Where to watch short films in London
Festivals, independent cinemas and regular nights where you can see short films on a big screen in London.
London has more short film screenings than anywhere else in the UK, but they’re scattered across festivals, independent cinemas and one-off nights. Here is where to start.
Festivals
- London Short Film Festival: every winter, across venues in the city. It is the centre of London’s short film year.
- BFI London Film Festival: every October. It has short film programmes alongside the big premieres.
- Raindance: independent features and a large shorts programme every autumn.
- BFI Flare: the BFI’s LGBTQIA+ festival, every spring, with strong short film programmes.
Independent cinemas
- BFI Southbank: regular short film programmes, events and archive screenings.
- ArtHouse Crouch End: an independent two-screen cinema in north London. It hosted the Greenhorn festival in 2014 and 2015.
- The ICA and the Barbican: both programme artists’ film and short film seasons.
Programmes change often, so check the cinemas’ listings.
Regular short film nights
London has a changing scene of short film nights, run by collectives and small organisations. Some last years; others disappear after a season. Examples include Short Sighted Cinema, which runs screenings and its annual festival, The Shortest Nights. Look on listings sites and social media for nights in your area, and support them. Small screenings like these are where new filmmakers first meet an audience. That was what Greenhorn was for when it started at the New Diorama Theatre in 2011.
Making films in London?
See how to fund a short film and our guides.