2023 Sheffield DocFest Highlights Guide

Visitor 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

Tickets are available online at sheffdocfest.com or in person at the Showroom Cinema. For enquiries email boxoffice@sheffdocfest.com or call 0330 122 8870.

Single Tickets

Film screenings at the Showroom, Curzon, and The Light cinemas –

£10 Standard / £6.50 Concession

DocsForAll: £6.50

Applies to cinema screenings starting before 14:00 on weekdays, and all day on Mon 19 June.

Screenings and events at The Crucible Theatre

£12 Standard / £8 Concession

Opening Night at Sheffield City Hall

£18 Standard / £12 Concession plus booking and transaction fees

Opening Night Film

Perspectives on Iran Alternate Realities Exhibition

DocLover Ticket Packages

Buy a DocLover package and get discounted tickets for film screenings at the Showroom, Curzon and The Light cinemas. Select up to 4 tickets per screening. Standard DocLover pass holders also receive a £2 discount for screenings and events at The Crucible Theatre.

DocLover 5: £40 Standard / £30 Concession

DocLover 10: £75 Standard / £55 Concession

Access & Affordability

Complimentary tickets are available for Personal Assistants, Carers or sign language interpreters, and must be booked in advance. To view up to date details of our services, including BSL interpretation, live captioning, relaxed screenings, subtitled and captioned films, please visit sheffdocfest.com/attend/accessibility

Concession tickets are available to claimants, full-time students and over 60’s.

Our new DocsForAll concession is available to anyone who cannot afford a full-price ticket. No proof of status is required and we operate this concession on a trust basis.

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.

Wed 14 June, 18:15

Doors open at 17:15

Sheffield City Hall –Oval Hall

We are delighted to open Sheffield DocFest 2023 with the world premiere of Paul Sng’s inspiring documentary portrait of photographer and activist Tish Murtha.

Tish Murtha’s photography gave voice to the often unspoken concerns of her subjects, who ranged from children and adolescents to unemployed adults, sex workers and families struggling to live in modern-day Britain. Born in the northern coastal town of South Shields, Tish began her extraordinary career in the late 1970s.

Driven by a fierce conviction to record the impact of Thatcher era de-industrialisation upon local communities, her striking black and white images convey a tenderness and intimacy that set her apart from her peers.

In Tish, Paul Sng celebrates the vision and profound humanism of this gifted photographer. As the film questions the value placed on art and artists from working class roots, we follow Tish’s daughter Ella, as she fights to preserve her mother’s legacy. No less striking than the work of its subject, Tish is a powerful tribute to a vital artist, activist and social chronicler, and a rallying call to all whose engagement with art questions who gets seen and heard, who doesn’t, and why.

The film is followed by a Q&A with director Paul Sng, alongside special guests.

Sheffield DocFest curates a special focus on Iran, which includes a retrospective of our Guest of Honour Rakhshan Banietemad.

Playing in tandem with Rakhshan Banietemad’s films are a selection of new and vital documentaries. They range from female filmmakers surveying the limitations placed on their lives and work, a reassessment of the male gaze in cinema and an account of the insidiousness of censorship, to a dark portrait of political interrogation and a celebration of friendship across two continents. Together, they explore the challenges of everyday life in Iran, but also hope for change and a brighter future.

Guest of Honour: Rakhshan Banietemad in Conversation

Fri 16 June, 13:30, Crucible Playhouse

Our Guest of Honour, Rakhshan Banietemad, will discuss her career, reflecting on her critically acclaimed and award-winning body of work, as well as premiering a short film she created during the pandemic. As a key figure on the landscape of Iranian documentary filmmaking, Rakhshan’s work has undoubtedly shaped and influenced the industry and its creatives in the region. She will be joined on stage by other Iranian documentary filmmakers.

Shorts: Iran – A Sense of Place

Sun 18 June, 12:45, Showroom 3 Mon 19 June, 15:00, Showroom 2 Inspired by Wim Wenders’ book A Sense of Place this anthology project sees a group of Iranian filmmakers develop new work exploring their connection with the world around them.

Highlights

Women Like You:

Three Films from the Sheffield Film Co-op

Thursday 15 June, 18:00, Showroom 3

This programme brings together three films spanning the Co-op’s history, from their early DIY activist work to innovative hybrid experiments and compelling investigative documentaries.

Jews. In Their Own Words.

Thu 15 June, 19:30, Crucible Playhouse

A special, one-hour abridged version of Jonathan Freedland’s verbatim play, which exposes the roots and explores the damning legacy of antisemitism throughout our society.

Podcast Live Events

Fri 16 June, 19:00, Crucible Playhouse (Podcast Live: Witch)

Sat 17 June, 20:00, Crucible Playhouse (Podcast Live: Soul Music)

We present special podcast events of host India Rakusen’s 28ish Days Later) new show Witch and the first live outing for Soul Music one of BBC’s longest-running documentary audio shows.

Series – The Greatest Show Never Made Sat 17 June, 12:45, Showroom 4

In the early days of a radical new TV show format, six people agreed to appear on a show, unaware of the reality of what was actually going on. This is their story.

This event is an exclusive preview of the first episode of this upcoming new series, followed by a conversation with the creators and special guests.

