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Hello, and a very warm welcome to the 131st Scavenger Hunt of February 2026, with 28 new tasks, that I hope will be original enough and will end in utterly entertaining and informative film choices, for the 2nd to last month of this Northern Hemisphere Winter. Many thanks to someone I shall humourously address as Miss Shoe, Allison 👟, for her extraordinary January hunt, themed around other choices of film challenges, and a special thanks for making me join 3 of those challenges this year, one has become its own task, HorrorX52 2026 and the Short Attention Span 2026 Challenge, in addition to Honey I Shrunk the Watchlist 2026, & the Letterboxd Season Challenge as usual. So, how to follow up on it?!?!? Well, just to be my usual self, but also, know that I have matured, some tastes have developed well and I'd wish to share more with people, and my list challenge creation style has changed since my last hosting in July 2017, and bravely sort through any kinks throughout the last week of January. Despite the tendencies to write the full list description as mini essays, I am patient enough to sort out the list and do summarised tasks in each film below. In terms of theming, there are tasks that are numbered to dates throughout the year, but a few are February, but don't expect full blown Valentine's, what a hypocrite of me, last Christmas. Another theme to look for, is my decision to celebrate my personal efforts on the Blackpool and the Fylde AmDram scene of the past three years, and pop music will, of course, be reflected better than ever. That makes sense since TéléDex-BaBrBo (Baines, Bracewell and Bolton, surnames of my Mum) is my alias for future songwriting and performance projects, and it would be my choice of name, for if I suddenly become a popstar tomorrow. I do hope you can excuse the length of Prompt 25 though, just because I made the prompt so hard to answer, but personal to my special interest and for my taste. Finally, there are simple tasks that can go two ways: checking out and picking from my choices, or going your own way, if that you would prefer. I hope more of you can join me and you can share with me your favourite films and opinions about these tasks. Before I begin my Top 28 prompts, my Top 28 films will be at the very bottom of this list description, rather than preceding the tasks and users taking part on this list. Now, here are the your tasks for February 2026! Happy hunting!

How to participate (partially borrowed from Allison): Create your own Letterboxd list of 28 films, you can do so by cloning and removing my choices, or to do one manually, one for each of the prompts included below.

When you've put the list together, comment here with a link to your own. Make sure you tag your list with "scavenger hunt 131." I'll definitely aim to link everyone's list in this description as you comment - part of the fun is checking out each other's list.

During the month of January, try to watch and review as many movies from your list as possible. You can aim to watch one a day in order, or do a marathon whenever you can. Tag your reviews with "scavenger hunt 131" too, so others can find your thoughts!

No pressure to finish off the list, though we'd all love you to.

Master List / Discord / March Host Raffle

1. To give thanks to last month’s hunt, Allison 👟, for her extraordinary hunt, let’s begin with a callback. If you were one of the 114 users who entered last month, and kept the list on public or shared, well done, your film choices are now eligible for this hunt, and they are anonymous, so you're not embarrassed. And a special congratulations to the one who didn’t pick The General, until the list reached Number 740, and the person whose pick the musical comedy, Hellzapoppin’ ended up popping in at Number 666. I don’t remember Martha Raye having 666 on her head, hand or big red lips. There are 1740 films to choose, an average of 15 unique films. Not every film is unique. I had 18 new choices after everything before my list was added. One user even chose 40 films instead of 31, and even then, only 21 of their films were unique and brand new, and many lists later, another picked 62 and only an extra 6 and 27 in total were unique and brand new. I’d say the less popular the choice is, the more chance you’ll find a nice, random pick belonging to two people on a Scavenger Hunt. But it’s all up to you! Watch a film added by any of the last hunt’s users.

2. It’s Paul Mescal’s birthday. Consistently bringing some of the most interesting features of this decade, including Hamnet with Best Actress favourite Jessie Buckley and The History of Sound, currently in UK cinemas, whilst being a Mubi exclusive elsewhere, it doesn’t make sense but dedicate this task to him. Watch a film featuring Paul Mescal.

