CinemARC at Refugee Festival Scotland
We’re proud to be showcasing a selection of films which speak to migration, displacement and the experiences of those seeking refuge.
ARC Public
Date: Thursday 18 June 2026
Time: 17:30 - 19:45
Venue: Advanced Research Centre
Category: Films and theatre
Based on Refugee Festival Scotland 2026 themes of celebration, collaboration and building a shared future, this CinemARC programme of short films has been jointly curated by teams at the ARC, the UNESCO Chair on Refugee Integration through Education, Language and the Arts (UNESCO RIELA) and the Glasgow Refugee, Asylum and Migration Network (GRAMNet).
We’re proud to be showcasing a selection of films which speak to themes of migration, displacement and the experiences of those seeking refuge.
After the screenings, a panel of filmmakers and researchers will discuss the making of their films, the research that went into it and the topics covered. There will be the opportunity for audience members to ask questions and to join in the discussion.
Still image from Departing film, courtesy of Mary Martins.
Schedule
17:30 – Doors Open
17:40 – Short introduction from the project team
17:45 – 19:00 – Films play
19:00 – 19:30 – Panel Discussion
19:30 – 19:50 – Audience Q&A
20:00 – Event ends
Films
The Story of Migration | MIDEQ | 7 mins
The Story of Migration is a seven-minute animation produced in collaboration with MIDEQ partner PositiveNegatives and illustrated by artist Karrie Fransman. The animation is based on a script written with MIDEQ Hub partners in 11 countries and across various disciplines. The animation innovatively captures the key concepts underpinning the MIDEQ Hub, challenging many of the ideas that dominate media and academic representations of migration. It tells a new story of migration which draws attention to South-South migration and the relationships between migration, development and inequality and is grounded in research undertaken by those whose knowledge and perspectives are often underrepresented in global academic, media and policy debates.
Departing | Mary Martins | 8mins
Departing is a short experimental and animated documentary that reflects on the themes of migration, forced displacement of people and the removal of children. The stories are expressed through music, interviews, poetry, and collaging a range of techniques, including ink on 16mm film, scratch film, and 2D hand-drawn animation. These multi-layered responses explore the issues surrounding the past and recent UK immigration laws in the broader context of the world's current social, economic and political climate.
Untitled | Akram Alashqa | 32 mins
In a world where the narratives of oppressed people are manipulated by their oppressors, Untitled (2025) exposes the censorship and attempts to erase the story of Palestine. This desktop documentary intimately follows the filmmaker’s journey through online archives, social media, and algorithms, confronting the complexities of representation. Viewers witness the discoveries and biases that shape a powerful narrative, inviting them to reflect on the critical stories that must be heard.
A Story Left Behind | Asma Kabadeh | 14 mins
A researcher discovers the fragmented stories of the first Somali woman in Sheffield. Resurrecting her memory, the film questions whose stories get told and who gets to tell them. Having moved to Sheffield from Somalia at 11, Najma feels like many migrants, who straddle two worlds yet feel disconnected from both. She discovers a short storybook in the Sheffield Library written by Halima, a Somali woman who arrived in the UK in 1956. The information she finds creates a limited and fragmented, but deeply sombre, narrative. A Story Left Behind follows Najma as she tries to fill in the gaps in Halima's story, exploring the contradictions of what Halima recorded of her life and what she omitted. Through this process, Najma embarks on a journey of self-discovery. With her film, Asma Kabadeh celebrates Sheffield's vibrant Somali community, while discussing the universal importance of archiving cultural history as an anchor for future generations.
Panellists
Akram Alashqar
Akram Alashqar is a Palestinian filmmaker and experienced educator from Tulkarm, Palestine. Alashqar’s films include First Picture (2006), Red, Dead, and Med. (2006), Paper War (2007), and Untitled (2025). He produced the short fiction Five Boys and a Wheel (2016). As a project manager with the Royal Film Commission in Jordan, Alashqar had the opportunity to help establish three cinema centres, including two unique cinema buses that brought the magic of film to unexpected places. Alashqar is currently pursuing a PhD at the University of Glasgow. His research focuses on the aesthetics and significance of soundtracks in Palestine revolution cinema.
