Step into a world of cinema, creativity and new ideas at the Aesthetica Film Festival 2025. Across five days in York, we celebrate the best in independent film, media and storytelling. Aesthetica is a destination for discovery, with a line-up spanning short and feature films, guest programmes, podcasts, VR, games and live premiere events. From dramas and documentaries to experimental works and family-friendly screenings, there’s something for everyone. Here’s a quick look at our programme:

Official Selection

Animation. Comedy. Drama. Documentary. Thriller. Aesthetica Film Festival is the home of short film. Whether your thing is laugh-out-loud humour, edge-of-your-seat tension or gritty realism, you’ll uncover a new favourite amongst our programme of over 300 stories, which have been carefully curated by genre and theme. Watch performances from big names like Domhnall Gleeson, Kit Harington, Maxine Peake and David Bradley. Or, try something new with Artists’ Film, Dance and Experimental. There are also Family Friendly sessions for little ones. Screenings take place in venues across York. Seating is first come first served, free with your pass.

VR & Games

In 2025, Aesthetica presents the third edition of our interactive Games Lab, where festival-goers in York can experience a curated selection of groundbreaking independent titles – arcade games, puzzles, deck builders, point-and-click adventures, simulators, RPGs and more. We are the first UK festival to have a space dedicated to play. In addition, our VR Lab returns for 2025, in collaboration with LCC London. It invites audiences to step inside the story, and features documentaries, animated tales and narratives where decisions matter. At National Centre for Early Music (YO1 9TL). Free with Pass. Advance booking recommended.

Guest Programmes & New Wave

Every year, we welcome guest organisations who bring specially crafted programmes to the festival. For 2025, we’re excited to present a screening of short-form documentaries from The New York Times, which investigates AI, influencer culture and melting glaciers. Meanwhile, BBC Comedy, which has been shaping British humour for generations, offers a selection of brand-new work from fresh names. Then there’s the New Wave – film at the cutting edge, by graduate filmmakers from Regent’s and York St John Universities. You saw them here first. Screenings take place in venues across York. Seating is first come first served, free with your pass.

Podcasting Lounge

The Podcasting Lounge is brand new for 2025. It’s a UK film festival first. Join us at City Screen Basement to sit down and listen to some good stories. Highlights include Lights Out: Dust (BBC Radio 4), which dives into the language of mythology; Flight Risk (Chloe Sackur), looking at the remarkable journey of turtle doves; and I Am Not A Burden (Stephanie Amponsah), a “sonic protest” against pregnancy discrimination in the workplace. Listen in on conversations between street rats in New York City and unravel the truth behind UFOs. Or dive deep into the human condition: a lone villager living on the border of Armenia and Turkey, a go-to repair man in Cape Town, or the story of a father arriving in the UK from Jamaica in 1962. This is a chance to hear the world like never before. Advance booking recommended.

The Listening Pitch

Aesthetica x Audible’s The Listening Pitch is a cinematic exploration of the unheard. 2025 marks its fifth anniversary. This year, we asked: “what can we hear if we listen right now?”, and awarded funding to three new documentaries. Those films will premiere on 8 November at City Screen. First up is Carin Leong’s Untitled Fetal Heartbeat, which explores Doppler ultrasound technology. Then, Stamp on My Threshold Like A Cowboy sees filmmaker Cicely Hadman give the camera to her former lover. Next, Voice Shift, by Roberto Duque, follows femme individuals as they seek a voice that reflects their gender identity. We’ll also premiere Jiajing Zhao’s reimagined soundtrack for the 1902 film Le Voyage dans la Lune by Georges Méliès – built from concrete sounds. Free with Pass. Advance booking recommended.

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Aesthetica Film Festival runs 5- 9 November in York, UK. To purchase your pass, click here.

To book your place at the VR and Games Labs, Podcast Lounge or Listening Pitch Premiere, click here.

The download the festival programme, click here.

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