Chronic Youth Film Festival 2026

Entering its eleventh year in 2026, this annual two-day film festival at the Barbican is programmed entirely by young people aged 16 to 24 as part of the arts centre’s Young Film Programmers scheme. The free-to-attend, six-month talent development scheme sees the group determine the themes, film selections and connected public events. This year’s programme, curated by a group of ninteen young folk, features With Hasan in Gaza, an experimental work by Palestinian filmmaker Kamal Aljafari (April 25), Rose Troche’s 1994 underground classic Go Fish (April 25), the London premiere of Fifth Cinema, an essay film by  Nguyễn Trinh Thi (April 26) and the UK premiere of Puppygirl, a gonzo documentary following a trans woman’s journey to confront years of sexual repression.