This season we relaunch as Forest Row Cinema – a name that reflects our mission to bring the best of world cinema, classic films, lesser-known works and exciting new releases to a local audience in a community setting in the village. It feels especially fitting that our rebrand coincides with the centenary of the volunteer-led cinema movement. Beginning in London in October 1925, the number and diversity of smaller film venues in the UK has grown enormously. Today we are proud to be one of over 1,600 small organisations around the country screening films for our local communities.

The earliest film in this season’s programme is the visually stunning Earth, directed by Alexander Dovzhenko in 1930. A favourite of Andrei Tarkovsky, and a clear inspiration to much of his imagery, we are delighted to be screening Earth with live musical accompaniment by Terry Davies.

Other older films will feature in two special Saturday events: a small programme of African cinema in November and a double bill celebrating the work of Werner Herzog in April.

Of the most recent releases, we open the season with a delightful Iranian comedy My Favourite Cake. The programme also includes films from Georgia, India and Brazil, as well as the fabulous documentary Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat – worth attending for the music alone. We look forward to welcoming you to one or more of our screenings. As we come together in the Village Hall, we celebrate being part of a rich and diverse network of local cinemas here in the UK and around the world.