The South London Film Festival (SLFF) 2026 runs from 12th to 27th September 2026 at Picturehouse Ritzy, Brixton, and features one of the strongest line ups of Black British and Black-produced film in the festival’s six year history. This includes shorts backed by Jordan Peele’s Monkeypaw Productions and Idris Elba, a BAFTA-winning animation, and star turns from Ashley Walters, Nathalie Emmanuel, Sheila Atim and Wunmi Mosaku.
Scroll through to see the list of black made, directed and produced films at SLFF and get your tickets to support these productions.
Black-produced films at SLFF 2026
The two biggest Black-produced titles at SLFF 2026 are Spilled Milk and The Pigs Underneath, both executive produced by Jordan Peele through Monkeypaw Productions, and How to Hide It, executive produced by Idris Elba and Sabrina Elba. All three screen during the festival’s opening weekend and closing night respectively (see dates below).
When and where is The South London Film Festival 2026?
- Dates: 12th to 27th September 2026
- Venue: Picturehouse Ritzy, Brixton, South London
- Tickets: southlondonfilmfest.co.uk
- Now in its: sixth year
Films backed by Jordan Peele and Idris Elba
Spilled Milk
- Director: Jared Leaf
- Executive Producer: Jordan Peele, via Monkeypaw Productions and the TIFF “No Drama” initiative
- Screens: Saturday 12th September, Official Awards Showcase 2026
- What it’s about: A father’s routine trip to buy milk turns into an unsettling encounter with a mysterious figure called “The Milk Man.”
The Pigs Underneath
- Director: Charlie Dennis
- Executive Producer: Jordan Peele, via Monkeypaw Productions
- Starring: Josh Tedeku, Vinette Robinson
- Screens: Saturday 12 September, Official Awards Showcase 2026
- What it’s about: A working-class town forced to meet a brutal quota to survive — a heightened look at inequality and systemic class oppression.
How to Hide It
- Directors: Ramla Ali (professional boxer and Olympian) and Richard A. Moore
- Executive Producers: Idris Elba and Sabrina Elba
- Screens: Sunday 27th September, She Owns the Scene Vol. 2 + Closing Night
- What it’s about: A British-Sudanese Muslim woman wins £184 million on a lottery ticket and must reconcile the win with her faith and family.
Films centring Black identity and experience
Two Black Boys in Paradise
- Format: BAFTA-winning animated short
- Based on: the poem by Dean Atta
- Narrated by: Jordan Stephens
- Screens: Saturday 12 September, Official Awards Showcase 2026
- What it’s about: Two young men on a journey toward self-acceptance, belonging and love.
Bashy – How Black Men Lose Their Smile
- Director: George Power
- Featuring: Ashley “Bashy” Thomas
- Screens: Sunday 13 September, Behind the Smile (with The Film and TV Charity)
- What it’s about: A stripped-back visual piece on identity, vulnerability and the accumulation of micro-aggressions in Black men’s lives.
Leaving Ikorodu in 1999
- Director: Rashida Seriki
- Starring: Sheila Atim, Tobi Bakre, Tomi Ojo
- Recognition: BIFA-longlisted
- Screens: Sunday 27 September, She Owns the Scene Vol. 2 + Closing Night
- What it’s about: A ten-year-old girl leaves Nigeria to reunite with her mother in London, while the aunt who raised her questions whether the move is right for the child.
Star-led drama and music at SLFF 2026
Echoes
- Director: Alex Lanipekun
- Starring: Ashley Walters, Nathalie Emmanuel
- Screens: Sunday 13 September, Behind the Smile
- What it’s about: A successful businessman reunites with a homeless childhood friend, surfacing buried trauma from their boarding-school years.
Starboy
- Director: AR Ugas
- Starring: Malcolm Kamulete, Michael Salami, Akai Coleman
- Screens: Saturday 12 September, Official Awards Showcase 2026
- What it’s about: A rising rapper confronts the real-world consequences of his music’s influence at a young fan’s birthday party.
Far From the Plains
- Director: Luigi Sibona
- Starring: Amari Bacchus (Adolescence), Kojey Radical, Faith Alabi
- Screens: Sunday 13 September, Behind the Smile
- What it’s about: A teenager finds refuge in a South London stable as his mother struggles with depression and loss closes in.
Dave – The Boy Who Played the Harp (music video)
- Director: Edem Wornoo
- Artist: Dave, BRIT and Mercury Prize-winning musician
- Screens: Saturday 12 September, Official Awards Showcase 2026
- What it’s about: The official video for the title track of Dave’s album The Boy Who Played the Harp.
MANGO
- Writer/Director: Joan Iyiola
- Executive Producer: Wunmi Mosaku, BAFTA winner
- Screens: Sunday 27 September, She Owns the Scene Vol. 2 + Closing Night
- What it’s about: An independent florist privately living with fibroids while preparing for a career-changing opportunity.
Black CINEMA schedule at SLFF 2026
| Film | Director(s) | Black talent in front and behind the camera | Screening date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spilled Milk | Jared Leaf | Jordan Peele (Executive Producer) | Sat 12th Sept |
| The Pigs Underneath | Charlie Dennis | Jordan Peele (Executive. Producer), Josh Tedeku, Vinette Robinson | Sat 12th Sept |
| Two Black Boys in Paradise | Baz Sells | Dean Atta (poem), Jordan Stephens (narrator) | Sat 12th Sept |
| Starboy | AR Ugas | Malcolm Kamulete, Michael Salami, Akai Coleman | Sat 12th Sept |
| Dave – The Boy Who Played the Harp | Edem Wornoo | Dave (artist) | Sat 12th Sept |
| Echoes | Alex Lanipekun | Ashley Walters, Nathalie Emmanuel | Sun 13th Sept |
| Bashy – How Black Men Lose Their Smile | George Power | Ashley “Bashy” Thomas | Sun 13th Sept |
| Far From the Plains | Luigi Sibona | Amari Bacchus, Kojey Radical, Faith Alabi | Sun 13th Sept |
| How to Hide It | Ramla Ali, Richard A. Moore | Idris Elba, Sabrina Elba (exec. producers) | Sun 27th Sept |
| MANGO | Joan Iyiola | Wunmi Mosaku (exec. producer) | Sun 27th Sept |
| Leaving Ikorodu in 1999 | Rashida Seriki | Sheila Atim, Tobi Bakre, Tomi Ojo | Sun 27th Sept |
Frequently asked questions
Is Jordan Peele involved in The South London Film Festival 2026? Yes. Jordan Peele executive produced two shorts in the programme, Spilled Milk and The Pigs Underneath, both developed through his production company Monkeypaw Productions.
What films did Idris Elba produce for SLFF 2026? Idris Elba and Sabrina Elba executive produced How to Hide It, co-directed by Ramla Ali and Richard A. Moore, which closes the festival on 27th September 2026.
Which SLFF 2026 films star well-known Black British actors? Echoes stars Ashley Walters and Nathalie Emmanuel; The Pigs Underneath stars Josh Tedeku and Vinette Robinson; Leaving Ikorodu in 1999 stars Sheila Atim; and MANGO is executive produced by Wunmi Mosaku.
Tickets are available at southlondonfilmfest.co.uk.
By Tessa Lwanga