Olivia Colman’s “Empire of Light” continues the London Festival Gala Screening

Sam Mendes’ Empire of Light, starring Olivia Colman, Micheal Ward and Colin Firth, will be this year’s American Express Gala at the 66th BFI London Film Festival.

Written, produced and directed by Academy Award and BAFTA winner Mendes, the film also stars Toby Jones, Tanya Moodie, Tom Brooke and Crystal Clarke.

Set in an English seaside town in the early 1980s, the film is about human connection and the magic of cinema. It marks Mendes’ first solo credit as a screenwriter and reunites him with Oscar-winning cinematographer Roger Deakins (“1917,” “Skyfall”).

The film is being produced by Mendes and Pippa Harris by Neal Street Productions in association with Searchlight Pictures. The film will hit theaters on December 9th in the US and January 13th in the UK. It will be screened at the Toronto International Film Festival as a special presentation in September.

“Empire of Light” celebrates its European premiere on October 12 as part of the London Film Festival, to which Mendes, Harris and the main cast are expected.

Mendes said: “I am delighted to be attending this year’s BFI London Film Festival as the AMEX Gala Screening. ‘Empire of Light’ is a very personal film for me and I can’t wait to show it in my hometown.”

Tricia Tuttle, Director of the BFI London Film Festival said: “Mendes is a master storyteller and vividly captures a sense of 1980s south coast England. ‘Empire of Light’ explores the importance of community, the power of storytelling and film, particularly the thrill of watching a movie in a dark theater and the tactile pleasures of celluloid.”

As previously announced, Matilda the Musical will open the festival and Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery will close it. The festival takes place from October 5th to 16th.