Running Date: September 2026

Sheffield Film Festival is Showroom Cinema’s annual celebration of the city’s and the surrounding region’s film heritage, and wider film culture.

This year, the festival will focus on heritage and history, with a programme of new, archive, and classic film whilst showcasing the work of Sheffield-based filmmakers, archivists, academics and more.

The festival will be split into three main strands which highlight Sheffield’s legacy as a hub of cultural and political activity throughout the 20th and 21st century, with a particular focus on the general strike, youth culture, and music.

Protest!

2026 is the 100th anniversary of the UK’s only official and nationwide general strike. Yorkshire links were a significant aspect to the strike being implemented, with the impetus 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 featuring archive film, big-screen TV classics, and silent cinema.

Protest! Programme

• Sat 12 Sep - The Felling

• Sat 12 Sep - The General Strike – A Revolution Betrayed? 

• Sun 13 Sep - Protest from the Archives

• Sun 20 Sep - Strike! [with Live Score]

Misshapes, Mistakes, Misfits: The Sound of Growing Up in the Steel City

The musical heritage of Sheffield is one of its greatest exports, with some of the biggest artists in the world hailing from the city. This strand of the festival will celebrate our place as a centre of musical expression and youth counterculture in the UK.

The title – taken from the Pulp song – speaks to the alternative, rebellious spirit associated with the city and its musical legacy; as a pioneering hub of electronic music, witty Brit pop lyricism, and 00s indie sleaze. We’ll be highlighting the work of these major artists such as Arctic Monkeys and Pulp alongside special events which celebrate the work being made by Sheffield youth today, and further influential musical history from across the country.

This strand is supported by the BFI as part of the BFI FAN UK-Wide Season, Rip It Up.

Misshapes, Mistakes, Misfits: The Sound of Growing Up in the Steel City Programme

• Thu 10 Sep - Music Video Preservation Society

• Sat 12 Sep - Meet Me in the Bathroom [+Intro]

• Sat 12 Sep - Scummy Man [+ Q&A]

• Sat 12 Sep - Offbeat DJ Set [30th Birthday] 

• Tue 15 Sep - BFI National Archive presents Living for Kicks

• Wed 16 Sep - SFF: 50 Years of Punk [Preview + Q&A]

• Fri 18 Sep - Pulp: What Do You Do for an Encore [+Q&A] - This event has now sold out.

• Sat 19 Sep - Slam City [+ Slambarz Event]

• From Sat 19 Sep - Pulp: What Do You Do for an Encore

• Mon 28 Sep - DocNights: Heaven 17 - The Last Temptation

Yorkshire Connection

It’s always a joy to see your hometown and its culture represented on the big screen. Each year at Sheffield Film Festival we endeavour to highlight the best of Sheffield in cinema, with sold-out screenings of big names such as Threads and When Saturday Comes with cast and crew, just a couple which have graced the stage of Sheffield Film 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 landmark film Billy Liar.

Yorkshire Connection Programme

• Thu 10 Sep - Sheffield on Film

• Fri 11 Sep - Sheffield on Film

• Sun 13 Sep - Billy Liar [+ Intro]

• Mon 14 Sep - Steel: The Blood of Us

• Thu 17 Sep - Looks and Smiles [45th Anniversary]

• Sat 19 Sep - Four Sheff Shorts [Premiering Stroboscopic Synergy] [+ Director Q&A]

Tickets and Prices

• On peak tickets are £12 (£10 concession).

• CINE26 tickets: 16-26 year olds can access £6 tickets anytime with a free CINE26 membership.

Save with a Showroom Cinema Membership: Skip the £1.50 online booking fee and enjoy further discounts on screenings. Save £1 on tickets as a Superior and Standard Members or 15% (up to £1.80) as a Flex Member. Sign up to a membership today from just £4.99 per month.

Showroom Members can all access tickets to Music Video Preservation Society and Sheffield on Film for just £8.

*On peak applies Mon-Fri after 5pm, and all day Saturday and Sunday. Concessions includes claimants, under 16s, students, over 60s, and Blue Light cardholders.