The Idiot(s) begins international festival journey

Gold Rush Pictures’ The Idiot(s) is set for a major international festival run, beginning in the United States before travelling to Canada, Germany and the United Kingdom. The new film from Małgorzata Szumowska and Michał Englert will screen at Telluride, Toronto, Hamburg and the BFI London Film Festival.

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Directed by Małgorzata Szumowska and Michał Englert, the film stars Aimee Lou Wood and Johnny Flynn as Anna and Fyodor Dostoevsky, alongside Vicky Krieps and Christian Friedel. Inspired by Andrew D. Kaufman’s The Gambler Wife, The Idiot(s) follows the newly married Dostoevskys during a turbulent period of self-imposed exile in Germany. As Fyodor battles gambling, debt and writer’s block, Anna struggles to hold their life together and create the conditions in which he can complete his next novel.

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Both an acerbic period comedy and an unconventional love story, the film dismantles the mythology of the solitary male genius and places the intelligent, determined woman beside him at the heart of the narrative.

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Toronto International Film Festival

The film will make its Canadian premiere on 15th September in the prestigious Special Presentations programme at the 51st Toronto International Film Festival. TIFF takes place from 10–20 September 2026 and brings together major international filmmakers, industry figures and audiences for one of the most influential events in the global film calendar.

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Filmfest Hamburg

On 24 September, The Idiot(s) will open the 34th Filmfest Hamburg with its European premiere. The opening-night presentation will be attended by directors Małgorzata Szumowska and Michał Englert, with Aimee Lou Wood, Vicky Krieps and Christian Friedel among the guests expected in Hamburg. Filmfest Hamburg runs from 24 September to 3 October 2026 and will present more than 120 productions from around the world.

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BFI London Film Festival

The Idiot(s) will then return to Gold Rush Pictures’ home city as part of the Official Competition at the 70th BFI London Film Festival on 14th and 16th October. The film is one of ten international titles selected to compete for the festival’s Best Film Award. The BFI describes Aimee Lou Wood and Johnny Flynn as “superb” in Szumowska and Englert’s “acerbic and joyful” period film.

The BFI London Film Festival takes place from 7–18 October 2026.

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The growing festival journey places The Idiot(s) before audiences across North America and Europe, introducing a bold new perspective on one of literature’s most famous marriages.