Stroud Film Festival 2026
Dates announced for
Friday 27th February-Saturday 14th March
we’re excited to invite submissions of short films (3-30 mins) for screening at Stroud Film Festival 2026.
Whether you have a super smart comedy, an insightful documentary, a quirky drama, or something more experimental, we’d love to hear from you.
And the best bit: we don’t charge you to submit your film! find out more here
short film submissions
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If you've been to events during the 2025 festival, many thanks for your support. We hope you found films which were enjoyable, thought provoking and inspiring!
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If you've been to events during the 2025 festival, many thanks for your support. We hope you found films which were enjoyable, thought provoking and inspiring! ///
Autumn EVENTS 2025
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Boarding on Insanity - Sep 14th
“Boarding on Insanity” is a 2025 documentary which asks - are our leaders traumatised? And if yes, how might that be impacting us as a society ?
Featuring renown trauma expert Gabor Mate, this film offers stories from a wide range of contributors about their boarding school experiences.s here
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The Pickers - Oct 12th
A beautifully made and informative film which affords dignity to the migrant agricultural workers of Southern Europe who are exploited in order to provide us with cheap fruit.
events from the March 2025 festival
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Life through a lens
Sat 8 Mar
2:00pmDirector Jason Figgis’ response to the remarkable photography of Shirley Baker.
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film school 1
Sat 8 Mar
12:00 - 4:00pmVideo production workshop for beginners and intermediates (over 18s).
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Femme Directions
Sat 8 Mar
7:30pmFemme Directions: short films by female directors.
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Mo
Sun 9 Mar
2:00pm1966 music and poetry documentary with introduction from Adam Horovitz.
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African Apocalypse
Sun 9 Mar
4:30pmScreening African Apocalypse in dialogue with communities of resistance.
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Your Fat Friend
Sun 9 Mar
7:30pmA film about fatness, family, complexities of change and the messy feelings we hold about our bodies.
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Film School 2
Sun 9 Mar
12:00 - 4:00pmVideo production workshop for beginners and intermediates
- 14- 18 years. -
Exhibition
Multiple Dates
2:30pmHorror is our theme for Film Posters Reinterpreted 2025. Dark, spooky, scary and oh so chilling contemporary retakes on some fearful classic movies coming your way for SFF2025.
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maidaan - (screening cancelled)
Tues 11 Mar (screening cancelled)
7:30pmIndian Hindi-language biographical sports drama.
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The Art Of Balancing Dreams And Making Bread and Butter
Tues 11 Mar
6:30pmAn evening of short film screenings, networking and discussion focused on how to thrive as a filmmaker during a time of change.
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Responsible
Wed 12 Mar
7:30pmDocumentary examining the reach and influence of Yvon Chouinard, founder of Patagonia
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hyper: The Stevie Hyper D Story
Thu 13 Mar
7:30pmA journey through 90s London to explore Stevie Hyper D’s legacy.
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Sunset Boulevard
Fri 14 Mar
7:30pmJoin us for the 75th anniversary of this iconic film.
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Cottontail
Fri 14 Mar
7:30pmAward winning Anglo Japanese drama with introduction from the director.
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Shadow Puppet Short Film Workshop
Sat 15 Mar
2:00pm-4:00pmWorkshop run by Imogen Harvey-Lewis. Parents/Guardians and older children/ teenagers.
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Finding Nemo
Sat 15 Mar
2:30pmA relaxed screening of this classic family film in collaboration with family charity Allsorts.
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No Other Land
Sat 15 Mar
5:00pmA Palestinian-Israeli collective’s unflinching account of a community's mass expulsion
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Song Of The Nightingale
Sat 15 Mar
7:30pmA dance, film and talk about the enigmatic nightingale.
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bike generator film screening
Sat 15 Mar
10:00am-2:00pmDrop in and see a selection of films all screened using bike generated power.
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90 Second Stroud
Sat 15 Mar
12:00pmWatch the films made in response to the 90 Second Film Challenge.
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The Umbrellas Of Cherbourg
Sun 16 Mar
2:00pmJacques Demy’s tale of first love is a ravishing mix of music, romance and cinematic invention.
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London Recruits
Sun 16 Mar
4:30pmOrdinary People, Extraordinary Things.
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Witches
Sun 16 Mar
7:30pmAn examination of cinematic portrayals of witches and our view of women, motherhood, and mental health.
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Radical Love: The Life And Legacy Of Satish Kumar
Mon 17 Mar
7:30pmA documentary about love and forgiveness, about activism, optimism and hope.
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American Fiction
Tues 18 Mar
8:00pmFed up with Black entertainment’s exploitation, a novelist falls into the hypocrisy he disdains.
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Rocco And His Brothers
Wed 19 Mar
7:30pmLuchino Visconti’s operatic and poignant story of brotherhood.
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All This Can Happen
Thu 20 Mar
7:00pmAn uncanny compelling ‘walk’ through early photo imagery, encountering life, absurdity, despair.
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Patti Smith: Dream Of Life
Thu 20 Mar
7:30pmA documentary focusing on singer and godmother of punk Patti Smith.
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rabbitman presents: overbytes
Fri 21 Mar
7:00pmHop on over and sink your teeth into a delectable display of bitesized films for and by young people.
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Riceboy Sleeps + trailer for Such a Vivid Imagination
Fri 21 Mar
7:30pmSet in the 90s, a Korean single mother raises her young son in the suburbs of Canada.
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connected
Sat 22 Mar
12:00pmShort films with a twist on human relationships. Q&A with filmmakers.
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The Arbor
Sat 22 Mar
2:30pmA documentary charting the life of Bradford-born playwright Andrea Dunbar, from the performance of her first play to her tragic early death.
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Burkitt
Sat 22 Mar
5:00pmDocumentary about the Irish surgeon who discovered Burkitt’s lymphoma, told by a survivor.
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The Stupid Boy
Sat 22 Mar
7:30pmThe Stupid Boy screening and panel discussion.
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Brian and Charles
Sat 22 Mar
7:30pmThe 2025 Patron’s Pick; a whimsical, warmhearted and thought provoking British comedy.
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Spirited Away
Sun 23 Mar
2:00pmExperience Hayao Miyazaki’s Oscar- winning masterpiece in all its magical glory.
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Picture Portraits
Sun 23 Mar
12:00pmShort films that get to the heart of personal stories with Q&A.
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Freedom To Run
Sun 23 Mar
2:30pmFreedom to Run is a feature-length documentary about the Palestinian running group Right to Movement
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Black Mambas
Sun 23 Mar
5:00pmA documentary about South Africa’s first all-female anti-poaching unit in Kruger National Park. Plus live Q&A
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Solo
Sun 23 Mar
7:30pmBeautifully charting the highs and lows of falling in love and finding oneself in one’s art. Writer and director Sophie Dupuis’s “Solo” is a passionate feat of character-driven storytelling and visual extravagance, celebrating the drag world in all its splendour and heartache.
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90 Second Film Challenge
Make a film lasting 90 Seconds in just 5 days!