pictureeast film festival
Hard Truths (2025 - Mike Leigh)
Hard Truths Panel Discussion (2025 - Cred: Sharon Kilgannon)
thank you for attending Pictureeast 2025!
PictureEast Film Festival 2025 (PEFF 2025) was a long weekend festival which took place across Newham, which showed feature films, cultural events, short film showcases and panel discussions celebrating the vibrant communities within the borough. At its core, the festival aimed to reignite Newham’s cinematic culture, addressing the closure of beloved cinemas in the area and the resulting lack of access to shared cinematic experiences.
30th January - 2nd February 2025
Experience Exclusive screenings
This year’s festival kicked off with Mike Leigh’s Hard Truths at the brand-new Everyman Stratford International Cinema, followed by more outstanding feature films, short film showcases, and thought-provoking panel discussions. Other highlights included a preview screening of The Fire Inside, a gripping Clarissa Shields biopic; All We Imagine As Light, a Golden Globe-nominated Indian drama; Caribbean Shorts; and a family—friendly screening of The Wild Robot at Discover Children’s Story Centre.
Panellists and performers at Peff 2025
-
![]()
Dr nobunye levin
Lecturer at King’s College London
-
![]()
Dr Ashvin devasundaram
Lecturer at Queen Mary University
-
![]()
dr priyanka basu
Lecturer at King’s College London
-
![]()
Susan Chardy
Actress, On Becoming A Guinea Fowl
-
![]()
Dr paolo novak
Lecturer at SOAS
-
![]()
Natalia Jugheli
London-based Georgian Actress
-
![]()
Prof erica carter
Professor at King’s College London
-
![]()
Caroline Wilson
Creative Producer
-
![]()
Amit Kaur
Fimmaker & Chair at UK South Asian Film Festival
-
![]()
Rungano Nyoni
Director, On Becoming A Guinea Fowl
-
![]()
Becksy becks
Poet and Spoken - Word Artist
-
![]()
Saachi Sen
Singer
-
![]()
Ching Wong
Festival Director at Hong Kong Film Festival UK
-
![]()
Troy Cabida
Poet
-
![]()
Ani Nelson
Actress, Hard Truths
-
![]()
Michele Austin
Actress, Hard Truths
-
![]()
Tuwaine Barrett
Actor, Hard Truths
-
![]()
David Webber
Actor, Hard Truths
-
![]()
Sophia Brown
Actress, Hard Truths
pictureeast steering group
At the very core of PictureEast Film Festival was the invaluable contribution of our Steering Group. Comprising of passionate and dedicated individuals who all live, work or play in Newham, this group was instrumental in shaping the festival every step of the way—from its initial setup to programming, operational execution, and branding.
Hard Truths Audience (2025 - Cred: Sharon Kilgannon)
PRess coverage
We are glad to welcome many journalists to our events to capture the eclectic atmosphere of PictureEast who receive a specially-curated experience
We welcome journalists, film reviewers, writers and press agencies to immerse in our enriching film programme.
If you would like to cover PictureEast 2026 please email: info@tnbfc.co.uk
The Fire Inside (2025 - Rachel Morrison)
Sign up for pictureeast 2026 updates!
Sign up with your email address to receive news and updates on PictureEast 2026