Manchester’s film scene in 2020/21: What to look forward to

Manchester has one of the most vibrant culture scenes in the country and the film scene is no different. With a range of cinemas, events, and film festivals, the city has a lot to offer to every cinema-goer and cinephile. 

Even in the current situation there is plenty to look forward to in the next few months, with cinemas reopening and some events moving online.

Grimmfest Film Festival

The autumn festival season in Manchester kicks off with Grimmfest Film Festival taking place between the 7th and 11th of October. Although the festival usually takes place at HOME cinema, this year it has moved to an online platform. As the name indicates, Grimmfest offers a variety of horror films. Across five days of the festival you can watch 20 feature films and two short film programmes.

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Manchester Animation Film Festival

November brings Manchester Animation Film Festival to HOME. It is the largest animation festival in the UK and offers not only film screenings, but workshops, networking events, panel discussions, and more.

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¡Viva! Spanish and Latin American Film Festival

HOME also hosts ¡Viva! Spanish and Latin American Film Festival. With some of the films from this year’s edition being screened in the cinema until October, early 2021 should bring a new edition of the festival with a range of hidden gems from Spain and Latin America.

Manchester Film Festival (MANIFF)

MANIFF is the biggest film festival in Manchester and takes place in March. Last year’s edition brought not only a selection of features and documentaries from all over the world, but also screenings of great classics. With plenty of time until the next year’s edition it is too early to know whether it will move to an online platform as well, but nevertheless MANIFF is definitely worth taking note of.

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MANIFF isn’t the only festival in the spring. The 6th edition of Kinofilm Festival, which is an international festival for short films, was scheduled to be held in March but was postponed due to COVID-19. New dates have not been confirmed yet but we hope the festival will eventually be able to take place.

Apart from the festivals, there is still a lot to do for a film fan in Manchester.

If you prefer mainstream cinema there are a few options, with two Vue and two ODEON cinemas, one of each located in the city centre. Those looking for a powerful cinematic experience may be interested in IMAX screens offered by Vue Printworks and ODEON Trafford Centre.

But, if you’re more into independent and international films, you should definitely keep HOME cinema on your radar. With a range of weekly releases of the best art-house films, as well as special screenings, it can quickly become one of your favourite places in the city.