Black Bristol on Film delves deep into Bristol's rich and complex history with its Black community. A city forged in resistance against racial injustice, we invite you to journey through time.

Witness the birth of the St Paul’s Carnival and the raw energy and spirit of St Paul’s during this transformative era. Confront the pivotal Riots of the 1980s and understand the catalyst for change. Celebrate the people and music that care about community.

With Q&As with the filmmakers we ask: How can Bristol’s past shape its future?

Films

1. Celebrate What? (30 mins) - A film made in 1968 showing the first St Paul’s Carnival and highlighting the lives of global majority people then.

2. A Day to Remember (30 mins) - A film about the 1980s riots in St Paul’s presented by Rob Mitchell. 

3. DJ Derek, Sweet Memory Sounds (30 mins) – A 1994 film about local legend DJ Derek - an unassuming former accountant for Cadburys in his fifties who played ska, soul and reggae every week in the Star and Garter pub. After the film was broadcast, Derek was catapulted from his local to the stages of festivals such as Glastonbury and the Big Chill, becoming celebrated as Britain's oldest DJ and enjoying a successful career. Sadly he passed away in 2015.  We remember him and what he loved about the Black community.

Followed by a short Q&A with Directors Rob Mitchell and Colin Thomas