S.O.U.L. Fest Film Festival x ABFF London, the UK’s leading Black British film festival, returns for its eighth edition from 5–13 September 2026.
For the first time, this year’s festival opens in Newcastle before returning to Birmingham and BFI Southbank in London, alongside a new nationwide four-day online industry programme connecting emerging filmmakers with leading voices across film and television.
The 2026 edition runs: Tyneside Cinema, Newcastle on Saturday 5 September; MAC Birmingham on Sunday 6 September; an online industry programme from Monday 7 to Thursday 10 September; and the flagship weekend at BFI Southbank from Friday 11 to Sunday 13 September.
Produced by We Are Parable, The British Blacklist and S.O.U.L. Film, in partnership with the American Black Film Festival (ABFF), and supported by Founding Sponsor Sony Pictures Entertainment and Venue Partner BFI Southbank, the festival brings together an outstanding programme of films, exclusive previews, industry conversations and special events celebrating global storytelling.
Both BAFTA- and BIFA-qualifying, S.O.U.L. Fest has filled more than 5,800 seats, screened 133 films and showcased 147 filmmakers since becoming an annual festival in 2019. The 2026 edition is its largest expansion to date, taking the festival from the Southbank to the Midlands to the Northeast in a single week connecting audiences through an ambitious programme of screenings, conversations and professional development.
Nicole Friday, Co- Founder & Producer of the American Black Film Festival (ABFF): & President, NICE CROWD, commented:
“ABFF has always believed that great storytelling has the power to connect people, cultures and creative communities. Our collaboration with S.O.U.L. Fest reflects that shared vision, creating opportunities for artists, industry leaders and audiences to come together, exchange ideas and celebrate outstanding work from around the world. We’re excited to continue building bridges that expand opportunity and strengthen the global creative community.”
Sony Pictures Entertainment leads this year’s industry programme with two signature conversations that champion emerging talent and explore the future of storytelling. Bringing together award-winning filmmakers, creative leaders and cultural voices from film, television, anime and sport, the sessions reflect the festival’s commitment to expanding access, elevating new perspectives and fostering the next generation of storytellers.
Beyond the Screen: Black British Talent, Anime and the Future of Storytelling 12th September,12:30 pm, NFT2, BFI Southbank), presented by Sony Pictures Entertainment with Crunchyroll, explores how anime has become a powerful cultural force influencing sports, music, world-building, performance and storytelling. Moderated by award-winning multimedia journalist Raquel, the conversation brings together Crunchyroll Presents: The Anime Effect co-host LeAlec Murray alongside West Ham United footballer Kyle Walker-Peters and rapper and manga author Shao Dow to explore how anime and adjacent storytelling traditions shape culture, fandom and creative identity, and how Black creatives, performers, athletes and fans are helping redefine the future of global fandom and entertainment.
One film will connect audiences across all three festival cities. Black Is Beautiful: The Kwame Brathwaite Story (2025, 98 mins) is the 2026 festival film British director Yemi Bamiro’s portrait of the Harlem photographer and activist who helped popularise the phrase and gave the movement its visual language. Across a seventy-year career, Brathwaite shot half a million images, from people on the street to Nina Simone, Muhammad Ali, Marvin Gaye and the Jackson Five, insisting on joy and beauty at a time when that was a radical act. It features Alicia Keys, Swizz Beatz, Gabrielle Union, Jesse Williams and Tyler Mitchell, with Keys and Swizz Beatz among the executive producers. Following its world premiere at the BFI London Film Festival, the film opens S.O.U.L. Fest at Tyneside Cinema, Newcastle on Saturday 5 September, screens at MAC Birmingham on Sunday 6 September, and opens the London weekend at BFI Southbank on Friday 11 September. 8.25pm, NFT1. Bamiro will attend all three screenings for post-film Q&As, with the Newcastle conversation hosted by broadcaster and journalist Ellen E. Jones. London and Birmingham hosts to be announced.
S.O.U.L. Fest North East at Tyneside Cinema, Newcastle (Saturday 5 September) builds a full day around shorts from Northeast filmmakers and a competitive shorts showcase, each with an accompanying panel, followed by the Northern Premiere of Black Is Beautiful with a live Q&A hosted by Ellen E. Jones, and an evening networking reception. Funded by Northeast Screen and Newcastle City Council, supported by Northern Roots, and delivered with outreach partner World Headquarters.
S.O.U.L. Fest Midlands at MAC Birmingham (Sunday 6 September) marks a third year in the Midlands, running the same full-day format with shorts from Midlands filmmakers, a competitive shorts showcase, panels, a screening of Black Is Beautiful and a networking reception.
The online industry programme (Monday 7 -Thursday 10 September, 6.30pm each evening) replaces this year’s masterclass strand with four evenings of webinars connecting filmmakers with the people who can move their careers forward, wherever in the country they’re based including an agents session putting emerging writers and directors in front of the people who represent them, and a script surgery offering direct feedback on work in development. Sessions are £7 each and open to filmmakers nationwide.
A networking breakfast hosted by Channel 4 at its London headquarters (Thursday 10 September, 9am–11am) brings filmmakers together with commissioners and executives.
BFI Player
New for 2026, a selection of festival films will stream on BFI Player for one month after the festival closes, extending the programme’s reach well beyond the nine days and giving audiences outside the three host cities a route into the work
The festival will also screen shorts from emerging talent in London, Birmingham and the North East, and will announce winners across seven categories at the 2026 S.O.U.L. Fest x ABFF London Awards at BFI Southbank on Sunday 13 September.
Past recipients include Letitia Wright, named Best Director in 2025 for “Highway to the Moon” and Susan Wokoma for Best Screenplay “Dark Skin Bruises Differently.” Selection at S.O.U.L. Fest qualifies a film to enter both the BAFTA Awards and the British Independent Film Awards, so every filmmaker programmed leaves with a route into both.
Tickets for the festival go on sale on August 6 2026
For information on the programme and to purchase tickets visit https://www.soulfilmfest.co.uk/
