The BFI London Film Festival is thrilled to announce that this year’s opening film will be Mangrove, directed by Steve McQueen, starring Letitia Wright, Shaun Parkes and Malachi Kirby. The film will receive its European premiere on Wednesday 7 October.

Marking 50 years since the events depicted in the film, Mangrove tells the true story of the Mangrove 9, the group of black activists who clashed with London police during a protest march in 1970 and their highly publicized trial that followed. The trial was the first judicial acknowledgment of behavior motivated by racial hatred within the Metropolitan Police. Mangrove is co-written by McQueen and Alastair Siddons.

The film is one of five films from Small Axe, a drama anthology that comprises five original films created by McQueen for BBC One. 

McQueen said: “I couldn’t be happier that Mangrove will open this year’s BFI London Film Festival. Although the themes are universal, Mangrove is a London story. It may have happened 50 years ago, but it’s as relevant today as it was then.”