Cinema in Manchester and the North

Tom Grieve, Cinema Editor

This month is all about music and movies, as a number of our favourite venues present festivals, seasons and events that celebrate underground bands, fan culture and some iconic musicians. From concert films and immersive documentaries, to transportative fiction films that capture the spirit of (or even poke light fun at) specific musical sub-cultures, movies can’t quite put you on the front row, but they can come pretty close.

In Sheffield, Showroom present Our Cinema Could Be Your Life, a weekend of films and events capturing the spirit of the underground American indie music in the 80s and early 90s. Featuring legendary bands such as Dinosaur Jr., Nirvana and Sonic Youth, the season takes inspiration from Michael Azerrad’s influential book ‘Our Band Could Be Your Life: Scenes from the American Underground 1981-1991′.

In Manchester, Mosh Film Festival returns with headbanger’s paradise of heavy metal cinema. Featuring insightful docs and cult features, the festival offers a fun, inclusive space with an emphasis on championing groups underrepresented in metal. While over in Leeds, there’s a chance to see the last performance of the late, great pianist and composer Ryuichi Sakamoto, as captured in the moving concert film, Opus.

There are a number of film festivals on the horizon too, not least HOME’s ¡Viva! Spanish & Latin American Festival which turns thirty this year, and celebrates with a bumper edition stacked with brand new and classic films and Q&As sourced from across the Spanish speaking world. At CULTPLEX, we’re also looking forward to the return of GASP Horror Film Festival, which is back with a weekend of brand new scary movies.

 

Our top picks

OUR CINEMA COULD BE YOUR LIFE: Films from the American Indie Underground 1981-1991 at Showroom Cinema

OUR CINEMA COULD BE YOUR LIFE: Films from the American Indie Underground 1981-1991 at Showroom Workstation, Sheffield, 5–7 April 2024, from £7.30 - Book now

Through a selection of documentaries and fiction features, Showroom’s new film season moves from punk and hardcore to alt-rock, Riot Grrrl, and Grunge, charting the explosion of the American underground music scene from 1981-1991.

black and white photo of five men
Instruments

30th ¡Viva! Spanish & Latin American Festival at HOME

30th ¡Viva! Spanish & Latin American Festival at HOME Manchester, Manchester, 5–25 April 2024, from £5.95 - Book now

¡Viva! turns thirty! This perennial highlight in Manchester’s cinematic calendar returns with a huge array of Spanish and Latin American film premieres, Q&As and archive treats.

¡Viva! 2024
HOME

MOSH Film Fest at CULTPLEX

MOSH Film Fest at Cultplex, Manchester, 13–14 April 2024, from £5.00 - Book now

Dive into the world of heavy metal and all of its sub-genres and let Mosh Film Fest guide you through the music.

Two members of the band Slave to Sirens
Sirens

Make A Scene’s Interactive The First Wives Club at Feel Good Club

Make A Scene's Interactive The First Wives Club film screening at Feel Good Club, Manchester, 19 April 2024, from £14.00 - Book now

Experience a cult classic as you have never seen it before with Make A Scene’s interactive screening.

Bette Midler, Goldie Hawn and Doane Keaton dance, dressed in white in a classy white party, as they do at the end of The First Wives Club
The First Wives Club

Celluloid Screams Horror All-Nighter at Showroom

Celluloid Screams Horror All-Nighter at Showroom Workstation, Sheffield, 27–28 April 2024, from £20.00 - Book now

Five 80s horror classics, one mystery screening and a few surprises. Can you make it through the Celluloid Screams All-Nighter?

image from nightmare on elm street
Nightmare on Elm Street

GASP! Horror Film Festival 2024 at CULTPLEX

GASP! Horror Film Festival 2024 at Cultplex, Manchester, 21–23 June 2024, from £5.00 - Book now

GASP! Horror Film Festival returns to Manchester’s CULTPLEX bigger and better, with a full weekend of scary movies from underrepresented voices.

My Mother's Eyes - GASP! Film Festival
My Mother's Eyes - GASP! Film Festival

More cinema events

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Take me there

Cinema in Manchester and the North

Manchester
Park
Platt Fields Park

Platt Fields Park in Fallowfield is steeped in history, the land having been acquired by the Platt family in 1225.

HOME Manchester
Manchester
Theatre
HOME Manchester

Now back open with a packed schedule of events and things to do, HOME Manchester is one of the city’s leading hubs for arts and culture.

Cumbria
Event venue
Penrith Old Fire Station

Main venue for Eden Arts, an artist-led organisation based in Eden in Cumbria creating projects around mass participation, local distinctiveness and digital engagement, from Picnic Cinema to The Winter Droving.

The MerseyMade building in Liverpool
Liverpool
Shop
MerseyMade

In the MerseyMade shop you’ll find bottled gin from the likes of Turncoat Gin, Anfield Gin, Albert Dock Gin and Three Graces Gin. Yep, Liverpool REALLY likes its gin.

The Hepworth Wakefield
Wakefield
Gallery
The Hepworth Wakefield

Winner of the 2017 Art Fund Museum of the Year Award, The Hepworth in Wakefield is easily one of the leading cultural highlights of the North.

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