As perceptions of Muslims worsen, the Muslim film festival returns
Photo: Birds of War, which documents the love story of a London-based Lebanese journalist and a Syrian activist/cameraman through 13 years of personal archives across revolutions, war and exile.
A champion at festivals including Sundance and Thessaloniki Documentary Film Festival, it documents the love story of a London-based Lebanese journalist and a Syrian activist/cameraman as told through thirteen years of personal archives across revolutions, war and exile.
Championing the narratives of international Muslim filmmakers and highlighting their compelling stories, the Muslim International Film Festival returns to London’s Leicester Square for its second edition on 2 - 5 July.
MIFF entered the film festival circuit in 2024, at a time of polarised public opinion and a prevalence of negative portrayals of Muslims in the mainstream media. Two years later and the overriding perception of Muslims has, if anything, worsened. A significant portion of Muslims face higher levels of hostility, systemic prejudice and suspicion towards Islam. Flashpoints like the right-wing marches in the UK and anti-Muslim narratives perpetuated by the media has led to a rise in reported Islamophobic incidents.
MIFF is ever more determined to use the medium of film to counter this, by showcasing the diverse nature of Muslim communities in Britain and throughout the world. This second edition showcases the rich tapestry of Muslim storytelling with premieres and special preview screenings of acclaimed new features from the UK and across the world including Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Algeria and Palestine, with topics ranging from racial profiling to celebrating the sacred pilgrimage of Hajj.
MIFF is supported by UK Muslim Film (UKMF), a charity working to change perspectives by championing underrepresented talent and voices, both onscreen and behind the camera. UKMF has worked as cultural consultants with C4’s comedy drama Screw, ITV’s Good Karma Hospital, C4’s Hollyoaks, and Columbia Pictures’ Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, ensuring that cultural and faith-based aspects of storylines are portrayed accurately. The Director of UKMF and Festival Director of MIFF,Sajid Varda was awarded the MBE in the 2026 King’s New Years Honours List for his services to Diversity and Inclusion in the Film and Television Industry.
“Returning to London this summer, the Muslim International Film Festival creates a space where audiences and industry come together to experience stories that challenge, inspire and connect. MIFF 2026 celebrates exceptional filmmaking while opening the door to perspectives that are too often overlooked or misunderstood,” says Varda.
“Across four days in Leicester Square, we will welcome emerging voices alongside internationally recognised filmmakers to present work that is bold, entertaining and deeply human.
“Alongside our screenings, industry conversations and Script Pitch Live will create opportunities for new talent, fresh ideas and meaningful collaboration. In a world becoming increasingly fragmented, MIFF is a reminder that stories remain one of our most powerful tools to bring people together. Through cinema, we discover worlds, change perceptions and are reminded that understanding one another is still one of the most important acts of our time.”
OPENING & CLOSING FILMS: HIJRA / HUMAN TIDE
MIFF opens on 2 July with HIJRA (dir: Shahad Ameen, Saudi Arabia/Iraq/Egypt/UK, 2025). Winner of the Netpac Award when it premiered at Venice film festival, it centres on the bond formed between different generations of Saudi women during a journey across the desert to Mecca. When the eldest granddaughter disappears, the grandmother travels to the north in search of the missing teenager.
The festival closes on 5 July with the European Premiere of HUMAN TIDE (dir: David Ward, Saudi Arabia, 2025) + Q&A. Each year, millions of Muslims embark on the sacred pilgrimage of Hajj. Having premiered at the Red Sea film festival, this documentary provides an intimate look at this spiritual journey through the eyes of six diverse groups of pilgrims. By weaving together their individual voices, the film offers a captivating portrait that reveals the profound transformations this once-in-a-lifetime trip sparks.
FEATURE PROGRAMME
ISH (dir: Imran Perretta, UK, 2025) + Q&A. Special pre-release preview
The story of best friends, Ish and Maram, on the cusp of being teenagers. In a society where racial profiling ensures brown boys are constantly under surveillance, their friendship is ended by a traumatic police stop-and-search. Ish soon discovers that 'letting go' can be the hardest part of growing up.
GHOST SCHOOL (dir: Seemab Gul, Pakistan/Germany/ Saudi Arabia, 2025) + Q&A
The film follows Rabia, a ten-year-old Pakistani girl who sets out to find why her only school in the village is closed. This fable is a ghost story with a tinge of magical-realism that explores corruption from a child's perspective.
ROQIA (dir: Yanis Koussim, Algeria/France, 2025) London Premiere
This bold horror sees amnesiac Ahmed return home bandaged after a crash. His child fears him, and nightly visitors speak in strange tongues. His neighbour makes him uncomfortable, leaving him questioning everything.
ONCE UPON A TIME IN GAZA (dir: Arab Nasser, Tarzan Nasser, France/Palestine/Germany/Portugal, 2025)
Powerful story set in Gaza. Yahya seeks vengeance for his friend Osama's brutal murder. His encounter with the killer alters everything.
