Féile 2026: Film programme tackles Gaza, housing and climate crisis
A powerful line-up of free national and international documentaries returns to Derry’s Nerve Centre Cinema this August
Féile Derry’s hugely successful film programme returns this August with a powerful line-up of national and international documentaries at the Nerve Centre Cinema.
The programme will feature films on the ongoing genocide in Palestine and Lebanon, the climate emergency, national and international justice campaigns, Ireland’s housing crisis and Ireland’s folk renaissance.
Several of the screenings will also be followed by discussions with filmmakers, campaigners and people directly involved in the issues explored on screen.
The programme opens with Displace: The Battle for Dublin, a new documentary filmed over four years as Dublin’s broken property market pushes families, tenants, artists and traders out of their homes and communities.
Filmed across kitchen tables, protests and public meetings, it follows an emerging movement demanding housing, justice and dignity in a city where a generation has been left trapped in their parents’ box rooms.
Acclaimed film Life Support will bring audiences inside Gaza’s bombed-out hospitals through the first-hand accounts and footage of international doctors working alongside Palestinian medical staff.
With international media barred from reporting inside Gaza, the film documents healthcare workers attempting to save lives amid starvation, dwindling supplies and an overwhelming influx of casualties, predominantly women and children.
Following the screening, leading gastrointestinal surgeon Dr Nick Maynard returns to Féile to discuss his experiences of volunteering in Gaza’s hospitals and working alongside Palestinian doctors, nurses and medical students since October 2023.
Birds of War tells the extraordinary love story of Lebanese journalist Janay Boulos and Syrian activist and cameraman Abd Alkader Habak through 13 years of personal archive footage spanning revolution, war and exile.
Photographer and activist Misan Harriman is the subject of Shoot the People, which follows his journey documenting global protest movements and the people driving social change.
Harriman’s work has included powerful images from the Black Lives Matter protests and his documentation of the Palestinian liberation movement.
The film follows grassroots activists fighting for equality, civil rights and social justice, while examining the role photography and digital activism can play in bringing their campaigns to a wider audience.
Belfast filmmaker Seán Murray will present two films during this year’s programme. Filmed on the ground in Lebanon, Journacide investigates Israel’s killing of journalists and media workers in Gaza and Lebanon and the failure of mainstream media organisations to hold those responsible to account.
He will also present The Time is Now! The Story of the Craigavon Two, a short documentary investigating emerging new evidence which campaigners believe points to a grave miscarriage of justice.
The programme will also celebrate Ireland’s folk renaissance with Celtic Utopia. Featuring The Mary Wallopers, The Deadlians, Young Spencer, Lankum and more, the film captures a new wave of Irish musicians who are bold, funny and politically outspoken.
It examines how the artists confront Ireland’s colonial past while using music to question the present and imagine a different future.
Hive Cancer Support will host a screening of A People’s Emergency Briefing which examines the growing demand for action on the climate and nature crisis, bring together experts in climate science, food security, health, economics, national security and nature to explain how the crisis is already affecting everyday life.
All screenings are free to attend, but advance registration is recommended through Eventbrite.com
View the full Féile 2026 programme at www.feilederry.com/feile-2026
FÉILE 2026 FILM GUIDE:
Displace: The Battle for Dublin - Thursday 6th August | 7pm - Nerve Centre Cinema, Magazine Street. Filmed over four years, the documentary follows tenants, families, artists and traders fighting back as Dublin’s property market forces people from their homes and communities.
Life Support - Friday 7th August | 7pm - Nerve Centre Cinema, Magazine Street. International doctors provide a first-hand account of working alongside Palestinian medical staff amid bombed-out hospitals, starvation, dwindling supplies and an overwhelming influx of casualties. The screening will be followed by a discussion with gastrointestinal surgeon Dr Nick Maynard, who features in the film.
Birds of War - Monday 10th August | 7pm - Nerve Centre Cinema, Magazine Street. Lebanese journalist Janay Boulos and Syrian activist and cameraman Abd Alkader Habak share their love story through 13 years of personal footage spanning revolution, war and exile.
Shoot the People - Tuesday 11th August | 7pm - Nerve Centre Cinema, Magazine Street. The film follows photographer and activist Misan Harriman as he documents global protest movements and grassroots campaigns for equality, civil rights and social justice.
Journacide - Wednesday 12th August | 7pm - Nerve Centre Cinema, Magazine Street. Filmed on the ground in Lebanon, director Seán Murray investigates the killing of journalists and media workers in Gaza and Lebanon and the silence of mainstream media in holding Israel to account.
The screening will be followed by a Q&A.
Celtic Utopia - Thursday 13th August | 6pm - Nerve Centre Cinema, Magazine Street. Featuring The Mary Wallopers, The Deadlians, Young Spencer, Lankum and more, Celtic Utopia captures the musicians leading Ireland’s folk renaissance.
The Time is Now! The Story of the Craigavon Two - Thursday 13th August | 7.30pm - Nerve Centre Cinema, Magazine Street. The short documentary investigates new evidence surrounding the convictions of Brendan McConville and John Paul Wootton, which campaigners believe points to a grave miscarriage of justice. The screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Seán Murray.
A People’s Emergency Briefing - Friday 14th August | 7pm - Nerve Centre Cinema, Magazine Streett. Experts explain how the climate and nature crisis is affecting health, food security, the economy and everyday life. Presented by Hive Cancer Support, the screening will be followed by a panel discussion.
All screenings are free. Register in advance at Eventbrite.com
View the full programme at www.feilederry.com/feile-2026