The Leeds Palestinian Film Festival has surged to new heights this month, with sold-out screenings, citywide community events, and a groundswell of public enthusiasm that confirms its place as one of Leeds’ most vital cultural movements.

What began in 2015 as a small grassroots initiative with six films and a shoestring budget has now evolved into a major fixture in the city’s cultural calendar.

This year, the appetite for Palestinian storytelling has been unprecedented. Following capacity audiences for ‘Yalla Parkour’ and the historical drama Palestine 36, organisers have now confirmed that ‘Put Your Soul On Your Hand And Walk’ has also sold out, marking the festival’s third full-house event in less than a week.

The festival’s mission has always been clear: to tell the stories of Palestine as widely, accessibly, and powerfully as possible.

Through films, art, music and community-led programming, it seeks to amplify Palestinian voices, challenge one-dimensional portrayals, and foster deeper understanding and solidarity. That ethos was on full display this week in Beeston, where a collaboration with St Luke’s Cares saw local young people create a striking new indoor mural celebrating creativity, resistance, and community pride.

Designed and painted by children, the mural has transformed the venue into a permanent artwork rooted in resilience. In one of the project’s most tender moments, two babies pressed their tiny painted hands onto the wall, adding the final touches and symbolising a new generation entering the story.

Festival Director Frances Bernstein said the response to Palestine 36 revealed a profound public hunger for overlooked histories.

She said: “Selling out a film about 1930s Palestine sends a powerful signal. This is a chapter of history that is often glossed over, and tonight showed that Leeds audiences are hungry to see it brought to the screen. 

We aren’t just watching a period piece; we are watching the roots of the present. To see a full house engaging with this narrative proves that cinema is still the most vital tool we have for challenging historical erasure.”

What makes the festival’s success even more remarkable is that it remains completely volunteer-run.

As a not-for-profit Community Interest Company with a Board of eight Directors and a committed team of volunteers, it continues to punch far above its weight. Its impact is strengthened by partnerships with local and national organisations, including Hyde Park Picture House, Leeds International Film Festival, Otley Courthouse, Leeds Beckett University, the University of Leeds and many more.

Past highlights have included International Women’s Day programmes, filmmaker Q&As, online editions during the pandemic, and a landmark 10th anniversary series titled “Ten Years, One Vision: Culture as Resistance.”

Now, with three major screenings sold out and community events attracting record numbers, organisers are urging audiences to book remaining events without delay.

For Leeds, this is more than a film festival. It is a celebration of culture, resistance, storytelling, and connection. And this year, the city is showing louder than ever that it wants to listen.