Aesthetica Film Festival 2026: The UK’s Creative Industries Meet in York

This November, the UK’s creative industries meet in York. From film and television to music, games, immersive technology and digital media, the BAFTA-Qualifying Aesthetica Film Festival returns for its 16th edition from Wednesday 4 to Sunday 8 November 2026, bringing leading creative organisations, established practitioners and emerging talent together across the city.

For five days, York’s cinemas, theatres, museums, galleries and creative spaces will host more than 300 films alongside world premieres, live music, games, virtual reality, immersive installations, podcasts, masterclasses, workshops and industry events. It is a programme that reflects the increasingly connected nature of the creative industries — and a festival that has made York its natural meeting point.

“Aesthetica has always been about creating a space where audiences can discover new ideas and where artists and industry can connect,” says Cherie Federico, Festival Director. “With the city’s UNESCO Status, York is fundamental to that. We bring together people working across film, television, music, games, technology and the wider creative industries, and give them a city in which to connect.”

At the heart of the festival is its international film programme, with more than 300 films spanning animation, comedy, dance, documentary, drama, fashion, music video, thriller and more. The 2026 programme features Aisling Bea, David Jonsson, Maxine Peake, Michael Sheen, Sally Phillips and Stephen Fry, alongside a wealth of emerging filmmakers.

Since its first edition in 2011, Aesthetica has championed new voices, with festival alumni going on to receive BAFTA and Academy Award recognition. That commitment to emerging talent remains central to the festival, which places filmmakers at different stages of their careers alongside audiences, producers, commissioners and other industry professionals.

The industry programme brings some of the UK’s most significant creative organisations to York, including Aardman, BBC, Film4, Framestore, ITV, Neal Street Productions, Ridley Scott Associates and Ubisoft. Award-winning practitioners appearing across the programme include Mark Jenkin (Bait, Enys Men, Rose of Nevada), Nina Hartstone and Louise Burton (Saltburn, Wuthering Heights), Mick Audsley (Harry Potter), Neil Forsyth (The Gold) and Brian J. Falconer (Derry Girls).

Alongside sessions on directing, sound design, visual effects, animation and production, audiences can go behind the scenes of a Ridley Scott production and join a celebration of 50 years of Aardman.

The UK Production Summit brings senior figures from film and television to York for panels, keynotes and networking, with commissioners and producers from organisations including Film4, Ridley Scott Associates, Sky and Warner Bros. For York’s creative community, it is an opportunity to engage directly with a national industry that is too often concentrated in London and the South East.

“The ambition has always been bigger than a film festival,” says Federico. “We want Aesthetica to be a place where the industry meets, ideas develop and collaborations can begin. Bringing those conversations to York matters. The creative industries are not something happening somewhere else; they are happening here.”

That sense of connection extends beyond film. A dedicated Music Programme brings emerging artists, record labels, A&R representatives and music professionals together in the city, with the New Music Stage returning to York Theatre Royal on Saturday 7 November. Ten breakthrough artists will perform across indie, folk, jazz, hip-hop, alt-pop and pop, alongside panels, masterclasses and networking with BBC Introducing on Radio 1, Beggars Group (Rough Trade and Matador Records), GQ, Dazed, Universal Music and Futuresound Group.

The festival also looks to the future of storytelling through its Games Lab and VR Lab. Now in its fourth edition, Games Lab returns to the National Centre for Early Music with 50 games across PC, console, headsets and smart devices, showcasing independent developers alongside established studios. The VR Lab explores immersive cinema and the possibilities of 360-degree storytelling.

“The future of storytelling is not one format,” says Federico. “It is film, music, games, podcasts, immersive art, virtual reality and whatever comes next. Aesthetica gives all of those forms a place to meet.”

That approach is particularly at home in York, the UK’s only UNESCO City of Media Arts. The UNESCO City of Media Arts EXPO, taking place at De Grey Rooms on 5 and 6 November, will bring together organisations and creative businesses working across film, games, immersive technology, digital storytelling and creative innovation.

Presented alongside the EXPO is a programme of workshops and talks from York Business School at York St John University, with speakers from Argonon, Creative UK, the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, Innovate UK, Scottish Games Network and Screen Yorkshire. The EXPO and workshops are free to attend, opening up direct conversations between creative businesses, students, audiences and industry professionals.

The festival will also extend into York’s public spaces. Through its partnership with Audible, the Radical Listening Immersive Media Arts Trail will bring new installation-based works by Squidsoup, Steve Messam and Being Now Here to the city from 4–8 November. Using light, sound and interactive technology, the free trail will run from Exhibition Square and York Theatre Royal towards King’s Square.

Audio storytelling takes another place in the programme through Aesthetica’s Podcasting Lounge at City Screen, exploring true crime, investigative journalism, documentary and audio fiction. The partnership with Audible continues with the Listening Pitch, culminating in the premiere of three new documentaries on Friday 6 November, followed by a Q&A, DJ, drinks and networking.

For younger audiences, Family Friendly screenings and workshops at York St John Creative Centre will introduce children aged 7–14 to filmmaking, acting, gaming and stop-motion animation, giving them practical experience of creative technology while developing confidence, collaboration and digital literacy.

The breadth of the programme means that Aesthetica is experienced differently by everyone who attends. A filmmaker might discover a new collaborator at an industry session; a musician might meet a label; a student might encounter a career they had not considered; an audience member might discover an artist or a new form of storytelling. That cross-pollination is central to what Aesthetica has built in York.

“We want people to leave Aesthetica feeling that something happened here,” says Federico. “They discovered an artist, saw a film they won’t forget, met someone they want to work with, or encountered a new form of storytelling. York is the place where those things happen.”

For five days, the city provides the setting for an unusually broad gathering of the people shaping the UK’s creative landscape. Film sits alongside music, games alongside immersive art, established organisations alongside emerging talent. The festival’s venues are spread across the city, but the connections between them are what give Aesthetica its character.

This is where the UK’s creative industries meet.

Tickets and information

Aesthetica Film Festival 2026
Wednesday 4 – Sunday 8 November 2026
York, UK

Festival passes include access to film screenings, masterclasses and events, with selected activities requiring advance registration. Single-screening tickets and one-day, two-day and unlimited passes are available.

York residents Save 25% on a One Day Festival Pass.
Tickets and full programme: Aesthetica Film Festival – asff.co.uk
Press contact: phoebe.cawley@aestheticamagazine.com