslasi said.