3. Ladies, gentlemen and they/them’s!!! You may be shocked to find out some people cannot wait for the 20th of March to come round any quicker! I’ll tell you how I’ve been coping, on Letterboxd. I started the Winter Trash 2026 challenge, my first ever daily challenge of its kind, and whilst I’ve been doing absolutely terribly, it is quite helpful for this season, with its mixture of positives and rejections. Watch a film I have picked for Winter Trash 2026, or find a trashy, or fluffy, film of your choice, that matches one of the tasks, maybe even on the date you are creating this list.

4. Having satisfied me with the emotional trilogy story of Apu, it is very hard to decide where to go next with Mr. Ray. Watch a film by Satyajit Ray.

5. My most watched feature film director, in 2025. Imagine if you end up being first with 5 entries, all belonging to one story in four parts, and that includes the miniseries it was part of, as it’d make the ‘Great Adaptations’ Season Challenge week look a mess on the LSC11 metrics, because it's four films, and I see Part I and IV and then the main miniseries War and Peace. So I added everything, even if it meant implying of watching double the content. Time to explore more of his filmography. Watch a film directed by, or featuring Sergey Bondarchuk. (The Mosfilm YouTube channel should be of great help.)

6. Most watched feature film actress, with 6 films, and 7 entries overall, blame Armageddon and my Mum rewatching it after I watched it first time despite a score of 2.5/5, but you can also blame her for always coming back to Twin Peaks, with David Lynch also being joint second with 4 films. Watch a film featuring Grace Zabriskie.

7. Most watched feature film actor. The winner… it’s a tie! Hugh Grant, not surprising considering he is the star of many British romcoms, and is quite profilc elsewhere, even with Julie Andrews on Our Sons. And Willem Defoe, I could say that is surprising, but since learning he is the star responsible for the last task of the 11th Letterboxd Season Challenge, the surprise has weared off. Not even rushed to finishing the 11th, and he is the joint first most watched with 7 films. Not only that, but they are connected, via the film American Dreamz. Watch a film featuring Hugh Grant or Willem Dafoe.

8. It’s been over 8 years since I last hosted. When I decided to go into the raffle during the Autumn or Winter months, last year, I decided to7 create a list of my host month’s users. Sadly, a rather big number locked away the film choices, but that didn’t stop me finishing off the playlist. But I would like to give you two options for this prompt! Watch a film added by my July 2017 hunt users. Or pick a film that matches a task from the same hunt.

9. On the 9th of September 1915, Dr. Carter Godwin Woodson, George Cleveland Hall, William D. Hartgrove, Jesse E. Moorland, Alexander L. Jackson, and James E. Stamps founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASNLH). This Black History Month’s official theme shall be A Century of Black History Commemorations and will be the 101st year since the so-called Negro History Month begun in 1925. Watch a film that was directed by a Black Director, the earlier the better to commemorate the month.

10. I miss this musical, every day of my life. Every year, I think back to 2022 at the Grand Theatre Blackpool, for the Blackpool & Fylde Light Opera Company, thinking we weren’t going to win that round of applause on our first night. I also got my first given line as a featured actor: 'To the wizard!' On the 10th of August, 1939, invitees at Green Bay, Wisconsin, the state connection of Munchkin Coroner Meinhardt Raabe, got the gayest ever film musical, despite the sissy remarks, involving a girl called Dorothy, and three friends of Dorothy, and shook up the world of Oz, despite flopping on its first release, and not making a profit until re-releasing in 1949 and the advert of television. Watch a film featuring a cast member of The Wizard of Oz, or any stage or screen connected to the world of Oz or, therefore, Wicked!

11. 10.8, rounded up to 11. The average running time of the Letterboxd Year in Review’s Animated Short Films, for 2025. Skin Flick, one of the latest projects that have been created at the French institution Goeblins, made a well deserved finish at the top, and is readily available on their YouTube channel. Watch an animated short of 2025.

