Cinenova Distribution

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Cinenova Distribution

Cinenova is a non-profit organisation dedicated to distributing feminist film and video. Follow us

Cinenova is a non-profit organisation dedicated to distributing feminist film & video. Formed in 1991 from the merger of two feminist distributors, Circles and Cinema of Women, Cinenova provides the means to discover and watch artists, experimental, narrative, documentary and educational moving image works. Cinenova is a collectively organised volunteer led organisation.

07/10/2026

“Militancy is crucially about how an image travels, where and amongst whom it lingers, and what it might possibly activate and inspire as it paves the way for forms of collective organising.”

Read the new text by Samira Makki in response to selected works from the Cinenova catalogue. Commissioned on the launch of our new accessible website, online catalogue & paper archive designed by .tools

Read, listen and explore on our website via the link in our bio

Borrowed quote by Felicity Sparrow.

samira

Image credit: ‘A Place of Rage’ (1991) by Pratibha Parmar

This work was made possible with support from BFI Screen Heritage Fund, awarding Good Cause funding.

28/09/2026

“Faced, once again, with a situation where we find ourselves governed by those least suited to do so, I turn my attention to what women have been doing for millennia to protect their communities: organising and fighting, organising and resisting, organising and insisting.”

Read Isabel Seguí’s new text ‘Organízate y Lucha: 1980s non-fiction distributed by Cinenova, and beyond’. Commissioned on the launch of our new accessible website, online catalogue & paper archive designed by .tools

Read, listen and explore on our website via the link in our bio.

image credit: ‘I’ll Be There For All Time’ (1985) by Boadicea Films

This work was made possible with support from BFI Screen Heritage Fund, awarding Good Cause funding.

22/09/2026

“Dear Sandra Lahire,

I write these words from Indonesia, from the Riau Islands, ever threatened with the effects of mining and its threats of expansion, as all parts of the archipelago are. The ocean waves I hear constantly are an echo of the relentlessness of resilience, solidarity, and hope alongside harm in your three works. The bauxite mine, on a nearby island to the one I am writing on, is encroaching on Indigenous populations, is drowned out by the vastness of the sea.”

Read Khairani Barokka’s new text ‘On Half-Lives’, in response to Sandra Lahire’s ‘Terminals’ (1986), ‘Plutonium Blonde’ (1987), and ‘Serpent River’ (1989). Commissioned on the launch of our new accessible website, online catalogue & paper archive designed by .tools

Read, listen and explore on our website via the link in our bio

Image Credit: ‘Serpent River’ (1989) by Sandra Lahire

This work was made possible with support from BFI Screen Heritage Fund, awarding Good Cause funding.

16/09/2026

‘An imaginary group, a notional community, a community that is impossible, and thus always has to be produced’ – Marina Vishmidt

Following the launch of our new website, we’re pleased to announce ‘An imaginary group, a notional community…’ is now live!
This online exhibition features a selection of works from the Cinenova catalogue alongside contextual materials. The three films and texts have been selected to continue a conversation with writer, critic, former Cinenova Working Group Member and friend, Marina Vishmidt (1976-2024), whose work and presence profoundly shaped Cinenova and our attempts to engage with its feminist history, organisation and collection.
You can now visit the website to watch the films and read the writings throughout the online exhibition:

* ‘Who Takes the Rap – Immigration’ (1986) by Lai Ngan Walsh with the Women & the Law Collective
* ‘Bred and Born’ (1983) by Joanna Davis and Mary Pat Leece
* ‘Casual Shopper’ (1981) by Judith Barry

The exhibition runs till 11 October 2026. See the link in our bio for more details.

Image on Slide 1: ‘Bred and Born’, Joanna Davis and Mary Pat Leece, 1983.

This project was made possible with support from BFI Screen Heritage Fund, awarding Good Cause funding.

04/09/2026

Cinenova is proud to announce that our new website is now live.

Over the past six months, we’ve been working with .tools to realise a long-standing need: making an accessible online catalogue of our 300+ films / videos, and extensive paper archive. As part of this relaunch, we have commissioned new writing from Samira Makki, Remi Graves, Khairani Barokka, Isabel Seguí and Phoebe Beckett Chingono. These will be available to read and listen to on our website soon.

A series of events will mark the launch, sharing the work with audiences in person and online, including:

Open now: free film library in Berwick-upon-Tweed
‘Starting With a Gesture Made Towards One Another’ is a free film library in partnership with Berwick Film & Media Arts Fest - watch films in-person and engage with archival materials. Open Saturdays 12-4pm, Berwick-upon-Tweed.

19 September: Workshop with Berwick Film & Media Arts Festival + Heritage Open Days
Join us for ‘Working with Film Archives’ – a free workshop where we’ll be discussing how artists can use archives in their work. (full info & sign up link in bio)

14 September - 11 October: Online exhibition
Closing out the launch, we're screening three films from the Cinenova catalogue as part of our online exhibition, 'An imaginary group, a notional community...'.

Image on Slide 4: ‘Seeds of Resistance’, Juliet Miller, 1985.

