Sea Change Film Festival 18th – 20th September 2026
Join us for an unforgettable weekend of critically-acclaimed films, special guests and events on the beautiful and remote Isle of Tiree.
Sea Change Film Festival – Scotland’s only film festival dedicated to empowering women in film – returns 18 – 20th September. From a curated line-up of international films spanning animation, documentary and shorts to Q&A’s with women and non-binary filmmakers.
Plus, there’s a packed industry programme of workshops and discussions carefully designed to help you to network and grow your film career.
Festival Programme
We’re excited to launch our full festival programme in late July. Until then, enjoy a sneak-peak of what’s to come:
- Celebration of the 100th anniversary of pioneering animator Lotte Reineger’s The Adventures of Prince Achmed – the oldest surviving animated feature film in the world – with a special event from The Cabinet of Living Cinema. Enchanted Creatures & How to Become One celebrates Reineger’s exquisite hand-crafted silhouette animation, with flying horses, dancing insects and enchanted islands brought to life through live music and sound effect making.
- Contemporary animation showcase featuring Spanish filmmaker Isabel Herguera’s Sultana’s Dream. Taking its inspiration from a feminist sci-fi short story written in Bengal in 1905, Inés sets out on a voyage of discovery around India
- A partnership with Scotland’s Catalan Film Festival, welcoming renowned Catalan director Judith Colell, who will introduce special screenings of her acclaimed new feature Frontera/ Frontier
- An international island collaboration between Tiree and Cuba as we welcome Scottish filmmaker and festival director of Havana Glasgow Film Festival, Eirene Houston to screen her new feature documentary Life Is Dance, featuring live Cuban dancing and Cuban cocktails
- A new collaboration with London Surf Film Festival (LSFF), presenting short films from LSFF’s long-running Women of The Sea showcase, which funds female filmmakers from the UK and beyond to tell diverse stories of women in surf culture
Away from the big screen, we invite you to join us for daily wild swim sessions led by Wild Bathing Oban, a beachside sauna, pilates, yoga and ceilidh classes, Gaelic walks and activities with Tiree’s legendary Ranger Hayley, a shadow puppet workshop and a community-run cafe selling local produce, including Tiree Tea and Hebridean Roast coffee.
What to expect
Here’s what previous festival attendees have said:
- “It’s not just the feminist focus, nor that it’s set on the beautiful island of Tiree that makes the festival so special. It’s the intimacy. Filmmakers, festival-goers, curators and islanders all share lifts between venues, eat jacket potatoes in the community centre An Talla, and swim together… The word I keep coming back to describe Sea Change is special. It’s rare that you get to spend time in a place that truly welcomes you, no matter your age, experience, gender etc.”
– Lara Delmage, SNACK Magazine
- “I’m so grateful that my work brings me to amazing places like Tiree and brings such beautiful people into my life! It was very special seeing ‘Cá a nDeachaigh Mé?’ screened alongside the work of so many incredible women…I’ll remember this weekend forever.” – Étáin Sweeney, Audio Director and Co-creator of Cá a nDeachaigh Mé
Follow Screen Argyll on social media for updates.
Sea Change is run by Isle of Tiree-based Screen Argyll and supported by Screen Scotland. The Screen Argyll Network is supported by Film Hub Scotland, awarding funding on behalf of the BFI National Lottery and Screen Scotland.