Short Documentary Films: Community Cinema Screening

About Short Documentary Films: Community Cinema Screening

This screening was so popular last year, we thought we’d do it again! From the Scottish Documentary Institute’s 2026 Bridging the Gap programme, we are delighted to present six new documentary shorts. Covering a broad range of subjects, from a therapeutic community in Castle Douglas, to a man reflecting on his and his ancestor’s shared giantism, each film touches on topics of home, belonging, community and our relationship with our environment. Details of each film below:

When the Fires Stop
Duration: 17 minutes
Director: Matthew Dunsmore

Unease grips the town of Grangemouth as its largest employer gradually falls silent. The future of the town is uncertain. All we can do is watch on.

Hidden Trees
Duration: 18 minutes
Director: Sophie van Bree

A poetic observational documentary set within the remote Scottish therapeutic community ‘Lothlorien’, where residents with severe mental health difficulties learn to sit with their inner turmoil through nature, routines and peer support. But as the seasons shift, the pressure rises: one day, they need to move on.

No Place Like Home
Duration: 13 minutes
Director: Michael Lee Richardson

Writer and filmmaker Michael Lee Richardson revisits a childhood favourite film and finds a secret hidden inside all along. Part biography, part personal essay, No Place Like Home blends 80s nostalgia and camp aesthetics to reclaim the narrative of North East queer icon, Michael Sundin.

Feral
Duration: 11 minutes
Director: Miranda Rose Carter-Watson

A young feral cat is caught and her kittens taken away to be tamed. A story which reflects on our own discord with the natural world.

Cherry Picker
Duration: 16 minutes
Director: Olive Jones

Cherry Picker is a visceral experimental documentary digging under the skin of the psychological power dynamics between landlord and tenant, where nothing is quite as it seems.

Amongst Men
Duration: 15 minutes
Director: Katie McFadden

Amongst Men follows Brendan Holland, a man living with giantism, as he reflects on the life and contested legacy of his ancestor Charles Byrne, the “Irish Giant.” Through Brendan’s voice, the film asks who has the right to decide how we honour the dead.

Content Warnings

Discussions of homophobia, suicide, domestic violence, mental illness, and autopsy. Graphic depiction of surgery. 

Refreshments

Hot drinks will be available. 

Small cash donations towards refreshements are welcome but not required. You can also bring your own soft drinks or snacks, however no alcohol is permitted. Please also refrain from bringing any hot or strong smelling food items. Thank you.

Duncan Place Access Information

• Please let us know if you have any access needs e.g. if you require a seat with armrests, if you need space for a wheelchair, or if there is anything else that you think we should know.  
• There is ramped access into the building. The event will be held on the ground floor of Duncan Place Community Hub and is wheelchair accessible.
• There are two individual toilets on the ground floor with one being wheelchair accessible.
• We have a mix of padded seats and hard plastic seats. Seats with arm rests are also available if needed. We have a limited supply of chair cushions available on request.
• There is foyer space and outdoor space for those that might need to break away to a quieter area during the film.

We also have a page on the Euan's Guide website here, including a video showing entry to the building.  

If there is anything we can do to help your visit, or if you'd like a chat about the space beforehand, please get in touch by emailing events@duncanplace.org or phoning 0131 364 4351.

Getting Here
We can be found on Google Maps here > https://goo.gl/maps/qNZeEKWL1uhdQRBd7

Duncan Place is a few minutes’ walk from Leith Walk, Duke Street, Great Junction Street and Easter Road. This area is very well served with buses, including 1, 7, 14, 16, 21, 25, 34, 35 & 49.

www.lothianbuses.com has a journey planner.

The closest tram stop is Foot Of The Walk.

Bike racks are available in our outdoor space. Please bring a secure lock. We do not have any to loan out & bikes and scooters are not allowed in the building. Bikes and scooters are left at your own risk and Duncan Place will not accept any responsibility for any damage or theft. CCTV does cover the bike racks.

Duncan Place has 1 disabled parking space and 1 further space alongside the exterior fencing, both available on a first come basis.

Parking bays have been painted on the road outside the building and on-street (card only) pay and display meters have been installed by City of Edinburgh Council, at a rate of £3.80 per hour, Monday to Friday 8:30am until 5:30pm. Onstreet parking outside our building is currently free at weekends. 

There are also yellow zig zags on the street. Again, please check signage but at the time of writing it is free to park on the zigs zags after 4pm Mon to Fri and all day on the weekends.

Duncan Place is part of the Local Cinema network.
Local Cinema is a network of community cinemas across Edinburgh, led by WHALE Arts. They support film screenings co-curated with and for local communities across a range of community spaces in the city, including WHALE Arts; North Edinburgh Arts, Duncan Place Community Hub, Out of the Blue Drill Hall, Space @ Broomhouse Hub, Craigmillar Now and The Crannie Community Hub. The latest Local Cinema shared community cinema programme runs from August 2025 – March 2026. Tickets available directly at venues or via this link: https://linktr.ee/localcinemaedin 
Local Cinema is supported by the City of Edinburgh Council.