12. 12th January, only last month, came the premiere of the Letterboxd Year in Review 2025, presented by Neon. Don’t know why they’re presenting worldwide, we don’t have Neon as a full distributor here. No, I kid, I kid. Many of these films are potential for Oscars, but I do wonder if all of them will not necessarily be on your watchlist. Overall, all are in the watchlist, but when it gets to a few of the genres and the nations, that’s when things get interesting. Watch a film featured on the Year in Review, this year, but is not on your watchlist, or if you’d like to look at your watchlist, wasn’t added before reading the Year in Review. If it’s hard to find a film that isn’t readily available, or it is not applicable, watch one that already was on your watchlist, but still unwatched.

13. The release date of the latest Wuthering Heights adaptation, not only Emerald Fennel’s latest film, but Charli XCX’s biggest soundtrack ever! Charli XCX is now, most certainly, the queen of the British pop scene. Watch a film where Charli XCX features or soundtracks. If not applicable, may I recommend you choose a film where a soundtrack includes one of her past and present collaborators, including music as big and current as George Daniel’s The 1975, PC Music, her main producer A.G. Cook most especially, her much missed Vroom Vroom producer Sophie, or her one-time collaborator, Yasutaka Nakata, producer of my favourite pop group, Perfume. Enter Charli’s sphere!

14. 14 weeks till Eurovision begins. An event that has headed from a love-hate relationship involving whether music from the day matches the big hits of the day, to an even worse relationship involving politics between Israel and Palestine*, and whether you live in the 35 countries confirmed for the contest, or the record-breaking 5 countries leaving after the EBU General Assembly, last December. Still, it is 70 years of Eurovision this year, I'm still exploring every song of the contest's history, and I wish to give a nod to all the memories involving Eurovision artists, such as ABBA, Celine Dion, Loreen and then others such as Domenico Modugno, Ivi Adamou and Tommy Korberg that also have distinctive songs that never won. And don’t worry, you don’t have to wait for the next film to follow up on The Story of Fire Saga. Watch a film featuring, or soundtracked by, Eurovision artists.

*By the way, I once did a song contest called Asiavision, where I entered as my randomly picked nation, Singapore, Aisyah Aziz - Utopia Reimagined: Euphoria, and the country that won was Palestine, with a wonderful electropop song, Mahmoud El Esseily - 7elm B3eed. Now that's why there should be a free Palestine and an end to this bloodshed and apartheid, though there are bigger, and more emotional reasons, I am sure.

15. Want to look forward to beyond the Northern Hemisphere Winter, or look forward to the Southern Autumn vice versa?!?!? As of the 18th of January, when I am writing up this list, there is only FIFTEEN weeks until UK Bank Holiday May Day: Monday 4th May?!?!? How do I know this? Because I’m looking at my 11th Letterboxd Season Challenge list, silly! I, however, chose to make this and last year’s list 52 weeks, expanded from the standard 33 weeks, just so I fill my year up well. Though that said, I get carried away wanting to do a Top 60 of my challenges' picks. But despite the expansion, the 10th did become the first completed Letterboxd challenge of mine for a very long time. There are currently 115 choices of mine to choose. Choose from my selections for the 10th or 11th Letterboxd Season Challenge. If not applicable, which is very unlikely, or you fancy looking through each week’s theme, choose a film based on your favourite theme from these last 2 original challenges: 10th or 11th.

16. My latest musical project, completed back in November 2025 for St Annes Musical Productions. My chance to be a bumbling time keeping school teacher, and I even gave Marty a detention slip for flirting with Vince Fontaine! On June the 16th, 1978, Grease took place was released as the feature film, shaking up the long running stage musical’s lore, with the voices of John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John, whom by the way counts as a Eurovision artist, above. Watch a film featuring a cast member of Grease, stage or screen.

17. On February 17th, a director who I have never seen any of his films in my entire life. As I would usually say to those who I don’t know what to expect, I don’t know what to expect, not even from a director from whom I have heard outlandish things about! Watch a film directed by Alejandro Jodorowsky.

