Iris Prize LGBTQ+ Film Festival goes on tour, honouring lesbian-focused films for LGBTQ+ History Month
"We are thrilled to be visiting 25 locations, and still growing," says festival director Berwyn Rowlands
By Aaron Sugg
The 20th anniversary celebrations of the Cardiff-based Iris Prize LGBTQ+ Film Festival will honour lesbian-focused films in light of LGBTQ+ History Month, touring new locations.
In partnership with Diva Film Festival, the LGBTQ+ initiative will visit at least 25 towns and cities across Wales, England and Scotland between February and March 2026.
Beginning 31 January, this year’s film festival with focus on themes of science and innovation, coinciding with chosen film Iris on the Move.
The set will include the 2025 Iris Prize winner and Best British winner
The set will include the 2025 Iris Prize winner, One Day This Kid, directed by Alexander Farah and Best British winner Chris Urch for his film Blackout, giving audiences outside Cardiff the chance to see award-winning queer cinema on the big screen.
Among the highlights is Never Never Never, the latest Iris Production, a heartwarming queer love story set in a Welsh fishing village, which forms part of the touring programme.
Another of the featured films is Jackie, a short documentary about pioneering lesbian activist Jackie Forster, whose underground sperm donor network helped some of the first queer women to have children.
The tour will present two short-film programmes – Iris 2025: Best Bits and When Love Broke the Law , alongside the feature documentary 3000 Lesbians Go To York inspired by Jane Traies‘s illustrated book.
Where will the Iris Prize LGBTQ+ Film Festival tour?
For the first time, Iris on the Move will visit two new venues in its 11th year: The Arzner in London on 31 January and Filmhouse in Edinburgh on 3 March.
Other destination stops include: Cardiff, Manchester, Swansea, Newcastle, Chester, Bangor, Aberystwyth, Plymouth and Sheffield.
Audiences will be able to speak with filmmakers post-screening with festival director Berwyn Rowlands attending most venues.
“We are thrilled to be visiting 25 locations” – Berwyn Rowlands on Iris Prize LGBTQ+ Film Festival’s 20th anniversary
Rowlands said in a news release: “Taking the best of Iris on the Move has become a core element of our work in sharing LGBTQ+ stories.”
He continued: “We are thrilled to be visiting 25 locations, and still growing, thanks to the support of S4C.”
The full Iris Prize Festival will return to Cardiff in October 2026 for its 20th edition, running from 12 to 18 October. Submissions are now open, available to share via the Iris Prize LGBTQ+ Film Festival official website.
You can view their tour schedule via their official online calendar.
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