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Sheffield DocFest · 2026

Sheffield DocFest 2026

People & Community

Programme

9 films · 3 reviews

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American Doctor

Review preview for American Doctor

A fourth doctor, unsuccessful in his efforts to get to Gaza, helps in whatever ways he can. This enables the film to move between intense scenes within Gaza itself, and the US, where it’s easier to breathe.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
When three American doctors — Palestinian, Jewish, and Zoroastrian — enter Gaza to save lives, they find themselves caught between medicine and politics, risking everything to expose the truth.

(Country: US, Palestinian Territory, Malaysia, Qatar, Denmark, Japan; Year: 2026; Director: Poh Si Teng)

Full review

UK premiere

Bugboy

Review preview for Bugboy

A film all about connections, what begins as a tale of bug and boy itself metamorphoses into a tender consideration of a father and son relationship.

Amber Wilkinson · 3.5 out of 5
George, a shy teenager with an eye disorder, struggles to connect with others after his parents’ divorce and finds refuge in the world of insects.

(Country: Greece, Denmark, France; Year: 2026; Director: Lucas Paleocrassas)

Full review

UK premiere

A Child Of My Own (Un hijo propio)

When a Mexican nurse fakes a pregnancy to satisfy her husband's family, a lie that was never meant to last takes on a life of its own.

(Country: Mexico; Year: 2026; Director: Maite Alberdi; Writer: Julian Loyola, Esteban Student; Stars: Ana Celeste, Armando Espitia, Ángeles Cruz, Mayra Sérbulo, Luisa Guzmán, Casio figueroa, Alejandro Porter)

UK premiere

Derek Vs Derek

Review preview for Derek Vs Derek

The strength of the film lies not just in the personalities of its leads, but in the rich detail observed throughout.

Jennie Kermode · 4.5 out of 5
On a country road in Devon, England, live two implacably opposed neighboring farmers, both called Derek. One believes in intensive farming of his land so that food can be produced in abundance; the other is creating an oasis for nature on his land, driven by an entirely different perception of agriculture and a farmer‘s duties.

(Country: UK; Year: 2026; Director: James Dawson; Stars: Derek Benbury, Derek Gow, Linda Banbury)

Full review

UK premiere

Heals

Behind the lashes and laughter of Pangina Heals, Asia's most iconic drag queen, lies a story of childhood pain, family fracture and fierce reinvention.

(Country: Thailand, US; Year: 2026; Director: Pailin Wedel; Stars: Pangina Heals)

International premiere

Kikuyu Land

As a Nairobi journalist probes a land battle entangling the local government and a powerful multinational corporation, covered wounds are revealed and family secrets are exposed.

(Country: Kenya; Year: 2026; Director: Andrew H. Brown, Bea Wangondu)

UK premiere

Life Support

A group of international doctors breach the blockade of Gaza. What they find is the calculated dismantling of life itself.

(Year: 2026; Director: Daniele Rugo)

World premiere

TheyDream

After 20 years of chronicling his Puerto Rican family, a director and his mother face devastating losses. Through tears and laughter, they craft animations that bring their loved ones back to life, discovering that every act of creation is also an act of letting go.

(Country: US; Year: 2026; Director: William D. Caballero)

UK premiere

Try!

Four Irish Rugby teams who defy stereotypes tackle their way to the Mixed Ability Rugby World Cup, where full-contact sport meets joyful belonging.

(Country: Ireland; Year: 2026; Director: Oisín Mistéil)

World premiere