18. The 18th, no point theming around birthdays, and yet, not one but two K-pop stars have their birthday: J-Hope of BTS and DK of Seventeen. Now, I’ve been neglecting K-pop. I mean, why focus on the scope K-pop seems to have, when J-pop has been great enough for me, and bring more of my tunes. So I shall dedicate a task to K-pop to see how they’re doing, and, as I publish this, I have no idea if this is the second film challenge, I’ll choose K-Pop Demon Hunters for. The Stray Kids have a concert film this month. Need a girl group, I don't do boy bands with flash bang wallop sound of theirs. Watch a K-pop film.

19. The 19th century. Hmmm, well, it doesn’t make sense to dedicate tasks to blockbuster musicals, with personal AmDram stagings, than the one that many teenagers are performing, and only Liverpool and Leeds has done it in the North West of England, as if the Blackpool Tower wouldn’t light up their Eiffel tower rip-off in red, white and blue colours. Les Misérables! Watch a film adaptation based on that particular book. And yes, a concert would count. Always drawn to the 1995 one. Alternatively, look for another adaptation of Victor Hugo’s hard-written work.

20. The age of this character, or is it?!?!? It was certainly in the age range I was given for the auditions. I am age 30, who, according to this Nick Hern book, is exactly age seventeen!?!?! And yet, no one will know him, or her, like I do. Guide 4, who actually did have a name, well, three actually, Shiori Satonaka on the original, not very camp but does get angry by kicking the snow outside that house, Rachel on the National Theatre adaptation, undisclosed until the very end of the story for some reason, and not at all named after my own mother, and Richard, named after, but not by own choice, after a very nice crush of mine, when I got to play the genderswapped version of Guide 4, last April. I even got to sing the song selected for the show: Looking for the Heart of Saturday Night, as means to save it from getting replaced. I’d like to dedicate this task to the people behind that song, and this story: After Life, which I completed for the very new company Misfits. Watch a film written by After Life’s stage and screen writers, Jack Throne or Hirokazu Kore-eda (don't worry if you find one he only directed instead of written), or a film featuring or soundtracked by Tom Waits.

21. 21 point 1. The average time of this Year in Review’s Highest Rated Live Action Short Films. Johanne Sacreblu made a radical journey to the very top, rivalling Emilia Pérez, even though the ending of the original movie, is not the musical number, Papa. Not every short film is as surreal as that particular one at the top. You find that most short films at festivals can be quite serious and well respected. Watch a live action short film of 2025.

22. Age 22. The year I finished my University degree in Media Production. Sounds ideal on a film site like this, right?!?!? The trouble, I’ve not focused on any media projects since never resuming job hunts from having Beyond Brontés not extend their time with us, after the COVID pandemic finished, and I hated writing for film studies, so no chance of that for a paid job. Ever since, I’ve felt like I was more wanting to follow on in Charli’s, Yasutaka’s or the late Stephen Sondheim’s footsteps. Still, could there be more nostalgia from University. Shall repeat the following category. Watch a film set in College or University. Bonus points, if set between my study years, 2012 to 2018, or it’s set in a drama school or on a story or script writing course, which can count as a Bachelors or Masters, on the contrary to those who think anything to do with filmmaking is a Mickey Mouse course. Fantasise in acting or writing drama with me!

23. On the 23rd of September, the first part of a mysterious, spooky serial came out on the fancy sounding Le Gaulois, now replaced by the still running newspaper, Le Figaro, which seems to be very well matched of a newspaper to publish something involving opera. Little do these readers know, that their children’s children are gonna love Andrew Lloyd Webber’s contribution to musical theatre set in Erik’s world of opera! That’s right! I was part of a very few British adult societies to do The Phantom of the Opera, for the Thornton Cleveleys Operatic Society, in October 2023. When the Phantom scared us off at the start of Act II, I decided to perform after the pyrotechnics set off, like I was Patrick Troughton, shot at by a Cyberman. Watch a film featuring a cast member of The Phantom of the Opera, stage or screen, silent, all speaking or all singing.

