'A real film culture': How Scalarama is putting cinema back in the hands of the people
Ahead of Friday's programme launch at Hyde Park Picture House, the team behind volunteer-run festival Scalarama Leeds talk opening with ‘Postcards from the Edge,’ tackling streaming fatigue, and why grassroots cinema culture is worth protecting
It is a celebration of the weird, the wonderful, and the wildly underrepresented on the big screen - and this and later today, Scalarama Leeds returns with the launch of its 2026 festival season.
Taking over the historic Hyde Park Picture House, the volunteer-run festival will drop its official trailer and full September lineup, opening the night with a screening of Mike Nichols’ 1990 classic ‘Postcards from the Edge’.
Starring Meryl Streep and Shirley MacLaine, the film was chosen to mark upcoming anniversaries of Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds, while starting the festival on a bold, female-led note.
"Postcards from the Edge pulls back the curtain and shows you what's really going on behind the glossy image," explains Evangeline Spachis, co-organiser of Scalarama Leeds and curator behind local film clubs Queer Fear and Red Velvet Seat Film Club.
"Carrie Fisher wrote it from the inside, about addiction, mothers and daughters, and the absurdity of Hollywood. Opening on a film about a sharp, funny woman who refuses to be packaged neatly felt like the right note to start the festival on."
Following Friday’s launch, September will bring a month-long takeover of non-traditional spaces and independent venues across Leeds, alongside pop-up screenings extending into Keighley and Bradford.
While the full lineup remains closely guarded ahead of the trailer drop, organizers promise a characteristically eclectic mix. "I can say it's as varied as ever: cult favourites sitting next to films most people might never have had the chance to see on a big screen before," Evangeline says.
Having been a staple of the city’s cultural landscape since 2014, Scalarama’s core mission remains unchanged: proving that anyone can put on a screening anywhere.
To support first-time curators, the festival runs free spring and summer workshops covering everything from licensing and venue booking to projection, backed by a New Programmer Scheme that offsets venue and licensing costs.
"That's genuinely the whole point of what we do," Evangeline explains. "Nobody needs experience or a film qualification, just a film they love and the will to show it to other people.
“First-timers also get support through our New Programmer Scheme, which helps cover venue and licensing costs so money isn't the thing standing between someone and their first screening."
Why DIY Cinema Matters
In an era dominated by streaming algorithms, corporate boardrooms, and squeezed independent venue budgets, Scalarama offers a vital alternative to standard multiplex programming.
"Leeds has extraordinary cinema and festival heritage - Hyde Park Picture House, Cottage Road Cinema, the Leeds International Film Festival - but grassroots screenings are what let ordinary people become curators, not just audiences," Evangeline highlights. "Leeds now has dozens of grassroots film clubs, many of which started life as a single Scalarama Leeds screening that someone was originally nervous about putting on.
“That's a real, tangible film culture being built by the people who live here, for the people who live here, and it's worth protecting."
Unlike a conventional night at the cinema, Scalarama events frequently feature bespoke introductions, Q&As, live music, or themed extras, with ticket revenue reinvested directly back into the local creative community.
"When something original and a bit strange breaks through... it proves what we've believed for over a decade: people are always after something that actually surprises them," she adds.
"You get to take part in someone's passion project."
Film fans can head down to Hyde Park Picture House this evening for the launch party, which includes free popcorn, volunteer meet-and-greets, and an exclusive first look at the September calendar.
For anyone inspired to step behind the projector themselves, the invitation remains open year-round.
"So if you've ever thought about showing a film yourself, get in touch by signing up for our newsletter, come to a workshop, or just message us," Evangeline says. "You genuinely don't need experience, just a film you can't stop thinking about and a willingness to give it a go.
“That's how almost everyone in this festival got started, including myself."
Scalarama Leeds 2026 officially runs from September 1 to September 30 across Leeds, Keighley, and Bradford.