During the thrilling final week of the Raindance Film Festival, 14 fearless teams of filmmakers rose to the challenge —writing, shooting, and editing original short films in just 48 hours. Hosted by Nicholas Barnard & Danielle Bennett, City Producers of the Manchester 48 Hour Film Project, we kicked off things on Monday 23rd June, where teams were giving two random genres, a character, a line and a prop and the clock started ticking. By Wednesday, each team had submitted their film for jury review.
On Friday 27th June, the magic came to life as all films premiered at VUE Piccadilly in the heart of London, giving filmmakers the unforgettable experience of seeing their work on the big screen. The evening concluded with a celebratory award ceremony where Nicholas Barnard, as host, crowned the winners selected by the esteemed jury.
A massive congratulations to all the incredible creatives who took part—you turned pressure into brilliance and proved what’s possible in just two days. We’re already counting down to next year’s SECOND EDITION of the MCR 48: Raindance Edition. See you in 2026!
NOMINEES & WINNERS LIST:
BEST MAKEUP (or special effects)
- Bad Date Number 12 (winner)
- The Therapy Session (runner up)
- Dog Fight
- She is Janet
BEST COSTUME & WARDROBE DESIGN
- She is Janet (winner)
- Bad Date Number 12 (runner up)
- Cicatrix
- First Dance
BEST SOUND OR MUSIC DESIGN
- Second Course (winner)
- She is Janet (runner up)
- Cicatrix
- Feline
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
- Dog Fight (winner)
- Second Course (runner up)
- First Dance
- She is Janet
BEST EDITING
- Second Course (winner)
- Feline (runner up)
- Daddy Issues
- First Dance
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
- Second Course (winner)
- Daddy Issues (runner up)
- First Dance
- She is Janet
BEST MOBILE PRODUCTION
- Second Course (winner)
- Bad Date Number 12 (runner up)
- Feline
BEST ACTING IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
- Ram Santosh in Daddy Issues (winner)
- Jo Rich in Dog Fight (runner up)
- Faucet Lynch in Second Course
- Agata Nielsen in The Therapy Session
BEST ACTING IN A LEADING ROLE
- Gregory Scott in The Therapy Session (winner)
- Sidhartha Raman in Daddy Issues (runner up)
- Ariel Thomas in Second Course
- Valeriia Kashryna in She is Janet
BEST WRITING
- Daddy Issues (winner)
- The Therapy Session (runner up)
- Second Course
- She is Janet
BEST DIRECTING
- Second Course (winner)
- The Therapy Session (runner up)
- Daddy Issues
- Dog Fight
BEST USE OF GENRE
- Second Course (winner)
- She is Janet (runner up)
- Daddy Issues
- Dog Fight
BEST USE OF PROP (a cell phone cable or charger)
- She is Janet (winner)
- Dog Fight
- Second Course (runner up)
- The Therapy Session
BEST USE OF LINE (well that wasn’t in the brochure)
- The Therapy Session (winner)
- Second Course (runner up)
- Bad Date Number 12
- First Dance
BEST USE OF CHARACTER (a pet food taster called Jordan Smith)
- Second Course (winner)
- She is Janet (runner up)
- Daddy Issues
- Dog Fight
AUDIENCE CHOICE AWARD (voted by the audience on the night)
- Daddy Issues (28.75%) (winner)
- She is Janet (20%) (runner up)
- Second Course (12.5%)
- The Needle of Hari (11.25%)
- First Dance (8.75%)
BEST FILM OF THE RAINDANCE 48 HOUR FILM CHALLENGE FOR 2025
- Second Course (winner)
- The Therapy Session (runner up)
- Daddy Issues
- She is Janet
Special Recognition at Raindance 2025
We’re thrilled to share that David Martinez, Executive Director of the Raindance Film Festival and official jury member for the Official Manchester 48 Hour Film Project of 2025, extended an exclusive invitation to the top three films from this year’s Manchester competition to screen at the Raindance 48 Premiere Screenings & Awards on 27th June 2025.
A huge congratulations to the standout films selected for this incredible honour:
- Ruff & Ready by North Star
- Bleach Bellini by The Shaker Sisters
- Every Kind of Fruit Bearing Tree by Wasp Video
We couldn’t be prouder of the Manchester filmmaking talent on display at Raindance this year.
For more information contact manchester@48hourfilm.com
With each city crowning a Best Film, those winners advance to Filmapalooza, the international grand finale — where selected films go on to screen at the Cannes Film Festival’s Short Film Corner.
No experience required. Just a camera, a crew, and 48 hours of filmmaking madness.
It’s fast. It’s fierce. It’s filmmaking at its rawest.