Featured Films

And, Towards Happy Alleys

Between Revolutions

How Dare You Have Such a Rubbish Wish

My Worst Enemy

Profession: Documentarist

Where God Is Not

Rakhshan Banietemad Retrospective

Angels of the House of Sun

Hey, Humans

Narratives ad Hominem

TISH EXPL RE THE B UNDARIES F TECHN L GY & ST RYTELLING...

Our Times

See You Tomorrow Elina

We are Half of Iran’s Population

...and experience diverse lives through exciting new formats, from virtual reality to immersive dome screens.

Discover unique projects that take us from the experience of mothers and children in incarceration to a playful and provocative immersion in fantasy worlds.

Unearth a hidden history in the development of the automobile (Mrs Benz) and witness the way a popular gaming platform is used to learn how The Great Sphinx of Giza was really made (Wonders: The Great Pyramids). Journey into the story of an indigenous community in Australia (The Galup VR Experience) before discovering how a group of residents from one of Cape Town’s oldest suburbs are finding ways to combat gentrification (No Place But Here).

Experience the intimacy created in the confluence of a car crash and a kiss (Kiss/ Crash) or explore how notions of beauty are upended through the reanimation of dead creatures (Dancing with Dead Animals).

This exhibition highlights the way artists and creators are finding new ways to represent lives and worlds past, present and future. The full exhibition runs throughout the Festival, 14 – 19 June at Site Gallery, 11:00 – 20:00. Free and open to all.

Debates

Films about the things we need to discuss, ranging from the history of interracial fostering in White Nanny, Black Child to the exploration of issues around intersex identity in Every Body and the work of fundamentalist Christians promoting the apocalypse in Praying for Armageddon

Journeys

From venturing out of the front door to exploring a new world, we take a front seat on a journey of discovery, whether it’s into the ocean’s depths with The Deepest Breath or My Friend Lanre’s intimate account of one person’s life.

Rebellions

Stories of people striving for social change and fighting for what matters, whether it’s the study of India’s changing news media landscape in While We Watched or the portrait of activist Aaju Peter in Twice Colonized

Rhythms

This dazzling collection of documentaries, where movement, bodies and music take centre stage, celebrates pop icons such as Cyndi Lauper, Wham! and TLC, as well as exploring as the world of female classical conductors in Maestra

Memories

How the past informs the present – and future – lies at the heart of films in this section, such as Donyale Luna: Supermodel which explores the revolutionary life of the pioneering Black icon.

People & Community

A collection of films, which includes the moving Otto Baxter: Not a F***ing Horror Story that celebrate togetherness through family, friendship and communities.

SPARKING IMAGINATI N C MPASSI N EM TI NS ACTI N MEM RIES REBELLI N C MMUNITY CURI SITY

DocFest at The Crucible

15:00

BBC Interview: David Harewood in Conversation

Actor, director, author and activist David Harewood will discuss his documentary work and the impact it has had on his life.

17:15

Your Fat Friend + Conversation

Jeanie Finlay’s portrait of writer, blogger and activist Aubrey Gordon is a celebratory account of an individual who embraced their identity and challenged lazy stereotypes.

20:30

Dalton’s Dream + Conversation

A compelling portrait of Dalton Harris, the winner of the final series of X-Factor UK as he navigates harassment over his sexuality and representing his home country.

12:30

David Olusoga: Union

Following the success of last year’s interactive StoryTrails events at Sheffield DocFest, David Olusoga returns to discuss his new BBC series, which looks at the state of the Union.

15:00

Rose Ayling-Ellis: Signs for Change

Actor and Strictly Come Dancing 2021 winner Rose Ayling-Ellis will discuss her upcoming BBC documentary Signs For Change

17:30

The Good Fight Club + Conversation

This series charts the fortunes of Mixed Martial Arts athletes fighting to journey from their South London gym to Las Vegas and the world championship.

This event is an exclusive preview of the first episode of this upcoming new series, followed by a conversation with the creators and special guests.

20:30

Munya Chawawa: Satire in Documentary

Munya Chawawa will discuss his unique approach to integrating satire in documentary, keeping viewers engaged and informed.

12:00

Evacuation + Conversation

Gaining unparalleled access and using previously unseen footage, the filmmakers behind this searing three-part series chart the 2021 evacuation of Kabul. This event is an exclusive preview of the first episode of this upcoming new series, followed by a conversation with the creators and special guests.

14:45

Is There Anybody Out There? + Conversation

In this deeply personal and disarmingly honest documentary, filmmaker Ella Glendining searches for individuals with the same rare disability as herself.

18:00

The Price of Truth + Conversation

How important is a free press? Russia’s only independent newspaper and its editor fight against an ever-present threat to democracy.

21:00

Wham! + Conversation

An intimate celebration of George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley’s enduring friendship, from childhood and through their years together as one of the UK’s biggest bands.

10:30

Long Distance Swimmer –Sara Mardini + Conversation

The Syrian swimmer who pulled a boat carrying her and another 18 refugees to safety now copes with the consequences of life as an activist.

13:45

Let the Canary Sing + Conversation

Award-winning director Alison Ellwood explores the personal and public life of Cyndi Lauper in this probing yet hugely entertaining documentary portrait.

17:15

ITV Interview: Laura Whitmore

Laura Whitmore talks about her television career to date. In particular, she will discuss her upcoming move into documentaries with the new ITV series Laura Whitmore Investigates

20:30

TLC Forever + Conversation

In the run-up to their forthcoming tour, TLC look back at their groundbreaking yet tumultuous career as the biggest-selling American girl group of all time.