Welsh Films Screening in Cinemas this Winter

9th October 2024

If you’re looking to fill your calendar with Welsh films this winter and settle into a cosy cinema seat, in front of the big screen, we have the list for you.

It’s already been a busy year for films with Welsh connections in 2024 with dramatic features such as The Almond and the Seahorse, Unicorns and Chuck Chuck Baby, plus the epic animation; Kensuke’s Kingdom, all of which had special Made in Wales interviews to introduce audiences to the Welsh links. 

We have even more to look forward to, starting with Timestalker, which releases October 11th. Director Alice Lowe creates a karmic, hilarious and sometimes violent journey that sees the hapless heroine Agnes reincarnated every time she makes the same mistake: falling in love with the wrong man. The film has a host of Welsh connections from producer Vaughan Sivell to actor Aneurin Barnard, who Made in Wales interviewed this week. It was also filmed in Cardiff and Penpont House in Brecon. 

Welsh Producer Vaughan Sivell explains:

Since my first film, Third Star, we’ve managed to shoot many of our films in part at home in Wales but in this case, we managed to shoot the entirety of Timestalker there. We doubled the Brecon Beacons as the Scottish Highlands, Penpont House as Georgian England and Cardiff Bay as 1980’s New York! The Welsh crew were outstanding and we had an amazing time. I can’t wait for local audiences to see it on the big screen.

Moving on to November, we have two documentaries with globally significant themes. First up is India’s 1st Best Trans Model Agency, from Pembrokeshire based director Ila Mehrotra, releasing November 11th during Transgender Awareness Week. This emotionally charged journey, filmed over seven years, follows the extraordinary story of Rudrani Chettri, her friends and the transgender community of Delhi as they create India’s first ever trans modelling agency. The film explores the complex world of India’s ‘third gender’ (Hijra), where traditional values clash with human rights. The film brings identifiable stories of love and loss, hope and poverty, beauty, glamour and catwalk glory. 

On November 22nd, the multi award winning O R Tambo’s Comrade Tambo’s London Recruits will be launched to a wider cinema going public via what the organisers are calling a ‘People’s Release’. The film, hailed by Variety as an ‘edge of your seats documentary thriller‘, is set at the height of apartheid in the late sixties / early seventies as a group of working-class, anti-racist activists living in London answer Oliver Tambo’s secret call for undercover agents to bring hope to his embattled people inside South Africa. The release is being organised in partnership with the Trade Union movement and solidarity with Southern Africa organisation, ACTSA, in response to nationwide race riots across the UK. A key component will be post-screening panel discussions on how we can all contribute to an anti-racist Britain.   

Welsh Director Gordon Main explains why releases like Comrade Tambo’s London Recruits are so significant:

With an emboldened far right once more on our streets, this film offers a powerful, anti-racist alternative to hate. The London Recruits risked their liberty for a better world. They are an inspiration. Shot in Wales and South Africa, the film is a proud Cymru / South Africa collaboration. It’s a showcase for great talent and locations in both countries and is part of a wider cultural and artistic dialogue that sees Welsh / African creative partnerships as vital for a culturally healthy, outward looking, international Wales.

Also highly anticipated is the second feature from Zambian Welsh Director Rungano Nyoni: On Becoming a Guinea Fowl. The film follows Shula as she drives on an empty road in the middle of the night, stumbling across the body of her beloved uncle Fred. As funeral proceedings begin around them, she and her cousins bring to light the buried secrets of their middle-class Zambian family. Keep your eye out for the release date, coming soon.  

Fans of all things gory, can also look out for ambitious low-budget slasher film Scopohobia from Welsh director and writer Aled Owen this autumn, as well as Protein about a gym obsessed serial killer, coming soon from a team of Welsh producers Craig Russell, Tom Gripper and Dan Bailey. Both films were made in and around Swansea. Audiences can still also catch screenings of creepy British folk horror, Starve Acre, starring Welsh actors Morfydd Clark and Erin Richards.  

Hana Lewis, Film Hub Wales’ Manager on how the Made in Wales project will support these releases: 

Through our Made in Wales project, we work closely with the rightsholders to promote each release, creating assets such as interviews with talent and editorial articles which showcase Welsh elements such as themes or locations, of which audiences might otherwise not be aware. It’s essential that these films reach communities in cinema environments as they help us to see Wales on screen and the world to see us. We can explore our cultural identity in new ways, giving voice to diverse storytellers and challenging stereotypical perceptions of Wales.

