PictureEast Film Festival 2026 showcases powerful films, local voices and creative talent across East London.
Welcome to OUR special event:
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LOCAL CREATIVES SHOWCASE
As PictureEast Film Festival makes its debut in Barking & Dagenham, One Room is proud to curate an evening that spotlights some of the borough’s brightest emerging filmmakers. This event celebrates the breadth of moving-image practice within the local creative community — from music videos and experimental work to documentary storytelling.
The evening will present a carefully curated programme of short films, followed by a panel discussion exploring the importance of access to space, time, and community in nurturing early creative ideas. The night will close with a DJ set, creating an informal space for networking, reflection, and celebration.
This event positions Barking & Dagenham not just as a place where artists live, but as a place where work is developed, shared, and valued.
Curated by Barking & Dagenham local, AJ Haastrup from One Room Live:
AJ Haastrup is a Social Designer/ Consultant and Co founder of One Room Live. My work over the last 6- 7 years has been mainly in cultural production and understanding the latent potential arts and culture, specifically music has to connect people in new ways but also creating livelihoods. Working across social research, arts and culture, civic design. Futurism, ecosystem thinking and the changing nature of how we live and connect in urban context fascinates me and working with future generations of change makers.
Panel: Joelle Mae David
Joelle Mae David was born and raised in East London; growing up in between the boroughs of Newham and Barking & Dagenham specifically. Joelle always had a passion for storytelling, but had no idea how to gain access to the TV and film industry or that there were even jobs for her within it. While working as a production assistant, Joelle began creating short documentaries. She saved her money and bought a DSLR camera, learned how to shoot and began documenting local people, which became a short series called Hidden Talent, which featured on BBC3.
This then led to her being commissioned by BBC3 to create a short poetic documentary about how regeneration affects young people in the Gascoigne Estate in Barking called Losing My Home in The Name of Regeneration(2019). After making several short documentaries and films, Joelle used her experience to start Bluebird Pictures, to focus on more narrative storytelling plus deliver outreach programmes in her local community. She released her first narrative short film; Greasy Spoon, a comedy-sci-fi about gentrification, in 2021. It was selected for BAFTA-qualifying festivals such as Aesthetica and London Short Film Festival and was nominated for the Hijack Visionary Award and the Taash Comedy in Film Award.
Since 2021, she has directed a read-through of Sarah Keyworth‘s comedy Manbeast, directed the non-TX pilot Great Brittons (written by Ava Pickett) for Channel 4, directed two episodes of Dreaming Whilst Black, became the lead director of Channel 4’s Queenie, and written a pilot for Audible.
Dalila McFarlane Martin
Dalila McFarlane Martin is a London based actor, DJ and writer/director working at the intersection of club culture and cinematic storytelling. Her practice uses sound as an emotional language, exploring how music, movement and image interact in live and narrative contexts. She is currently developing her debut short film, reload, into a series and working on her second short film Lost Signal, a fast paced, drum and bass driven story set on the London Tube that explores mental health and grief.
Her most recent acting credits include: the short film 'Darling' written and directed by Mykea Perry. It was in the BAFTA qualifying short film festival Aesthetica. She was the lead character in the short 'Invisible Strings' produced by the BFI. She is also the lead character in the upcoming short film ‘Unstuffed’ written and directed by Jay and Kuran Javeri.
With seven years of international DJ experience and a practice built entirely through self funding, Dalila’s work is grounded in British sound system culture and a commitment to multidimensional creative expression. As a black British woman working across film and music, she is focused on expanding how sound, story and identity are experienced.
Timi Akindele-Ajani
Timi Akindele-Ajani is an award-winning London based Director & Film Photographer, he brings a unique creative vision to every project. His work seamlessly blends classic storytelling with a romantic sensibility, creating rich, immersive worlds that resonate with emotional depth and originality. His work has been featured on Nowness, It’s Nice That, Port Magazine & The BBC. Timi’s skills lie in bringing human moments to the screen and telling personal stories with creative flair. His short film ‘Guests’ has been featured in BAFTA-qualifying festivals, showcasing his talent and momentum in film making.
Tyra Chuck
Video Editor with 8+ years of experience working with global brands. Trusted by BBC, Cosmopolitan, Flight Story, Little Dot Studios, Sony, and more.
Director of the documentary film, 'Hear My World.’ Premiered at Soho House London and Hong Kong. Featured by BBC 1xtra and the British Film Institute.
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Join us for PictureEast Film Festival 2026 (PEFF26)
A dynamic celebration of film, culture and community in East London! Curated by local creative voices and presented by The New Black Film Collective (TNBFC) in partnership with Film London, this festival champions bold cinematic storytelling and community engagement across Newham and Barking & Dagenham.
Admission is on a first come, first served basis.
Refreshments will be available for purchase.
Programme supported by Film Hub London, managed by Film London. Proud to be a partner of the BFI Film Audience Network, funded by the National Lottery. www.filmlondon.org.uk/film-hub-london