BIRDS OF WAR (dir: Janay Boulos, Abd Alkader Habak, UK/Syria/Lebanon, 2026)
Documents the love story of a London-based Lebanese journalist and a Syrian activist/cameraman as told through thirteen years of personal archives across revolutions, war and exile.
SHORTS PROGRAMMES
Shorts Programme #1 TIES THAT HOLD US TOGETHER explores grounded, emotional, and deeply human stories centred around family, grief, migration, identity, and belonging. Opening the programme is SKATER UKTIS (dir: Mehek Azmathulla, UK), an uplifting documentary following a collective of Muslim women skaters reclaiming space, sisterhood, and self-expression across New York, Birmingham, and Abuja. Raindance Film Festival winner THERE WILL COME SOFT RAINS (dir: Elham Ehsas, UK) is an atmospheric reflection on grief and climate anxiety, following a woman navigating loss and reconciliation after the death of her father. Executive produced by Lynne Ramsay and Fateha Begum,A STITCH OF VINTAGE (dir: Carolin Pech, UK) celebrates female friendship and self-expression through an unexpected intergenerational connection. Winner of the Palme d’Or for Best Short Film at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival, I’M GLAD YOU’RE DEAD NOW (dir: Tawfeek Barhom, Palestine/Sweden/France/Greece) follows two brothers returning to the island of their childhood, where buried tensions and unresolved trauma reappear. Blending documentary and personal testimony, $17.74 (dir: Justin Mashouf, USA) tells the inspiring story of a former gang member whose act of solidarity for Gaza sparks hope from within prison walls. Official Selection at the BFI London Film Festival, CAMERAMAN (dir: Arsalan Motavali, UK/Iran) is a warm and nostalgic portrait of migration, ambition, and creative survival, set in 1990s London.
Shorts Programme #2 VISIONS OF DEFIANCE brings together bold, politically charged, and emotionally urgent stories exploring displacement, resistance, survival, and human connection. Opening the programme is NIGHT OF PASSAGE (dir: Reza Rasouli, Iran/Slovakia/Austria), a tense and immersive drama following three friends abandoned near the Austrian border as they face impossible choices through the night. Blending expressive animation with emotionally resonant storytelling, THE BIRD’S PLACEBO (dir: Rami Jarboui, Tunisia/France/Qatar) explores migration, freedom, and belonging through the story of a young man dreaming of crossing the Mediterranean. FOUND & LOST (dir: Reza Rasouli, Austria) follows a Syrian father navigating misunderstandings and isolation over the course of one chaotic night in Vienna. The UK Premiere of documentary featurette GAZA TO OSCAR (dir: Alaa Damo, Palestine) offers an urgent portrait of Palestinian filmmakers risking their lives to continue telling stories through cinema amidst ongoing war and devastation in Gaza. Closing the programme is SAMIA (dir: Bruno Tracq & Selma Alaoui, Belgium/Morocco), a moving and atmospheric meditation on grief, memory, and healing centred around Moroccan music, loneliness, and unexpected human connecti
TRAILBLAZER AWARD: SHAHEEN BAIG
As well as championing new and upcoming filmmakers and talent, MIFF celebrates and honours individuals who have already made innovative contributions to the film industry. MIFF presented its inaugural Trailblazer Award in 2024 to Academy Award, BAFTA, and Grammy-winning British director Asif Kapadia. This year’s recipient of MIFF’s Trailblazer Award is Shaheen Baig. Working across film and television, Shaheen has cast award-winning work with new and established directors in both film and television.
Film work includes multi nominated and award-winning features CONTROL, AFTER LOVE, MOGUL MOWGLI, ALI & AVA, CALM WITH HORSES, LADY MACBETH, Sundance Grand Jury Prize winner SCRAPPER. Most recent features include URCHIN, Harris Dickinson’s directorial debut, BAFTA winner MY FATHER’S SHADOW and I SEE BUILDINGS FALL LIKE LIGHTNING for Clio Barnard. In television Shaheen has cast all of PEAKY BLINDERS and I AM, the female led anthology series for CH4. As well as award winning dramas THREE GIRLS, BLACK MIRROR (CH4), Emmy award-winning ADOLESCENCE and most recently BAIT with Riz Ahmed for Amazon.
Shaheen is a member of BAFTA, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the Casting Directors Guild of Great Britain & Ireland. A trustee for Open Door, a non-profit organisation that helps young people access drama schools and co-founder of the Casting Assistant Certificate course with the National Film & Television School, she works to encourage and support a more inclusive industry. In 2023 Shaheen was awarded the Baird Medal by Royal Television Society for her contribution to screen.
Shaheen Baig shares: “I feel so lucky to work in my dream job and to collaborate creatively with artists every day is a privilege. Growing up in Birmingham with a working class Pakistani Muslim father underpins the choices I often make, his love of community, fairness and respect is embedded in me, not to mention the importance of positive and progressive representation. It’s a tremendous honour to receive the Trailblazer Award from the Muslim International Film Festival and I am so impressed and supportive of their essential work and all they encourage in our industry.”