Key Festival Information Sheffield DocFest is the UK’s leading documentary festival and one of the world’s most influential markets for documentary projects. We champion and present the breadth of documentary form – film, television, immersive and art – in the vibrant city of Sheffield each June. We offer makers and audiences a place for inspiration, debate, development, learning and challenge. Booking Information All tickets and passes are available to buy online at sheffdocfest.com, or in person at our box office locations. Single Tickets You don’t need to buy a pass or ticket package to enjoy Sheffield DocFest; individual tickets are available for film screenings, talks, and special events: Standard in-cinema film screenings: £9.50 / £7.50 (conc) / £5 (off peak: screenings starting before 2pm on weekdays) Opening Night: £18 / £15 (conc) + booking fees Talks & Special Events: £12 / £10 (conc) Alternate Realities Summit (includes access to David Olusoga: StoryTrails – A Journey Through Time and Space): £40 / £32 (conc)
Alternate Realities Exhibition The Alternate Realities exhibition is free and open to all and is held in a number of different locations. Advance booking is possible, and advised, for the following: • Alternate Realities Exhibition @ Site Gallery • VR Library @ The Workstation Mezzanine •T he Sound Voice Project @ Sheffield Hallam University Performance Lab • Kubo Walks the City @ Kurious Arts, Kommune • Common Good #3 @ Site Gallery Square For booking times and reservations, please go to sheffdocfest.com Box Office Information During the festival a box office will operate at each of our partner cinemas: The Showroom, Curzon, The Light, and ODEON.
Alternate Realities Acquisitions Panel: £5
The Showroom will also operate a box office from 31 May to 23 June, 11:00-21:00 daily.
DocLover ticket packages Be the envy of documentary fans everywhere and become a DocLover at this year’s festival. See the best of the fest, for less:
For enquiries please email boxoffice@sheffdocfest.com or call 0330 122 8870
DocLover 5: £40 / £30 (conc) DocLover 10: £70 / £50 (conc) DocLover packages allow up to 2 tickets per screening.
Sheffield DocFest is made possible thanks to the support of our partners, funders and sponsors, including Principal Funders BFI, Arts Council England and Sheffield City Council.
We encourage card and contactless payments. Opening Night tickets are available from Sheffield City Hall All information is correct at the time of publication. Sheffield DocFest reserves the right to add and remove content and make changes and updates. Please visit sheffdocfest.com for the most up to date information.
Alternate Realities Highlights Alternate Reality showcases innovative non-fiction and immersive documentary in all forms. From virtual reality to artificial intelligence, sound art to performance. These works break the boundaries of traditional documentary practice and explore how both the digital and the physical can connect us.
Talks Highlights We’re honoured to welcome some of the world’s leading voices in film, immersive media and activism to Sheffield this June, to discuss their expansive careers and creative work. Our guest speakers are pushing the boundaries of storytelling with their unique approaches to form and style. Each of our Talks will take audiences on a journey of discovery, exploration and reflection. Prepare to be inspired.
Support by Arts Council England. Our commission, Feminist Economics Football: A Cooperative Game for Sheffield is a live three sided match, played on a hexagonal pitch and taking collaboration to a new level. Played during the festival and open to the public, the game will be filmed and edited into a work to be shown in Site Gallery - our main exhibition space. Our VR works sit in multiple venues across the city and include the multiplayer Gondwana, which allows you to roam the world’s oldest tropical rainforest with fellow audience members, and the full room installation Kubo Walks the City where you can explore 1930s Seoul in the footsteps of the Korean writer, Kubo. Site Studio offers a space for rest including Recharge by Dries Deporter which, through the magic of AI, powers your mobile phone when you close your eyes, whilst The Sound Voice Project features new co-created music by Hannah Conway who worked with medical professionals and people who experienced voice loss. Over in the Town Hall, The Acquisition Panel places you inside a committee where you collectively decide if a controversial colonial object will be allowed into the local museum. Our immersive installation, Escaping Gravity, fills the entirety of Event Space, highlighting human desire for progress through the story of Britain’s Imperial Airship programme. Come join us – play, rest and reconnect with us in this year’s Alternate Realities Exhibition.
Cutting the ‘Fame’ Trilogy: Asif Kapadia and Chris King Fri 24 June, 15:30, Showroom
Reflecting on his own past successes, our guest curator Kapadia will participate in a conversation with frequent collaborator, editor Chris King. ‘Cutting the ‘Fame’ Trilogy’ will be the first occasion in which Kapadia and King come together to discuss their decision-making about what scenes and sequences they chose to leave out of Amy, Senna, and Diego Maradona.
David Olusoga: StoryTrails – a Journey Through Time and Space Sun 26 June, 15:30, Memorial Hall
StoryTrails is a unique, immersive storytelling experience, using the latest multimedia technologies to bring untold stories to life where they happened. StoryTrails executive producer David Olusoga will launch the project at Sheffield DocFest before it begins a UK-wide summer tour, including Sheffield. StoryTrails is one of 10 projects commissioned for UNBOXED: Creativity in the UK.
Pratibha Parmar in Conversation Sun 26 June, 14:00, Pennine Theatre
Globally recognised filmmaker and human rights activist director Pratibha Parmar joins us for an in-depth conversation about her prolific career. Pratibha’s documentaries have showcased the work of iconic women throughout history, as well as contributing to the visibility of marginalized LGBTQIA+ communities. Pratibha will discuss the making of My Name is Andrea, her creative approach to filmmaking, and her inspirations.
