RAI FILM Festival 2025

RAI FILM Festival 2025

Season

Thu 12 - Sun 15 June

The RAI FILM Festival is a biennial event providing a leading showcase for the best in groundbreaking and innovative anthropological documentary filmmaking from around the globe. Organised by the Royal Anthropological Institute since 1985, the festival has created a vital space where cinema, academia, and public dialogue intersect.

The 19th RAI FILM Festival will take place Wed 11 - Sun 15 June here at Watershed and Arnolfini, and will mark the 40th anniversary of this unique celebration of anthropology and filmmaking. With premieres, filmmaker Q&As, panel discussions, and a unique mix of cinema and academia, it is an intimate and global gathering.

Head to the RAI's website for the full programme.


Upcoming screenings & events in this season

Canuto's Transformation

classified 18 (CTBA) S RAI FILM Festival
Canuto's Transformation
Thu 12 June 14:30
Film

Rooted in Indigenous storytelling, this powerful film is created by and for its community, offering a rare perspective from within.

The Women's Olamal

classified 18 (CTBA) RAI FILM Festival
The Women's Olamal
Thu 12 June 15:00
Film

Filmed in Loita, a Maasai region split between Kenya and Tanzania, the documentary follows the lead-up to a spectacular women-centred fertility ceremony that—while celebrated as a traditional practice—is complicated by intergenerational tensions, the politics of gender, and the borders drawn up across the land.

Marching in the Dark

classified 18 (CTBA) S RAI FILM Festival
Marching in the Dark
Fri 13 June 11:30
Film

Marching in the Dark has emerged as one of the most acclaimed documentaries of the year, making waves across the global festival circuit.

I Walk While Glaciers Melt + Heaven Rain Flows Sweetly

classified 18 (CTBA) RAI FILM Festival
I Walk While Glaciers Melt + Heaven Flows
Fri 13 June 15:30
Film

A double-bill screening of I Walk While Glaciers Melt and Heaven Rain Flows Sweetly.

Through the Lens: A Discussion with Bruce Parry
Fri 13 June 18:30
Talk

In conversation with the Chair of the RAI Film Committee Judith Aston, Bruce Parry reflects on his BBC series Tribe, questioning how television can adapt — ethically and creatively — to changing times, and what lessons can be drawn from engagement with multifarious ways of living and storytelling.

Al Djanat

classified 18 (CTBA) S RAI FILM Festival
Al Djanat
Fri 13 June 20:30
Film

This compelling documentary explores a woman’s return to Burkina Faso after her uncle’s death, uncovering deep family disputes over inheritance and the tensions between traditional Mandingo Islam and French law.

Blueberry Dreams

classified 18 (CTBA) S RAI FILM Festival
Blueberry Dreams
Sat 14 June 11:30
Film

Be among the first in the UK to experience the bold new wave of Georgian cinema with this striking premiere.

The Other Profile

classified 18 (CTBA) S RAI FILM Festival
The Other Profile
Sat 14 June 17:40
Film

French filmmaker Armel Hostiou discovers a fake Facebook profile using his photos, inviting women in Kinshasa to audition for a non-existent film.

Avant-Drag!

classified 18 (CTBA) S RAI FILM Festival
Avant-Drag!
Sat 14 June 20:20
Film

Avant-Drag! offers an exhilarating look at ten Athenian drag performers who deconstruct gender, nationalism, belonging, identity, while facing police brutality, transphobia and racism.

Bibiru + Forbidden Dogs

RAI FILM Festival
Bibiru + Forbidden Dogs
Sun 15 June 10:30
Film

Join us for a special double-bill screening of Bibiru: The Panema Dog and The Forbidden Dogs—two powerful films exploring the bonds between humans and dogs across very different cultural and political landscapes.

£5.00 - £12.00 + booking fee.

ALL ACCESS PASS

Includes: Bristol Festival + Online Festival + Online Academic Conference
For those who don’t want to miss a thing

  • General Public: £295
  • RAI Members: £265
  • RAI Fellows: £230
  • Concession*: £150
  • Participants from low-income countries*: £120

FESTIVAL EXPERIENCE PASS

Includes: Bristol Festival + Online Festival
The full film programme, in person and online

  • General Public: £160
  • RAI Members: £150
  • RAI Fellows: £140
  • Concession*: £120
  • Participants from low-income countries*: £90
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