OffBeat is the UK’s only dedicated film club celebrating the folk and working culture of the British Isles. We regularly host screenings and events showing this country at its weirdest and most wonderful.
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Town & Country
12th May
Walthamstow Trades Hall
£8
Tickets
We’re kicking off our first ever folk film festival in style with a selection of contemporary documentaries exploring where town and country meet. These films are brilliant, and we’re so excited to share them with you. We’re back at Walthamstow Trades Hall for the first event in the festival, though our timings have changed a little. Doors open at 18:30, with screenings starting at 19:30. Get down early to grab a pizza from Yard Sale, an OffBeat badge, and a cheap pint!
An exploration of place, protest, and everyday rituals across Britain’s shifting landscape.
- Saoirse – A haunting visual poem of inner exile.
- The Badgers – Sheep roam free, but for how much longer?
- Common Ground – Cat and Dog Pond – A quiet triumph of urban ecology.
- Probably Not The Haircut – A barbershop time capsule on Leytonstone High Road.
- The Farm on Our Street – A hidden pocket of green life on the estate.
- Mirrors – Seven years of England caught in a quiet storm.
Folk Traditions: Old & New
13th May
The Garden Cinema (Screen 3)
£12
Tickets
We’re back at The Garden Cinema for an evening of contemporary documentaries exploring folk traditions across Britain. We’re thrilled to be screening these films in a full cinema setting, using the venue’s newest screen. Screenings start at 18:20. Make sure to arrive in good time to grab a drink.
Old rituals, new rhythms – folk customs reimagined for now.
- King for a Day – Padstow’s spring rite, clinging on in modern Britain.
- Ottery – Tar barrels and small-town fire festivals.
- AWAKE! – Wassailing in Dorset; midwinter magic and cider blessings.
- Holmie Day – Shearing sheep the Orkney way.
Tied to The Land
13th May
The Garden Cinema (Screen 4)
£5
Tickets
Join us at The Garden Cinema for an afternoon of contemporary documentaries examining Britain’s deep and complicated relationship with the land. It’s our first time at this venue, and we’re really looking forward to it. This event will take place in the smaller of the two screens we’re using for the festival. Screenings start at 18:40, so get down in plenty of time to grab a drink.
What it means to live with the land – and what happens when it’s taken away.
- Living with the Cuckoo People – A novelist vanishes into a forest in France.
- In the Veins – The heartbeat of coal country, past and present.
- Without Bounds to Beat – Reviving the beat of rural tradition in the digital age.
- Wild Folk – Marcus Tribe shares a lifetime of earth-bound wisdom.
Narrative Shorts and Beyond
13th May
The Garden Cinema (Screen 3)
£12
Tickets
For the first time ever, OffBeat is screening narrative fiction! We’ve put together an evening of contemporary narrative shorts—each one carefully chosen to fit the festival’s spirit. We’re excited to share these films in The Garden Cinema’s newest screen. Screenings start at 20:30, so get down in plenty of time to grab a drink.
Unearthly, uncanny, and right on the edge.
- Sea Coal – The bleak, poetic life of a coastal coal-gatherer.
- The Corpse Road – A dead mother-in-law and a cursed walk to a holy site.
- The Birdwatcher – A dark parable of isolation and obsession.
- Out of the Peat – A queer eco-horror soaked in bog-water and myth.
- Gossip – Secrets swirl in the mist of a tight-lipped community.
- Peter - A filmmaker’s attempt to process loss.
- The Grove - Heresay and ghost stories comebine in eastern Suffolk.
Short and Sweet Folk Tales
13th May
The Garden Cinema (Screen 4)
£5
Tickets
An evening of very short films showcasing Britain’s strangest and most wonderful folky stories. This event will be great fun, taking place in the smaller of the two screens at The Garden Cinema. We’re excited to be here for the first time! Screenings start at 20:45, so get down in plenty of time to grab a drink.
Tiny films with deep roots – magic, memory, and rural surrealism.
- Avebury Sanctuary Complex – Listening to the hum of ancient stones.
- The Angel in the Stone – A Hackney fairy tale buried in stone.
- Baled y Dolmen – Neolithic grief meets Swansea heartbreak.
- Mirie It Is (Dusking II) – A new folk rite to honour the dusk.
- Fools Gambit Morris – Young dancers with bells and purpose.
- Summat to be Seen – Pig in a tree. Backwards. You had to be there.
- Passing Clouds – Sheep shearing becomes cloud alchemy.
- The Final Known of the Unknown – A monk, a relic, and the forest’s edge.
- Stone Hatch – Witness the birth of a stone circle.
Trades and Crafts
14th May
SET Social
£8
Tickets
OffBeat returns to SET Social in Peckham for an evening of contemporary films exploring the trades and crafts of the British Isles, from weavers to thatchers. We love hosting events at SET, and this one is going to be really special. Doors open at 18:30, with screenings starting at 19:30. Get down early to grab a seat, a samosa, and an OffBeat badge!
Makers, keepers, diggers and dreamers.
- Oatmeal Stout – Bottle digging and treasure hunting with Gordon.
- The Pole Liner – One man, many poles, perfect lines.
- Fiodora – A weaver’s rhythm and meditative slowness.
- Layers of Reed – Thatcher’s tales from East Anglia’s rooftops.
- The Nettle Dress – Nettles into cloth, grief into grace.
OffBeat People
18th May
Mildmay Club
£8
Tickets
An afternoon of contemporary short documentaries celebrating the people who make these islands and their culture so unique. This event focuses on the human stories of folk culture, and the films are a joy to watch. It’s our first time at The Mildmay Club, and we can’t wait to share them with you. Doors open at 12:00, with screenings starting at 12:30. Get down early to grab a seat and a cheap pint!
Eccentrics, collectors, and dreamers on their own terms.
- Seven Days To Sidmouth – One man, one horse, one festival.
- Jessie’s Cabinet of the World – A Luton bedroom becomes a museum.
- The Zen Art of Stone Squeezing – Kung-fu meets dry stone walling.
- How Fast Can You Eat a Pickled Egg? – The East End goes egg-crazy.
- Twa Double Doubles – A visual album from Shetland’s edge.
- Under the Forest – The last freeminers of the Forest of Dean.
People With a Plan
18th May
Mildmay Club
£8
Tickets
The festival’s second event at The Mildmay Club shines a light on people in Britain who are on a mission—those who set their minds to something and make it happen. These films are moving, inspiring, and not to be missed. To see them in such a special setting will be a real treat. Doors open at 14:30, with screenings starting at 15:00. Get down early to grab a seat and a cheap pint!
Resilience, resistance, and everyday acts of community care.
- Bellsmyre Caledonia – Pandemic reflections in a Scottish housing estate.
- Leaward – Voices of the River Lea.
- Fortunes is our family name – Kippers, history, and a legacy of smoke.
- In Mist or Cloud – A gull’s eye view of loss and survival.
- Zizzou – A flying machine, a hill, and an artist’s vision.
- Learning to Cry – Becoming a town crier means learning to feel.
Daisy Rickman Live + Guests
18th May
Mildmay Club
£18
Tickets
The incomparable Daisy Rickman closes out the festival with a live gig at The Mildmay Club. She’s invited special guests to support her, and before the main event, we’ll be hosting the festival award ceremony along with a special bonus documentary that’s definitely not to be missed. Doors open at 18:30, with the main event starting at 19:30. A fantastic end to a fantastic festival!
A celebration of creativity, craft, and folk magic.
- Of the Sun and Moon – Two ancient beings must restore the balance.