24. It’s Tuesday 24th February 2026! It's the start of the infamous, yet fabulous, five day Italian music festival, that has been broadcasted for 74 going on 75 years. Festival di Sanremo, with many hours of radio, television and a whole canzone italiana in an independent cinema on a little seaside resort, that actually might have not renewed their connection to the station Rai, this year! Imagine having Festival di Rai or Naples?!? To celebrate the festival remaining in its original home and the start of Rai’s live transmissions: Watch a film from Italy. Bonus points if you can get one featuring any native or international participant, to compete as singer or musician, to host or co-host, or guest star, and for the latter two, yes, that includes Oscar Best Actor winner Roberto Benigni, who appeared at the Ariston, many times since 1980!

25. The best thing to be getting up for 9am in the morning, to watch a live stream of J-pop athletes specialising in technopop. I want to properly celebrate Perfume, like us fans all did for their 25th anniversary since formation within Actors School Hiroshima, same school as Su-metal from Babymetal, and their 20th anniversary since their major debut Linear Motor Girl, back in September 2025. On the 22nd at Midnight Tokyo Time, their anniversary, they sent out a statement saying they will start an indefinite hiatus. It's said that they kept crying during the first night of their two Tokyo Dome concerts. The next night, when they finished their second to last digital single, Meguru-pu (Megu Loop), they look more at peace and calm when they were walking in beat to their first ever Tokyo Dome number from 2010, GISHIKI. Three months later, they were then finally put to cold sleep as a trio, at the 75th NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen (Red and White Song Contest) on the 31st of December 2025, with a special video montage to their Cars 2 song Polyrhythm and Megu Loop, before the projections shown that they transform into fairy dust. And despite doing all that, the white team (all-men lead singers) won over the red team (all-women lead singers), this year. Men, often superior to women, in Japan. 🙄 As somewhat a hobby before getting to the serious music business of licensing, I am currently writing a two-act jukebox musical involving their music, as a thank you to them, and the many other Japanese singers, mostly women, such as Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, MEG, Toshiko from Capsule, Kenshi Yonezu, responsible for songs of Chainsaw Man and Reze Arc and then, Charli XCX, with a song called Crazy Crazy, all written, produced, sometimes remixed by Yasutaka Nakata. Obviously, their selections of film availability varies to a degree. So: watch a film featuring a song, soundtrack or score by Yasutaka Nakata, is optional, even though all the Perfume concerts are five-star lip sync extravagazas, and you can hunt them down, including Code of Perfume in London on YouTube, which I missed because of The Wizard of Oz, which I do not regret, and it was just bad timing! I know I would have made it to London and see what they were about, even if I thought they're barking mad like this. (I'm passionate enough to have used that PTA Corner (fanchant) clip as an Andys Man Club answer) If anyone wants to research and discover new pop and electronic songs because of this task, he and his acts have done some great soundtrack songs linked here, as tie-in's, most as quite successful singles, but if I missed any, there are lots of pure commercial songs to sieve through, too. I'm sorry. But if still not swayed by my main task to you, as someone who ironically, never takes part in the month-long and very epic sounding Japanuary, just know that Japan isn’t just for January, Japan is for life! So: watch a film from Japan! Bonus points for if it matches a task from this year’s Japanuary challenge.

26. Twenty-six years. How long my other kind of discovery site for pop music, I use, has existed! No, I’m not talking about Last.fm, that’s only age 24, this March! It's one by a freelance writer, called PopJustice. Sadly, it has a forum, and no, I love using it. But currently, it’s not something anyone who’s a big fan of pop music can just sign up to. Quite unusual for being a distinctive site, where Peter Robinson and a panel, once including myself, when Laura Mvula won for Got Me, gives 20 British pounds, no inflation added, for the Best British Pop single of the year, to rival that of the bigger Mercury Prize for the Best British and Irish album. I signed up back in July 2014, and it’s been closed for registrations since 2023!!! So if you look upon PopJustice and you fancy joining a community, that somehow is still alive and thriving in song contests, album and single rates and conversation, please badger Peter via social media or email, and make him aware! For now, these are our Forum Rate Winners, with plenty of great options. Watch a film featuring, crew-ed, or soundtracked by winners of PopJustice Forum Rate Winners, or take another look at the £20 Music Prize winners, and see what films they might pop up on. Bonus points for the songs, of course! Please note that the latest Forum winners of the 2020's aren't all on this list, so please refer to Part 5 and the soon-to-be-opened Part 6.

