The Digital Evolution of the London Mountain Film Festival: A Journey from Control to Community
I originally published a version of this article on Digitising Events. It is about collaborating with my friend Greg to digitise the London Mountain Film Festival (LMFF). We had good fun on the journey, and once we figured out the real reason for the event, we landed on a very cool distributed event model.
By way of background, LMFF was to be a film festival to bring adventure and outdoor films into the city. Why do we have to travel to the country when so many of us in the city are also adventure enthusiasts?
Greg initially envisioned LMFF as a traditional event. Then the pandemic came along, and like the rest of us, he took the festival online but soon realised that a purely digital event needed more sense of community and a very different revenue model of a physical gathering.
However, a turning point came when a filmmaker from Kentucky expressed interest in screening some of the festival's films for his local community. It sparked the idea of decentralising the festival, allowing communities worldwide to host their own mini-events. This new model reduced the environmental impact of large gatherings — not a bad thing — and brought films directly to the heart of diverse communities.
This transformation led to what I have coined the “Starling” model, emphasising freedom and flexibility. Instead of controlling every aspect, the festival has empowered communities to engage uniquely.
If you are into adventure films and want to create a unique night for your club or community, you can check out. https://www.londonmountainfestival.com/community-events
What I love is that the success of the festival is no longer just about numbers but the impact on communities, from fundraising to creating memorable experiences.
I enjoyed working through the process with someone willing to and with the courage to ditch restrictive and ingrained learning. It is so much fun when you create events, not because you can sell sponsorship or hire a venue and know how to build an audience but because you want to add value to each participant's life.
The LMFF transitioned from a control-centric model to a community-driven platform, emphasising freedom, engagement, and impact. As Greg aptly puts it….
“We're selling freedom. Do it however you like, as long as it’s for a good cause and people enjoy themselves.”