SAFAR Film Festival, the UK’s leading platform for independent Arab cinema, returns from 11-28 June 2025 for its landmark 10th edition, including four screenings here in Oxford.
This year’s SAFAR Film Festival programme spans decades, geographies and genres, and speaks urgently to the present while excavating the past. It presents cinema that bears witness, that dares to remember and that subverts expectation.
Sunday 15th June 5.30pm
The Village Next to Paradise
Tuesday 17th June 8.30pm
Seeking Haven for Mr. Rambo
Wednesday 25th June 6pm
A State of Passion + Director Q&A
Saturday 28th June 4pm
Sudan, Remember Us
Use the film links underneath to find our more information and to book tickets.
In a Somali coastal village, a father makes desperate choices to support his family, while his sister seeks freedom and his son is sent away for a better future. Mo Harawe’s powerful debut about love, sacrifice, and survival showing as part of SAFAR Film Festival 2025.
Facing eviction in Cairo, Hassan and his dog Rambo are thrust into danger after a violent incident. Seeking Haven for Mr. Rambo is a powerful debut about survival, loyalty, and the search for dignity in a harsh, shifting world. SAFAR Film Festival 2025 screening.
After 43 harrowing days in Gaza’s hospitals, surgeon Ghassan Abu Sittah becomes a symbol of Palestinian resistance. This documentary follows his and his family’s journey and steadfast commitment to a homeland under siege. SAFAR Film Festival 2025 screening plus Q&A.
Through the eyes of four young activists, this powerful documentary traces Sudan’s 2019 revolution to its 2023 civil war – capturing a generation’s fight for freedom and hope in the face of global indifference. SAFAR Film Festival 2025 screening.
Our beautiful art deco inspired auditorium can be found just off East Oxford's Cowley Road. We are open 7 days a week. We open the cinema and box office 30 minutes before the scheduled start time of each film, and the Box Office then closes 10 minutes after the film starts. We don’t show adverts, just a couple of trailers, so don't be late as the film itself starts very close to the advertised time!