An LGBTQ+ film festival in south Wales is celebrating its 20th anniversary this week, with more internationally acclaimed filmmakers, actors, television creators, and influencers set to attend than ever before.
The Iris Prize LGBTQ+ Film Festival will return to Cardiff on Monday 12 October for a week of screenings showcasing Welsh and global talent.
On the opening night, five new films will be screened, including four from Wales and featuring Welsh talent. These are:
- Love Is Not An Emotion – dir. Will Collins
- Cranogwen a Fi – dir. Mari Izzard
- Wear I Am – dir. Vicky Morton
- Try – dir. Lewis Bayley
- Behind The Scenes of the Pink Portraits 2026 – dir. Kole Parrott
All five filmmakers will be in attendance, as well as talent from the shortlisted films in competition and others from the films showcased on opening night, including:
- Victoria Broom (Actor)
- Suzanne Packer (Actor)
- Marmalade (Drag Queen, Ru Paul’s Drag Race)
- David Grundy (BBC Cymru Wales)
- Felicity Evans (BBC Cymru Wales
- Ali Afzal (Actor)
- Bolly Illusion (Drag Queen)
- Marc Antolin (Actor)
- Rajdeep Choudhury (Iris Alumnus – flying in from India)
- Leo Drayton (Writer and Actor)
Throughout the week there will also be an opportunity to meet filmmakers, talent, and Iris alumni from across the world including the following:
- Andrew Haigh (Director, Weekend)
- Tom Cullen (Actor, Weekend and Black Church Bay)
- Joe Locke (Actor, Black Church Bay)
- Donna Deitch (Director, Desert Hearts)
- Daniel Ribeiro (Director, I Am Going to Miss You , and Iris Alumnus and 2011 Iris Prize winner for I Don’t Want to Go Back Alone)
- Chris Urch (Director, Best British Jury member, and Iris Alumnus and 2025 Best British Short winner for Blackout)
- Paul ‘Stumpy’ Davies (S4C)
- Lisa Baker (Writer, Madfabulous)
- Norena Shopland (Writer and historian)
- Mickey Down and Konrad Kay (Creators, Industry)
- Adam Knopf (Director and Producer)
Iris Prize Festival Director Berwyn Rowlands said: “Sharing stories that the mainstream ignore is one of our USPs. This is followed by offering our audience a chance to meet the talent who have created the films.
“This is something the broadcasters and streaming platforms are unable to do. But at a friendly festival such as Iris, we encourage everybody to make the most of having direct access to directors, writers, producers, and actors.”
The Iris Prize LGBTQ+ Film Festival is a seven-day celebration of LGBTQ+ film which takes place annually in Cardiff. Its Iris Prize of £40,000 is the largest LGBTQ+ short film prize in the world is supported by The Michael Bishop Foundation.
Iris Prize returns for the 20th edition on Monday 12 October until Sunday 18 October, with the support of the BFI National Lottery Audience Projects Fund, awarding National Lottery Good Cause funding.
For more information, visit the festival’s site here and follow their social media for further updates: X: @irisprize BlueSky: @irisprize.org
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