The new films showcase the six books shortlisted for this year’s International Booker Prize, the world’s most influential award for translated fiction. The line-up of critically acclaimed actors from film, television and stage who perform extracts from the nominated titles are: Lucy Boynton (A Cruel Love: the Ruth Ellis Story, Bohemian Rhapsody, Sing Street, Miss Potter); Jamie Demetriou (Stath Lets Flats, Fleabag, Barbie, Cruella); Omari Douglas (It’s a Sin, Black Doves, I Hate Suzie Too, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club); Rosalind Eleazar (Missing You, Slow Horses, The Personal History of David Copperfield, NW); Ambika Mod (One Day, This is Going to Hurt, White Rabbit Red Rabbit, The Stolen Girl); and Peter Serafinowicz(Amandaland, The Gentlemen, Guardians of the Galaxy, Star Wars Episode I – The Phantom Menace).
The films, are directed by Roxy Rezvany, an award-winning writer-director and producer working in documentary, film and TV, who is currently one of BAFTA’s Elevate filmmakers for 2025-26. They will also be shown at the International Booker Prize ceremony on Tuesday, 20 May at Tate Modern, London.
The executive producer for this year’s International Booker Prize films is Jonathan Davenport, who has overseen the previous five sets of shortlist films for the Booker Prizes. The director of photography is Karol Jurga, who counts Givenchy, Stella McCartney and Adidas among his onscreen credits.
The shortlist films are part of a tradition of Booker Prizes adaptations. More than 77 books that have been longlisted or shortlisted for the Booker or International Booker Prize have been adapted for the big or small screen over the years, with several going on to win Oscars, BAFTAS and Emmys. They range from The Remains of the Day to Atonement, Normal People to The Handmaid’s Tale, Wolf Hall to Life of Pi, The True History of the Kelly Gang to The Line of Beauty, The Underground Railroad to Small Things Like These, Hurricane Season to Elena Knows, and just released, The Narrow Road to the Deep North starring Jacob Elordi, and Harvest.
The full International Booker Prize 2025 shortlist is:
- On the Calculation of Volume I, Original Language – Danish, Solvej Balle(Danish), translator Barbara J. Haveland (Scottish), Faber
- Small Boat, Original Language – French, Vincent Delecroix (French), translator Helen Stevenson (British), Small Axes
- Under the Eye of the Big Bird, Original Language – Japanese, Hiromi Kawakami (Japanese), translator Asa Yoneda, (Japanese), Granta Books
- Perfection, Original Language – Italian, Vincenzo Latronico (Italian), translator Sophie Hughes (British), Fitzcarraldo Editions
- Heart Lamp, Original Language – Kannada, Banu Mushtaq (Indian), translator Deepa Bhasthi (Indian), And Other Stories
- A Leopard-Skin Hat, Original Language – French, Anne Serre (French), translator Mark Hutchinson (British) Lolli Editions
The Booker Prize Foundation has created the series of six two-minute films featuring well-known actors for its two annual prizes since 2022. The films, released in spring and autumn, have become one of the highlights of the International Booker Prize and the Booker Prize seasons, with the 2024 films viewed online more than 83 million times. The films produced for the Booker Prize 2022, directed by Kevin Thomas, won the Culture category of The Drum Awards for Marketing EMEA 2023.
Gaby Wood, Chief Executive of the Booker Prize Foundation, said, “Since we started making these ‘film trailers for books’ three years ago they have been seen over a hundred million times, and their release has become one of the most anticipated moments of our prizes calendar.
We hope that as well as inspiring more readers to pick up the books, they showcase the best contemporary fiction in translation for the award-winning screenwriters and directors of tomorrow.”
Roxy Rezvany, Director, said, “All the books hold such vibrant worlds, so the approach was simply to lean into what excited us about the writing. It was a privilege to bring the work of all the nominated writers to life in some small way through these films.”
On the Calculation of Volume I
By Solvej Balle
Translated by Barbara J. Haveland
In the first part of Solvej Balle’s epic septology, Tara Selter has slipped out of time. Every morning, she wakes up to the 18th of November
Small Boat
By Vincent Delecroix
Translated by Helen Stevenson
November 2021: an inflatable dinghy carrying migrants from France to the UK capsizes in the Channel, causing the deaths of 27 people on board. How and why did it happen?
Under the Eye of the Big Bird
By Hiromi Kawakami
Translated by Asa Yoneda
Perfection
By Vincenzo Latronico
Translated by Sophie Hughes
A taut, spare sociological novel about the emptiness of contemporary existence – scathing and affecting in equal measure
Heart Lamp
By Banu Mushtaq
Translated by Deepa Bhasthi
In 12 stories, Banu Mushtaq exquisitely captures the everyday lives of women and girls in Muslim communities in southern India
A Leopard-Skin Hat
By Anne Serre
Translated by Mark Hutchinson
The story of an intense friendship between the narrator and his close childhood friend, Fanny, who suffers from profound psychological disorders
The International Booker Prize continues to build in global importance each year. The winning author and translator can expect a worldwide readership and a significant increase in profile and sales, including in the author’s home country.
The prize has helped to drive a boom in translated fiction in the UK, with print sales in 2023 reaching a record £26m, up by 12% on the previous year, according to Nielsen BookData. This is largely down to younger readers, with almost half of translated fiction in the UK bought by under-35s. The prize’s influence also extends to other awards, with five authors recognised by the International Booker Prize going on to win the Nobel Prize in Literature.
The announcement of the winning book for 2025 will take place on Tuesday, 20 May 2025 at a ceremony at Tate Modern in London, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. The announcement will be livestreamed on the Booker Prizes social media channels.
