This September, we are excited to present Sheffield Film Festival 2026, Showroom Cinema’s third annual celebration of our region’s film heritage and culture. Beginning 10 September, the festival will feature a programme of new, archive, and classic film, showcasing the work of local filmmakers, archivists, academics and more.
The programme is split into three strands, which highlight Sheffield’s legacy as a hub of cultural and political activity throughout the 20th and 21st century. We start with Protest! to mark the 100th anniversary of the UK's first and only official nationwide general strike.
Yorkshire links were a key part of the strike, with the cause rooted in a long-running dispute between coal miners and colliery workers; in Sheffield alone 80,000 workers went on strike. To mark the centenary, we have curated a strand of films based on the theme of protest from the Sergei Eisenstein's 100-year-old Strike! with live score to a family-friendly call to action on the climate crisis, Future Council.
Rebellion isn't always demonstrated through activism, and our second strand explores the cultural shifts in youth culture and music across the past half century. Entitled Misshapes, Mistakes, Misfits: The Sound of Growing Up in the Steel City, we'll be showcasing some of Sheffield's top exports from Heaven 17 to Arctic Monkeys, with a highlight being Pulp's first feature length concert film. Outside of these musical behemoths, we'll also be handing the mic to Sheffield's musical future, with a special screening of Slam City, a documentary following local music charity Slambarz. Plus, dance the night away with Offbeat, celebrating their 30th birthday as Sheffield's premier indie night!
The final strand is at the heart of the festival - and that's Yorkshire! It’s always a joy to see your local area represented on the big screen. Each year we've highlighted the best of Sheffield in cinema, with sold-out screenings of big names such as Threads and When Saturday Comes with cast and crew featuring in past editions of the festival.
This year, we mark the 45th anniversary of Ken Loach's Looks and Smiles, and welcome Sheffield PHD researcher Molly R Leeming to introduce '60s British new wave classic Billy Liar, set in the fictional Yorkshire town of Stradhoughton (filmed over in Bradford), as well as the return of Yorkshire Film Archive's much-loved Sheffield on Film.
So, join us this month to discover stories of Sheffield’s film, music and history.
Tickets on sale now: https://showroomcinema.org.uk/festivals/sheffield-film-festival
By Isobel Harrop, Programmer: Young Audiences
Paternoster Row, Sheffield City Centre, Sheffield S1 2BX
Bike racks, nearby tram parking, tram and bus access
