Four of the Berwick Young Filmmakers and filmmaker Kimberley O’Neill shooting footage by the River Tweed in front of Berwick’s bridges. Photo credit: Chloë Smith

We are excited to announce that Berwick Film and Media Arts Festival will return to Northumberland and home town Berwick-upon-Tweed for its 17th edition from Friday 10 to Sunday 12 September 2021. As we begin to gather again, our reflections on last year have deepened our commitment to creating a more safe and caring space for the people and the artwork we show. After the success of our online edition last year, the Festival programme will also be available digitally via our website unfolding from Friday 10 to Thursday 30 September, alongside podcasts, new writings and streamed events. We believe this hybrid approach will make the programme accessible to more people across the UK and our growing community of international delegates.

Look out for the full programme announcement next Wednesday!

Festival Passes and accreditation will be available from Wednesday 18 August and individual screening tickets available to purchase from Wednesday 25 August.

New and Returning Colleagues in 2021

Extending a warm Berwick welcome to WRoCAH-funded PhD Candidate at the University of Leeds Alice Miller joins the Programming Team this year to interrogate the ways our Call for Entries operates and the festival’s history with the locality of Berwick. Michael Pierce and Monika Rodriguez from Liverpool-based Cinema Nation are our new Communication Managers, supporting alternative methods of conversations internally and externally. Malcolm Howson as our new Finance Officer and Berwick artist and performance-maker Chloë Smith’s role has been reshaped to strengthen our links with our local communities.

Young People Update & announcements

Chloë has already been busy with the Young Berwick Filmmakers Summer School. A new team of filmmakers collaborated with artist Kimberley O’Neill to create a short film called Intended Ten: The Fate of the Middle Place. The film will premiere online as part of the Festival. There will be further opportunities for young people local to Berwick to learn about film programming to be announced soon.

Practical Information – Health and Safety

In preparing for the Festival this year, the health and safety of our audiences, team, filmmakers and partners has been at the heart of our planning throughout. Although many restrictions surrounding COVID-19 are no longer a legal requirement, BFMAF remains cautious in our efforts to make screenings accessible and safe for all those returning to the cinema space in person.

In line with these concerns the festival will take place at fewer venues than in previous years. Our main Festival venue will be The Maltings, where our physical screenings will take place, whilst The Peace Church and The Gymnasium will offer spaces to gather outside of the busy festival environment.

Find out more here.

Travel Information

If you are planning to visit the Festival in person this year, we have put together travel and accommodation recommendations for your trip to Berwick-upon-Tweed on our website. If booking your travel on public transport, we advise booking as early as possible as prices can vary. You can find out more here.

Partnerships and Funders

We are grateful to all of our funders, sponsors and donors who make the work we do possible. Berwick Film & Media Arts Festival is an Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation and a registered charity. We fundraise for all of our artistic programme and core costs with support from public bodies, charitable trusts, foundations and individual donations. These contributions directly support the artists, filmmakers, audiences and creative professionals with whom the Festival works. The principal supporters of the 17th Berwick Film & Media Arts Festival are the BFI, awarding funds from the National Lottery, Community Foundation serving Tyne & Wear and Northumberland, and Northumberland County Council.