Filming archives!

A selection of short films explores the archive as a living space of memory, resistance and revelation.

Archives are often seen as places of storage, shelves of documents, photographs and fragments of the past. But are they truly dormant until someone opens a box, reads a letter or watches a reel of film? Through a selection of short films, this screening explores the archive as a living space of memory, resistance and revelation.

Between the lines Duration: 10 minutes Dir: Irfan Ibrahim In 1971, Chris Searle, an English teacher at St John Cass, published a book of his students’ poetry entitled Stepney Words. The closing poem in the book, Time and Distance, was written by Searle’s former student Imtiaz Malek. 53 years after the book was published, filmmaker Irfan Ibrahim finds Malek and reunites him with Searle to learn the story behind the poem.

The Park (Dancing on the Rubble of Empire) Duration: 34 minutes Dir. Arwa Aburawa & Turab Shah A century ago, millions flocked to Wembley Park in London to witness the British Empire Exhibition, where objects and people from the colonies were displayed as spectacle. Though its pavilions have long vanished, fragments remain buried in the city’s soil and in the lives of its communities. ‘The Park (Dancing on the Rubble of Empire)’ meditates on these hidden inheritances, asking what it means to celebrate, play, and belong amid the rubble of empire.

Untold Stories Part 2 Duration: 38 minutes Dir. Suher Sofi (commissioned by Kayd Somali Arts & Culture) A powerful documentary that delves into the experiences of the Somali community in Tower Hamlets. Among the earliest settlers were people from Somaliland, who arrived as seamen and soldiers through Somaliland's historic relationship with Britain. The film shares the stories of first and second-generation Somalis, exploring identity, belonging, resilience, and community.

A short Q&A will take place with the filmmakers after the screening.

There will be an interval during the screening programme with refreshments provided.