who we are and why tweetfest is different

Our festival isn’t like any other. And it all started with a little networking event that happened monthly with filmmakers called The UK Actors Tweetup. More than a decade later, The UK Actors Tweetup continues to be the UK contingent of a cross-Atlantic organisation with bases in LA, NY, and the UK. In the UK, Tweetups have been going since 2010 and have an audience of 1000’s on social media and email. And TweetFest has been delighting live audiences in London since 2015.

Every year our VIP jury of amazing people has differed, with the panellists including the likes of casting directors Gemma Sykes and Shakyra Dowling, award-winning television and feature directors Laura Smith and Jesse Quinones, Emilie Wren who produced the London Film Festival, and John Byrne who writes for The Stage, amongst so many others, judging our finalist’s work. We have had award-winning directors Blaine Brothers (Nina Forever), Hat Trick Productions Development team, Casting Director Manuel Puro at Puro Casting (Moon, The Machine), award-winning director Simon Blake (Still), BAFTA nominated producer Alex Moody (Alan Carr, Argumental, BAFTA nominated Funny Valentines), Producer Jessie Mangum from Goalpost and Variety Magazine International Director Alberto Lopez, plus more. Our galas have taken place at Hackney Picturehouse, the ArtHouse Cinema and the Hen and Chickens Theatre, some truly magnificent venues to showcase the industry’s finest in short filmmaking.

Previous years have seen us showcase MiniFest and F-Rated Shorts screenings at the iconic Hen and Chickens Theatre, along with a CD Q&A and a Filmmaker Panels.

TweetFest is also proud to be an official film festival on IMDb.

And behind every good film festival are the people and sponsors who put it all together.

Meet our Tweet-tastic team...

ANGELA PETERS

TweetFest co-founder & director – Festival producer

Programming the festival alongside her co-founder Andrea and director Chryssanthi Kouri, Angela is also founder of the UK Actors Tweetups and the award-winning blog, B.A.B.E. for actors. Angela is an international actress who has been in many cinema and festival screened feature films and shorts. She recently shot the feature Criminal Audition (Prime, iTunes) and To Dream (iTunes), as well as television including Emmerdale and various other roles. And when she isn’t hosting the UK Actors Tweetup, she’s usually in a studio voicing some job or another in her native Aussie accent, for televisions, film and commercials.

Twitter: @angiepang

ANDREA FARENA

TweetFest co-founder & director

Andrea works internationally as a producer, as well as running a talent management company, Farrena Films Mgmt, where she represents actors, directors and producers. Andrea believes that networking is the key to success in this industry hence why she joined the Tweetup team back in 2012. Andrea is currently producing a Creative England short film and has many more features and shorts in the pipeline. Andrea programmes the TweetFest Film Festival annually, alongside Angela.

Twitter: @AndreaFarrena

CHRYSSANTHI KOURI

TweetFest Festival programmer and TweetFest co-producer

Chryssanthi is a director and writer and has been working professionally in Film and TV productions for over 15 years. As a writer and director she produces her own shorts (Unrequited, The Loft, At Seven), as well as music videos, online content and showreels. She is also a former actor, trained at Mountview, and a theatre director specialising in new writing. Chryssanthi’s film work has been described as “simple and complex, lyrical and accessible and beautifully executed”. She also wrote the female lead comedic drama in the style of a road movie, Running from Reality, which is currently filming.

MEL RADLOFF

TweetFest liaison and host

Mel has been working alongside the Tweetup team for many years now, helping and hosting monthly events. Mel is a multilingual actress, presenter and keen cinephile. Mel is also one of the hosts for TweetFest each year.

Twitter: @Melanie_Radloff

ZARA DAY

TweetFest HOST

Zara has a Bachelors Degree in Performance Studies and English Literature from The University of Sydney in Australia, The University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) and Kings College London in the UK.

She currently divides her time between Australia and Europe, residing in London. She is represented by Core Management for acting, and Independent Talent Group for writing.

Twitter: @zarasymes

ROB ABERCROMBIE

Camera operator and video editor

Rob has worked in corporate, branded and charity video for over two years with experience in short films. He’s passionate about all things film, enjoys capturing professional looking images and edits with an eye for creative detail and storytelling.

SAM FOURNESS

TweetFest TECHNICIAN and tech genius

Sam Fourness is a London based actor, who has worked in films, television and commercials. When he isn’t busy acting, he also helps ensure that TweetFest runs smoothly with his incredible technical background in editing.

Spotlight

ISAAC PERAL

Isaac Peral Photography

Isaac Peral has been photographing actors and our TweetFest galas for a long time. Isaac has worked with many incredible acting talents who’ve come from a range of drama schools, agencies and companies, with his actors working on: Poirot, Downton Abbey, New Tricks, Skins, Holby, Our World War, Coronation Street, at the Soho theatre, with the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Globe, the National Theatre, on the West End, Broadway and so on.

If you want to see more of his work at our event, just click on over to our gala page.

Twitter: Isaac Peral

STEVE HARCOURT

resident judge and liason

Steve is one half of Free Seed Films who is also currently in production on a feature documentary, and who make short films, music videos, and Steve is one half of Free Seed Films who are currently in production on a feature documentary, and who make short films, music videos, and adverts. Steve also produces their successful weekly radio show, ‘Free Seed on Soho Radio’, as well as co-hosting the monthly film show ‘Screen to Screen’ with Liz McMullen.

A man of many talents, he is a musician/composer, and is a founder (and existing!) member of Collapsed Lung, known for their Top 20 hit, ‘Eat My Goal’. On the side he finds time to write TV and film reviews.