Film Hub Wales’ Made in Wales (MIW) project celebrates films with Welsh connections. It offers a host of year-round activities in partnership with Welsh exhibitors, including a film catalogue, which hosts information on over 1000 shorts and feature films and Made in Wales podcast. Audiences can keep up to date with news of upcoming Welsh releases and the latest interviews by following @Madeinwales_ on social media. 

MIW is made possible thanks to funding from Creative Wales and the BFI Film Audience Network (FAN), awarding funds from the National Lottery. BFI FAN offers support to exhibitors across the whole of the UK, to boost cultural programming and engage diverse audiences. In Wales, activity is led by Film Hub Wales, managed by Chapter. 

Download the Press Release

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For more information, please contact:

About Film Hub Wales
Film Hub Wales (FHW) celebrates cinema. We support organisations that screen film, from film festivals, to societies and mixed arts centres. Working with over 300 Welsh exhibitors, we aim to bring the best UK and international film to all audiences across Wales and the UK. Since Film Hub Wales set up in 2013, we’ve supported over 347 exciting cinema projects, reaching over 589,000 audience members.  

We’re part of a UK wide network of eight hubs which forms the British Film Institute (BFI) Film Audience Network (FAN), made possible thanks to National Lottery funding. Film Hub Wales is managed by Chapter.  

We were also proud to lead on the UK inclusive cinema strategy on behalf of BFI FAN 2017-23.
Website, X (Formerly Twitter), Facebook, Instagram 

About the BFI Film Audience Network
Supported by National Lottery funding, the BFI Film Audience Network (FAN), is central to the BFI’s aim to ensure the greatest choice of film is available for everyone. Established in 2012 to build wider and more diverse UK cinema audiences for British and international film, FAN is a unique, UK-wide collaboration made up of eight Hubs managed by leading film organisations and venues strategically placed around the country. FAN also supports talent development with BFI NETWORK Talent Executives in each of the English Hubs, with a mission to discover and support talented writers, directors and producers at the start of their careers.  

BFI FAN Film Hubs are:  

  • Film Hub Midlands is led by Broadway, Nottingham working in partnership with the Birmingham-based Flatpack
  • Film Hub North is led collectively by Showroom Workstation, Sheffield and HOME Manchester 
  • Film Hub South East is led by the Independent Cinema Office 
  • Film Hub South West is led by Watershed in Bristol
  • Film Hub Scotland is led by Glasgow Film Theatre 
  • Film Hub Northern Ireland is led by Queen’s University Belfast 
  • Film Hub Wales is led by Chapter in Cardiff
  • Film Hub London is led by Film London 

Website 

About the BFI
We are a cultural charity, a National Lottery distributor, and the UK’s lead organisation for film and the moving image. Our mission is: 

  • To support creativity and actively seek out the next generation of UK storytellers
  • To grow and care for the BFI National Archive, the world’s largest film and television archive
  • To offer the widest range of UK and international moving image culture through our programmes and festivals – delivered online and in venue
  • To use our knowledge to educate and deepen public appreciation and understanding
  • To work with Government and industry to ensure the continued growth of the UK’s screen industries 

Founded in 1933, the BFI is a registered charity governed by Royal Charter.  

The BFI Board of Governors is chaired by Jay Hunt.
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About Chapter
Set up by artists in 1971, Chapter is an international centre for contemporary arts and culture. It’s a hub for the production and presentation of world-class, inventive and compelling work. Their gallery commissions and produces exhibitions of the very best in national and international art. Their theatre spaces are a platform for experimental and thought-provoking work. Their cinemas offer independent and challenging films alongside a range of unique festivals and events, and they bring more films, to more people, in more places through Film Hub Wales. 

Alongside the core programme, it’s also home to 56 artists and creative companies who are based in their studios. From award-winning animators and film production companies to artists, designers and photographers, and bespoke art framers, print and recording studios, the creative community are at the heart of everything that they do.

Their programme and community collide in the award-winning Caffi Bar that seats around 120 people and is a great place to meet up with friends, find a quiet spot to work away from home, or tuck-in to a tasty plate of freshly prepared, locally sourced food and drink from their extensive menu. 
Website, Facebook, X (Formerly Twitter), Instagram

About Creative Wales
Creative Wales is a Welsh Government internal agency that supports the development of the fast-growing creative industry in Wales. We focus on developing and promoting growth across the Screen, Digital, Music and Publishing sectors, positioning Wales as one of the best places in the world for creative businesses to thrive.
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