A Preview of the 24th annual CINECITY film festival.
This autumn, Brighton’s annual film festival returns with what will be its 24th iteration. Every year the festival brings both international and local cinema to the city, across five independent venues (and one dance venue). Bringing audiences to Brighton for first-sight, one-off screenings makes the CINECITY film festival one of the most anticipated events on the city’s cultural calendar.
The festival opens on the evening of November 6, with a screening of I See Buildings Fall Like Lightning (2026) ‘The latest film by acclaimed British director Clio Barnard’, at the Duke of York’s cinema. The Badger will have the opportunity to bring its readers a review of this film when it is screened at the Attenborough Centre for the Creative Arts (ACCA) on November 11. Screenings at the ACCA bring the film festival to the University of Sussex campus, opening up opportunities for students at the University to get involved with the festival. There will be three screenings held at the ACCA, I See Buildings Fall Like Lightning, Ultimate Thunder (2026) – also with a Q&A, and the 36 Hour Film Challenge.
This year’s 36 Hour Film Challenge will be the fifth organised by the film festival and the University. In a collaborative effort, students from the School of Media, Arts, and Humanities are eligible to participate in the challenge, and those who take part get to see their film screened at the ACCA. The Film Challenge demonstrates how involved students can get with the film festival, an opportunity for students to express themselves and experience the atmosphere of a major film event.
The festival closes on November 15 with the highly anticipated Elsinore (2026), again at the Duke of York’s. Telling the story of “The tumultuous final months of a renowned British
actor’s life.” Andrew Scott takes on the role of Ian Charleson portraying Hamlet at the National Theatre, however, “Unknown to most people, Charleson is dying of AIDS.” The screening has already sold out, demonstrating how eager audiences are to see how Scott has been able to capture the film’s emotional central role.
Once again, the festival’s theme is ‘Adventures in World Cinema’ with CINECITY bringing one-off screenings of films from all over the world to Brighton. Big Girls Don’t Cry (2026) – another film that The Badger will be bringing you a review of – comes from New Zealand. Rose (2026) with Project Hail Mary (2026) and Digger (2026) star Sandra Hüller won the Silver Bear Award at the Berlin Film Festival. Club Kid (2026) was ‘one of the standouts at this year’s Cannes’ and has been described as a “love letter to queer nightlife”.
This year’s CINECITY film festival looks set to be as enthralling and intriguing as ever. With the festival bringing cinema and film events both to the University campus and the city of Brighton, there is no reason for students at the University of Sussex not to get involved with CINECITY this year.
All information regarding the festival can be found on the CINECITY website – https://www.cine-city.co.uk/
All quotes taken from the CINECITY Press Release.
Another article you might like – https://thebadgeronline.com/2026/10/digging-for-the-truth-the-badger-goes-to-the-cinema/