A new film festival at Showroom Cinema is set to spotlight working-class voices and challenge barriers in the UK screen industries.
Running from Friday 8 to Sunday 10 May, the inaugural Working Class Film Festival will screen more than 35 films, with over half of the programme showcasing stories rooted in working-class communities across the UK. International contributions from Canada, Ukraine, Greece and Palestine also feature, reflecting a broad and contemporary perspective on class and creativity.
The programme moves well beyond traditional social realism. Audiences can expect everything from experimental shorts and documentaries to imagined futures exploring life, death and labour. Highlights include If Not Now, a documentary on Bengali workers’ resistance to National Front marches in 1978, Ffasiwn, The Film, which transforms South Wales estates into a fashion runway, and Gan Canny, a dark comedy following siblings planning a final send-off for their nan.
The festival opens with Horace Ové’s Pressure, widely regarded as Britain’s first Black feature film, which examines racism and identity in London’s West Indian community. It closes with a screening of Kes, followed by a Q&A with lead actor David Bradley, revisiting one of the most enduring portrayals of Northern working-class life.
Alongside screenings, filmmaker Yorgo Glynatsis will host a session offering young people insight into the full filmmaking process.
Festival director Elle Short said the event aims to reshape perceptions of working-class cinema, bringing together audiences and industry figures to “find and celebrate excellence that is extremely present”.
Find full details for all films and events screening as part of Working Class Film Festival 2026 here