This project was made possible with support from BFI National Lottery Screen Heritage Fund, awarding Good Cause funding.

18/08/2026

We’re excited to announce a few upcoming screenings of Nightshift (dir. Robina Rose).

📍18 & 26 Aug, London - part of Big Screen Classics at BFI
The screening on 26 Aug will be introduced by writer and film programmer Sophia Satchell-Baeza and followed by a Q&A with artist filmmaker and co-writer of the film’s script Nicola Lane nicola lane

📍27 Aug, Warsaw - part of Another Story programme supported by HER Docs Festival HER DOCS and the Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw. The film will also screen again in Oct as part of HER Docs 2026 edition.

📍8th Sep, Manchester. The film will screen as part of Rip It Up season at HOME Welcome HOME

Nightshift has been digitally restored by Lightbox Film Center (Philadelphia) in collaboration with the British Film Institute and Cinenova. Restoration funding provided by Ron and Suzanne Naples. Film distributed by Cinenova.

19/12/2025

Winter break announcement:
Cinenova will be taking a winter break from 20 December to 5 January 2026.

Distribution and general email enquiries received between 19 December 2025 - 5 January 2026 will be responded to once we reopen.

As 2025 comes to a close, we want to thank our community of filmmakers, researchers, exhibitors and partners for your continued support and engagement throughout the year. Wishing you a restful holiday season, we look forward to being back soon.

Keep organising, keep amplifying - fall into community, not despair. Follow and - act on their 3 immediate ways to support the hunger strikers: British political prisoners are at imminent risk of death. Demand justice now, not later.

Image credit: Back Inside Herself - S. Pearl Sharp, 1984. Courtesy of the filmmaker and Cinenova.

05/12/2025

✨ Due to the high level of interest, we’re sharing an FAQ about the Project Manager and Project Assistant roles!✨

Full details & application links are in our bios.

📍 Can I undertake either role fully remotely?
No, both roles are predominantly in-person with some remote flexibility. Work with the Cinenova archive and team requires presence in London, UK.

📍 Where will the work take place?
Primarily at Cinenova in Homerton, East London, with some flexibility for remote tasks.

🌍 Are the roles open to international applicants?
Applicants must be eligible to work in the UK and able to work mainly in person in our London office.

🕒 What’s the time commitment?
Days/hours are flexible and arranged with the Cinenova team. We would like both roles to have overlapping working days.

📅 Expected start date?
Mid-January 2026, with flexibility to begin as late as February depending on availability.

⏳ Duration of the roles?
Both are fixed-term for the project’s duration, ending in Autumn 2026.

💡 Experience required for the Project Manager?
As stated in the Person Specification, the Project Manager should have knowledge and experience with digital cataloguing systems or digital preservation. They should also have an interest, knowledge and experience of archival cataloguing practices and familiarity with open-source software and web development processes.

For all application details, head to the link in the bio 🔝

03/12/2025

📣 We’re hiring a Project Manager!

Cinenova is seeking an experienced and highly organised Digital Access Project Manager to lead our BFI National Lottery–funded Digital Access Project.
This freelance role will shape the future of our feminist moving image archive through a new digital catalogue, website, visual identity, and commissioned writing.

📍 Hybrid (Homerton / remote)
🗓️ Fixed term contract
💷 £257/day (140 days total / 3-4 days per week)

Please note: This role cannot be fully remote; responsibilities require on-site presence in London to work directly with the Cinenova archive and team.

This is a key leadership role for someone committed to feminist, anti-racist, and accessible practices.
Apply by 18 December — link in bio.

Supported by the BFI Screen Heritage Fund, awarding funds from the National Lottery.

[Image Description]: Graphic image with call out information on black, along with a group of Black women dancing in the sunshine.
Image credit; Sweet Sugar Rage (1985), Sistren Theatre Collective

10/04/2025

Join us for the homecoming screening of Robina Rose's newly restored Nightshift!
Tuesday 13 May BFI
with an introduction by Jon Jost - filmmaker, cinematographer, and friend of Robina Rose. We’re delighted to share that many of the original cast and crew will be in attendance.

"Moody and atmospheric, Nightshift by Robina Rose – newly restored from the original camera elements – looks stunning in this digital 4K presentation.

Legendary punk stayover The Portobello Hotel provides the setting for Rose’s captivating, psycho-dramatic long night of the soul. The monotonous, dreamlike stillness of nocturnal reception work slowly mutates with the arrival of eccentric guests from London’s counterculture – including Heathcote Williams and Anne Rees-Mogg. The uncanny temporal shifts and strange occurrences are beautifully underscored by a soundtrack from Simon Jeffes of the Penguin Café Orchestra." - BFI.

This screening is dedicated to Robina Rose, who passed away in January.

Tickets on sale now: https://whatson.bfi.org.uk/Online/default.asp?BOparam::WScontent::loadArticle::permalink=nightshift-intro&BOparam::WScontent::loadArticle::context_id=

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Website

http://www.cinenova.org/

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