Unveiled in October 2006 with its inaugural award weekend the following year, Cardiff’s annual Iris Prize has grown exponentially ever since – and, it’s fair to say, has put Wales on the map of global LGBTQ+ cinema. Founder Berwyn Rowlands pens a warm welcome, and Iris’ Lynne Reynolds gathers a score of number-based facts on the fest.
No fireworks and no champagne – or at least no expensive champagne! That’s been my guiding principle for the 20th anniversary of the Iris Prize LGBTQ+ Film Festival. However, our year-long celebration has also taken us back to basics, creating opportunities to share LGBTQ+ stories with new audiences.
Three popular Iris productions, made by winners of the Iris Prize, are available to watch now on Channel 4’s streaming service. Never Never Never, the 13th production made by an Iris winner, premiered on BBC Wales last month and is still available on iPlayer. We’ve received a Royal Television Society award to mark our 20th anniversary, and BAFTA Cymru will also celebrate the milestone with a special event during the festival.
In this important year, I’ve also become the proud owner of a bus pass – a gift from the Welsh Government (via Transport For Wales), for my 60th birthday. So I’ve been contemplating what comes next, and how much longer I want to look after Iris; luckily, I’m still enjoying the experience, although succession planning will soon become a priority.
Fortunately – or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it – Iris is still needed almost as much as it was in 2007. There has been a slight but noticeable change in the mood music over the past couple of years, including a disturbing preoccupation with Pride flags flying over public buildings. It has reopened conversations I thought we had resolved decades ago. I had honestly concluded that sexuality was so last year and that we had moved on, but I’m no longer convinced.
Sharing stories that the mainstream sometimes ignores remains vital. The diversity of those stories matters too: we still need to see more work centred on women, alongside many other underrepresented voices. Intersectionality has always been an important part of the Iris tradition and must remain central to the stories we share.
As we prepare for what I predict will be the biggest festival in our 20-year history, I want to encourage everyone to spend the week watching as many films as possible, meeting as many filmmakers as possible and enjoying a little Cardiff charm. I’m still not sure I can explain exactly what that charm is, but it seems to be working for Iris – and for everyone who joins us.
words BERWYN ROWLANDS
The story of Iris in 20 numbers
3,000,000 views (and counting) of the Iris Prize Best British Shorts on Channel 4
£40,000 Iris Prize – the largest short film prize in the world
12,563 attendances recorded for Iris in 2025
1,300 bed-nights given for free by Friends Of Iris, who open their homes to host a visiting filmmaker during festival week
657 films from around the globe have competed for the Iris Prize
‘50 festivals worth the entry fee’ acknowledgement from MovieMaker
30% of the Iris Prize festival audience identifies as straight
25 international partner festivals nominating films directly to the shortlist
20 years of awarding excellence in storytelling and global filmmaking
19 Pink Portraits commissioned this year
16 awards to give out: the Iris Prize, Best British Short, Best Performance In A Male Role (Best British/feature film), Best Performance In A Female Role (Best British/feature film), Best Performance Beyond The Binary (Best British/feature film), Best Feature, Youth Jury, Elders’ Award, Community Award, Micro Short Award, Education Award, Student Award, and Audience Award
15 British Shorts streaming on Channel 4 for a year after the festival
15 Iris Prize Winners’ Productions shared globally
10 years of Iris On The Move, taking the best of Iris to cinemas all over the UK
4 films made with the Iris Prize Documentary Film Finance Fund: Mena Fombo’s Some Girls Hate Dresses, Ira Putliova’s Bender Defenders, Emily Sargent’s Jackie and Vicky Morton’s Wear I Am
4 Australian winners: Grant Scicluna’s The Wilding, Tim Marshall’s Gorilla, Brendon McDonall’s All God’s Creatures and John Sheedy’s Tarneit
3 Iris Prize Fellowships: Tom Abell, Jacquie Lawrence and Paul Smith
3 days, the length of the debut event in 2007
2 Oscar nominations for Iris Prize alumni: Dee Rees, whose Pariah won in 2007, was up for a Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar with Mudbound in 2017, while Natalie Musteata & Alexandre Singh’s Two People Exchanging Saliva – highly commended at Iris 2024 – tied for Best Live Action Short Film at this year’s Oscars
1 Madfabulous Welsh premiere held outside the festival week window
words LYNNE REYNOLDS
Iris Prize LGBTQ+ Film Festival, various venues, Cardiff, Mon 12-Sun 18 Oct
Tickets: £160 full pass; £100 weekend; £25-£45 per day; £7-£9 per screening. Info: here
