The International Booker Prize has announced the cast for its short films promoting this year's shortlist, with actors including Kae Alexander, Toheeb Jimoh, Toby Jones, Xelia Mendes-Jones, Indira Varma, and musician Jehnny Beth set to appear.
The films will be released on 16 April and will be screened at a 10th anniversary celebration event at the Southbank Centre on 8 May. The event will feature pop star Dua Lipa, 2021-winning author David Diop, and 2025-winning translator Deepa Bhasthi.
Directed by choreographer Holly Blakey with original music by Gwilym Gold, the films were shot in architecturally striking locations across the Southbank Centre. Blakey said she wanted to place actors in unseen corners of the venue, likening the experience to reading: 'still but somehow also stirring'.
Each actor will read from a shortlisted book: Jimoh from Shihad Bazyar's 'The Nights Are Quiet in Tehran', Beth from Rene Karabash's 'She Who Remains', Varma from Marie NDiaye's 'The Witch', Alexander from Yáng Shuāng-zi's 'Taiwan Travelogue', Jones from Daniel Kehlman's 'The Director', and Mendes-Jones from Ana Paula Maia's 'On Earth As It Is Beneath'.
The winner of the International Booker Prize 2026 will be announced on 19 May at Tate Modern. The Booker Prize Foundation began commissioning short films in 2022; last year's films were watched over 100 million times.
