RAI Film

RAI FILM showcases groundbreaking anthropological films, promotes cultural diversity and dialogue, and fosters an inclusive documentary community.

Visit our website and distribution catalogue: raifilm.org.uk

Stream our films: vimeo.com/raifilm/vod_pages RAI FILM is the cinema section of the Royal Anthropological Institute – RAI, the world’s longest-established scholarly association dedicated to promoting the public understanding of anthropology (the study of humankind) in its broadest and most inclusive sense. The RAI publishes journals, has an extensive photographic collection, gives awards for outstanding scholarship, organises lectures and meetings, and manages several trust funds for research. Established in 1955, RAI FILM highlights groundbreaking anthropological films from around the globe. Its mission is to advance the role of film in anthropology and share the richness of anthropological insight with a broad audience. Through film, it explores cultural diversity, encourages intercultural dialogue, supports filmmakers, and fosters a thriving, inclusive community while providing a dynamic platform and valuable resources for discovering the world of anthropological documentary filmmaking. It also seeks to push the established conventions of documentary film to explore new, creative and multimodal approaches to form, narrative, collaboration and reflexivity in filmmaking. RAI FILM has a catalogue of films for educational distribution, is present at platforms such as Alexander Street Press and Kanopy, presents a selection of documentary films available via Vimeo on Demand, and promotes film events across the UK. It has also organised the biennial RAI FILM Festival since 1985.

18/08/2026

If you’re catching rays in the park or catching up on sleep under a blanket this summer, find time to watch HOUSE No. 15 (dir. Aryo Danusiri, 2021, 7'), our August Film of the Month pick. As Caterina Sartori notes, this short film sits at the intersection of themes of youthful play and instances of flood risks and uneven social organisation within Jakarta's geographies.

Use the code Monsoon from now until August 31 to watch HOUSE No. 15 for free and visit our website to read the full accompanying essay from Sartori!

https://raifilm.org.uk/2026/08/house-no-15/

05/08/2026

FREE FILM OF THE MONTH — AUGUST

Happy summertime! This month we’re marking the freedom and playfulness that summer promises, without forgetting the fragility of our urban landscapes in times of climate change and frenetic progress. HOUSE NO. 15 (dir. Aryo Danusiri, 2018, 7’), how do you interpret it?

This film is set during monsoon season in the riverside area of Ciliwung in Jakarta, Indonesia and its single-shot style captures the intimate and unexpected moments of local residents playing navigating life in the murky waters of their flooded basement accommodation. The footage was taken in 2014, a few months before the mass eviction of the neighbourhood, which was the prelude to the local government’s demolition of the entire neighbourhood.

Head to our website here: https://raifilm.org.uk/2026/08/house-no-15/ to watch the film for FREE using the code Monsoon and read the accompanying essay by Caterina Sartori, member of the RAI Film Committee and former RAI Film Officer.

20/07/2026

Happy from RAI FILM! In its 36th year, it's time to celebrate the creativity, resilience, and achievements of disabled people. It's a chance to not only challenge the negative attitudes and experiences that hold disabled people back but also a chance to embrace disability identity positively.

Film is a powerful medium for expressing our unique experiences as a shared visual language. Celebrate this month by discovering four powerful films centring disabled voices and lived experiences. Head to our website to watch > https://raifilm.org.uk/films/keywords-disability-neurodiversity/

16/07/2026

Our July Film of the Month, BARIZ (PARIS) STREET CAMP DAYS, is still available to watch for free until the end of this month! Experience the powerful message on displacement, solidarity and resistance with code SHELTER on our Vimeo channel and read the accompanying article, featured here, by Aris Dougas Chavarria > https://raifilm.org.uk/2026/07/bariz-paris-street-camp-days/

01/07/2026

FREE FILM OF THE MONTH — JULY

At a time when questions of migration, borders, and the right to asylum remain painfully urgent, we spotlight a powerful documentary offering a deeply human perspective on displacement, solidarity, and resistance: BARIZ (PARIS) STREET CAMP DAYS (dir. Nicolas Jaoul, France, 2020, 69min).

Set in the La Chapelle neighbourhood of Paris during the summer of 2015, the film follows East African asylum seekers who, with the support of local residents and activists (including the film director), organised self-managed camps to make their struggle visible and defend their right to housing and legal recognition. Moving between collective political mobilisation and intimate reflection, BARIZ gives space to voices too often ignored.

Head to our website to watch the film for FREE using the code SHELTER and read the accompanying essay by Aris Dougas Chavarrias, PhD researcher in Migration Studies at the University of Sussex > https://raifilm.org.uk/2026/07/bariz-paris-street-camp-days/

25/06/2026

In recognition of (), RAI Film is spotlighting one of our newest releases that featured in .

I WALK WHILE GLACIERS MELT, directed by Lucia Lambarri Barberis, is a stunning visual essay that blends animation and live-action to traverse the Andean mountains of Cusco, reflecting on walking as a medium for embracing life’s fragility and transformation. Revisiting Andean animism, rituals, and pilgrimage, it interrogates modernity and our place amid melting glaciers, while celebrating collective experiences and connections.

Watch the trailer on our website and discover the full film on Vimeo On Demand > https://vimeo.com/ondemand/iwalkwhileglaciersmelt

24/06/2026

Earlier this month, the RAI launched a new exhibition in collaboration with the Afghanistan Society () titled 'The Piruzai - Afghanistan 1971', featuring photographs from Nancy Lindisfarne-Tapper and Richard Tapper. The photographs are available online and in person at the RAI until December.

To celebrate the launch, we're highlighting a few films from the RAI FILM catalogue that explore the life, society, landscapes and music of Afghanistan. To watch, head to our website > https://raifilm.org.uk/films/countries-afghanistan/

22/06/2026

It's nearly the end of June, which means there is still a bit of time left to experience our Film of the Month, MIRROR MIRROR! Watch this ethnographic film about the importance of q***r spaces – for free with code Wotever – and read the accompanying essay from Mateus Nagime here > https://raifilm.org.uk/2026/06/mirror-mirror/

15/06/2026

Halfway through June means that there is still time left to watch MIRROR MIRROR for free!

Here, director Zemirah Moffat () reflects on the time that has passed since the creation of MIRROR MIRROR and the film's implications for the future.

Visit the link below to watch the Film of the Month, with code Wotever, as well as the director's full introduction!

https://raifilm.org.uk/2026/06/mirror-mirror

05/06/2026

On 29 May, RAI FILM hosted 'Animating Anthropology', a screening and discussion on animation in ethnographic filmmaking, as part of ASA PeopleFest. The event was completely sold out!

A huge thank you to all the attendees who joined and asked interesting questions, to the venue for providing us with a cosy and welcoming space, to our speakers and for a highly engaging conversation, our brilliant moderator , as well as all the incredible filmmakers featured in our screening!

It was great to reach and interact with new audiences and we're so excited to continue to host more interdisciplinary and public-facing events that share the wonderful world of anthropological filmmaking!

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Website

https://raifilm.org.uk/

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