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Special Programmes
Opening Night Film
Film Programme Highlights
The tragedy and inhumanity of the war in Ukraine, the spirit of collaborative co-creation across a variety of disciplines and the cinematic landmarks of filmmaker Asif Kapadia comprise this festival’s special programmes. Together, they shine a light on ways that creativity can address challenges and can also inspire.
Moonage Daydream will thrill David Bowie fans and film-lovers alike. We are delighted to open the festival with the UK premiere of Brett Morgen’s documentary at the legendary City Hall where Bowie played 50 years ago this June.
Even in an age when our lives are inundated with images, documentaries continue to play a vital role in the way we interact with the world. They not only show us the realities of life across the globe, they forge a connection between audience and subject, as the rich and diverse programme of features and shorts in this year’s festival show. They span the full spectrum of documentary production, from investigative journalism to experimental/ hybrid works – and everything in between. Each film invites audiences to engage with them; to be inspired and even challenged by the stories they tell.
Moonage Daydream
Thu 23 June, 19:30, City Hall, UK Premiere
A Documentary Journey with Asif Kapadia Sheffield DocFest’s 2022 Guest Curator, award-winning filmmaker Asif Kapadia, selects documentaries that had significant impact for him, inspiring his own style and creative choices. Highlights include Martin Scoresese’s Italianamerican, Jean Bach’s A Great Day in Harlem, and When We Were Kings – about the boxing match between George Foreman and Muhammad Ali. “Without this film, there would be no Amy. There would be no Senna. There would be no Diego Maradona” says Kapadia.
This glorious cinematic odyssey features kaleidoscopic imagery, personal archive footage and unseen performances, all anchored by Bowie’s own music and words.
Celebrating Local Stories We are proud of our Northern heritage and this year have two engaging titles that showcase the passion of local creative talent.
Follow us on on our social media channels for the most up-to-date announcements:
Strand: Rhythms
Strand: Debates
Mon 27 June, 18:15, Showroom, World Premiere
Sat 25 June, 15:30, Showroom, World Premiere
8 Bar – The Evolution of Grime
The riveting story of Grime, told from the inside, taking in the characters, the music, the fashion, the hits that got away and the way the scene won over the world. Additional Screening: Tue 28 June, 18:15, Showroom
The Oil Machine +Conversation
Emma Davie’s urgent documentary explores our complex relationship with the oil industry, set against the backdrop of the ongoing fight for North Sea reserves. Additional Screenings (film only): Mon 27 June, 20:00, Odeon Tue 28 June, 10:15, Showroom
A Film About Studio Electrophonique +Conversation
Strand: Journeys
Strand: People & Community
Sat 25 June, 10:00, The Light, UK Premiere
Sat 25 June, 18:30, Showroom, World Premiere
A euphoric record of Sheffield-based Studio Electrophonique, which nurtured a generation of nascent superstars such as ABC, The Human League, Heaven 17, Clock DVA and Pulp.
A white-knuckle account of the legendary Czech rock climber’s career and his preparations for the debut of the climbing competition at the 2021 Olympic Games in Tokyo.
Paul Chambers’ uncompromising and moving film looks at the work of a Liverpool-based recovery living centre that uses art and sport to combat addiction.
Our Ukraine focus launches the British Council and Ukrainian Institute’s ‘UK/Ukraine Season of Culture’
Additional Screenings (film only): Sun 26 June, 10:00, Odeon Tue 28 June, 15:45, The Light
Additional Screening: Mon 27 June, 20:45, Showroom
Co-Creation
A Bunch of Amateurs
Strand: Memories
Ukraine. Password: Palianytsia In solidarity with Ukraine, we are proud to present, Password: Palianytsia a collaborative programme with Docudays UA. We will show nine documentaries + VR and artwork. Contemporary Ukrainian life – including the horrific reality of war – will be illuminated by guest Ukrainian filmmakers and artists.
This year Sheffield DocFest has partnered with the Co-Creation Studio at the MIT Open Documentary Lab for one of the festival’s key themes: Co-Creation. Programming across all areas, we offer a range of films, Alternate Realities works, and talks that demonstrate practices and philosophies of co-creation according to the studio’s manifesto, which you can read here: cocreationstudio.mit.edu
Sat 25 June, 21:30, Showroom, World Premiere
Fri 24 June, 17:45, Showroom, World Premiere This affectionate tribute to silver screen dreamers details a group of ageing cinephiles’ attempts to save their filmmaking club, including remaking a classic musical. Additional Screenings: Sun 26 June, 21:15, Showroom Tue 28 June, 12.45, Curzon
Adam Ondra: Pushing the Limits
The Fire Within: Requiem for Katia and Maurice Krafft + Conversation with Werner Herzog Sun 26 June, 15:15, Showroom 4, World Premiere
Drawing from the personal film archive of two ill-fated volcanologists, Werner Herzog explores humanity’s fascination with one of our planet’s most elemental forces. Additional Screening (film only): Mon 27 June, 10:00, The Light Tue 28 June, 20:45, Showroom
One Day at a Time
Additional Screening: Tue 28 June, 10:00, Showroom
Strand: Rebellions
Lyra
Sun 26 June, 18:15, Showroom, UK Premiere An intimate and uncompromising portrait of Lyra McKee, the 29-year-old Northern Irish investigative journalist who was murdered by the New IRA. Support by Bertha Foundation. Additional Screening: Mon 27 June, 13:00, The Light
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