Asma Kabadeh
Asma Kabadeh (she/her) is a Creative Producer and Filmmaker whose work bridges creative storytelling with community spacemaking in service of racial justice, land justice and archival justice. She is touring her directorial debut with ‘Sheeko Laga Tagay / A Story Left Behind’, a film which uncovers the fragmented stories of the first documented Somali woman in Sheffield and invites audiences to critically examine archival representations for Somali & wider diasporic communities and challenge the dominance of public records as the sole source of history in a roaming workshop setting.
Mary Martins
Mary Martins is a British-Nigerian animator from London, working across the genres of documentary and experimental film. She produces multi-layered and mixed media style animated documentaries that combine 16mm live action footage and archive material with more traditional forms of animation. Her ideas focus on socially engaged themes, working with communities, and representing the lived experiences and stories from marginalised groups. She uses animation in more experimental ways as a method of encouraging her audience to reflect on some of the most challenging situations that are impacting society today.
Tawona Sithole
Better known as Ganyamatope Dzapasi, my spirit name inspires me to connect with other people through creativity and the anticipation to learn. My work is inherited from ancestors and modified through my professional education practice. I am lecturer in creative practice education at University of Glasgow, within the UNESCO Chair in Refugee Integration through Education, Languages and the Arts (UNESCO RIELA). I am co-founder of Seeds of Thought, a non-funded arts group, and continue working in the creative sector as poet, playwright, mbira musician, and facilitator. As I continues to write, teach and perform, mostly I appreciate this work for the many inspiring people it allows me to meet.
Collaborators
About the ARC
The ARC is a dynamic, enabling space for collaborative, interdisciplinary research and public engagement. We create the conditions for bold, innovative inquiry that breaks boundaries and drives real-world impact. The ARC opened in 2022 as the University of Glasgow's flagship research facility and houses around 550 academics, from all career stages and subject areas. As part of our open and accessible remit, the ARC has hosted over 2000 events since opening. in 2025, we welcomed over 13,000 public visitors to exhibitions and events, and we work closely with a range of civic partners including the Glasgow School of Art, Doors Open Days Festival and WestFest.
About UNESCO RIELA
The UNESCO Chair hosted within the School of Education at the University of Glasgow undertakes a programme of work focused on multilingual knowledge exchange in the area of refugee and humanitarian protection, with a focus on fostering integration through creative and cultural expressions. The Chair builds on research findings and partner priorities in such a way as to promote creative, practical multilingual action for change at all levels of society, in all contexts. Our research projects links us with Global South partners with experience of historical and present day refugee integration in their communities. The Chair works to support research and action focused on fostering cultural expressions of heritage and diversity with displaced peoples, and academic freedom for those at risk.)
About GRAMNet
Glasgow Refugee, Asylum and Migration Network (GRAMNet) conducts research and qualitative evaluation on migration, refugees and the asylum process. The network consults on migration-related policy in the UK and internationally. GRAMNet brings together researchers and practitioners, NGOs and policy makers working with migrants, refugees and asylum seekers in Scotland. The network is currently funded by The University of Glasgow, whose academic community has a wide range of expertise in relation to these areas.
Currently GRAMNet are promoting a short film to emerge from the My Story, Our Future project. My Story, Our Future (MSOF) is a participatory heritage project that has formed from a collaboration between ESOL Scotland, Keep Scotland Beautiful, and University of Glasgow. Since September 2025, MSOF has been digging into what it means to produce and activate the heritage and stories all around us in Glasgow. The group has come to understand storytelling as an epistemological imperative for those who have migrated to Scotland, and they have produced a film to share some of these stories as an intervention in embedding hopeful narratives about migration in Scotland’s broader heritage landscape.
About MIDEQ
The Migration for Development and Equality (MIDEQ) Hub is a network of more than 30 partners focused on the relationship between migration, inequalities, and development in the Global South. Drawing on the experience and expertise of our partners across 12 countries, MIDEQ has built an evidence-based understanding of overlooked mobility patterns within and between regions of the Global South as well as the intersectional inequalities and injustices faced by those who move.
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This event is part of Refugee Festival Scotland 2026 which runs from 12 - 21 June.
There is also a chance to join an associated workshop on Friday 19 May. Details can be found here.
This event is free, but ticketed.
You will be entitled to one free drink on arrival, while stocks last.
You are welcome to bring food with you, but please ensure you take any rubbish away with you.
If you have any access requirements, please contact ARCEngage@Glasgow.ac.uk.