27. Super complicated this task idea, when I tried suggesting this for Honey I Shrunk the Watchlist's latest poll, last Autumn, so I’ll keep this short and simple-ish, even not much has changed. All you need to do is go down to the comment section of the original list, and pick a film from the very person's list before you. Watch a film from the very list before your Scavenger Hunt is posted below. If not applicable, check the second one before, and so on. (note: for fairness, I shall pick the last list on Alison’s 130th Scavenger Hunt, no matter how late it is published in January.)

28. Never forget Section 28. Margaret Thatcher's bane might be gone. But one day, it will be Keir Starmer’s transphobic views on trans women. I cannot find the clause that has been set. It is LGBTQ History Month in the UK, which, no doubt, Labour, will be appropriating at their parties with cisgender attendees, before using trans women as a political football, even after murder and suicides. Watch a film with LGBTQ themes and characters. Film choices featuring transgender and non-binary talent and characters would be much appreciated, through this turbulent time in politics. I'm sure you'll appreciate that you can look through your lists, as the possibilities are endless. Sadly, there aren't many about the stupid debate TERFs keep raising, thanks to the Cass Review, even though it could be inevitable due to Harry Potter's remake. Let them wee in peace!

Once again, may I wish you a happy hunt! If there are any struggles, please feel free to let me know your issues, or if you’d like to choose a second film from one of the prompts, or other yearly challenges linked at the top. Here are the users taking part.

USERS (79)

Me (original list) / Sam Q / Shannon / Paul / Hannah / Kß RK49 / Richie / Joe-sph / Verix Silvercrow / sofiaph / CamHamlin / Robyn / Paula / ju_stine / kristen / Chloe Newell / Savannah / ru 🫧 / aobh / Nick Atkins / Lauren Hicks / solesider / sodiumman / megan amanda / Kat / Fred 🇵🇷 / spookiboi / Danny 🧙‍♂️ / Shauna / Speenis26 / Alex A. / AHuskyKing / Cecily 🍊 / holo / Andrew / Wtachr / WANNAH / Una_Nancy_Owen / nairon / AngelMonkey / Palosky / Molly / halfwayhungry / dearSouchi / Ella_Cherry / Carlos / ik / Megan / DHewitson91 / JustElizabeth / Cesar / Redfined / emma / Sandra / TysonDud / iwishdeath / Jonny G / Max / Harry / Franzi / savidev / Dylan / Caitlin / Chris / Ryan / njhuda / yodelwoman / its_decy / Fritz / Mags / Travis / Jennifer / nathantelope / Margarita / Cody / Laetitia / Tory / zardbarf / Alex /

RANKED (28/28):

1. Perfume LIVE 2023 “CODE OF PERFUME” (2023): 5/5
2. Hamnet (2025): 5/5
3. Les Misérables (1934): 5/5
4. Like Father, Like Son (2013): 5/5
5. Chicago (2002): 5/5
6. Santa Sangre (1989): 5/5
7. Snooze Quest (2025): 5/5
8. The Music Room (1958): 4.5/5
9. Viy (1967): 4.5/5
10. Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (2006): 4.5/5
11. 100 Meters (2025): 4.5/5
12. Norma Rae (1979): 4.5/5
13. Mask (1985): 4.5/5
14. About a Boy (2002): 4.5/5
15. Castration Movie Anthology i. Traps (2024): 4/5
16. We Were The Scenery (2025): 4/5
17. The Great Ziegfeld (1936): 4/5
18. PSY Summer Swag 2022 (2023): 4/5
19. Barnum (1986): 3.5/5
20. Uncle Vanya (1970): 3.5/5
21. Fear and Desire (1952): 3.5/5
22. Dio, Come Ti Amo -How Do I Love You?- (1966): 3.5/5
23. Thirty Years of Adonis (2017): 3/5
24. "Wuthering Heights" (2026): 2.5/5
25. Esterina (1959): 2/5
26. Getting Even with Dad (1994): 1.5/5
27. Murder in Harlem (1935): 1/5
28. The Rewrite (2014): 0.5/5