Cheltenham International Film Festival

Name

Cheltenham International Film Festival

Legal name

Cheltenham International Film Festival

Website

https://cheltfilm.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Film Festival and Cultural Events Programming

NAICS

Museums (712110), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712)

SIC

Services-Motion Picture Theaters (7830), Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

Film Festivals & Festival Organizers (MPADAKAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Community & Cultural Screenings (Museums, Cultural Centers) (MPADAKAH)

Keywords

• Film festival programming
• Independent cinema screenings
• Youth film education
• Community cultural events
• Arts charity programming

Headquarters

HQ city

Cheltenham

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Festival Ticket Sales: Revenue from individual film screenings and event tickets during the annual festival and year-round programming
2. Friends Membership: Annual membership programme offering discounts on films and events, with Individual (£45) and Couples (£70) tiers, including complimentary tickets and exclusive events
3. Community Partnership Sponsorship: Corporate sponsorship tiers (£300, £500, £1000) offering brand visibility, VIP access, ticket vouchers, and promotional placement
4. Donations: Charitable donations from supporters, including lottery donations via Cheltenham Borough Council Lottery
5. Film Submission Fees: Revenue from filmmakers submitting films via FilmFreeway platform for festival consideration

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Cheltenham International Film Festival is a registered charity that operates an annual international film festival in Cheltenham, UK, screening world cinema, premieres, and filmmaker tributes. The core offering is supplemented by year-round programmes including CineYouth (youth education), Unplugged (community outreach screenings in non-traditional venues), and Moving Image/Cheltenham Film Festival Plus (expanded content across television, music, comedy, and interactive media). Revenue is generated through ticket sales, Friends memberships, Community Partner sponsorships, donations, and film submission fees via FilmFreeway.

Product overview

Cheltenham International Film Festival operates as a multi-faceted entertainment platform centred on its flagship annual film festival (now in its seventh year). The core offering is supplemented by several interconnected programmes: CineYouth provides year-round youth education and engagement; Unplugged extends cinema into community spaces; and Moving Image/Cheltenham Film Festival Plus expands into television, music, comedy, and interactive media. Additional offerings include the BEST FILM Competition for emerging directors, the Director's Tribute honouring established filmmakers, Sound and Vision music-film events, and Under The Stars outdoor screenings. The festival also offers membership (Friends) and corporate sponsorship (Community Partners) programmes. The organisation uses FilmFreeway for film submissions and previously operated its own streaming via YourScreen during COVID-19.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CineYouth: Year-round programme building on the Festival's mission to educate, inform, entertain and inspire a new generation of cinema lovers and filmmakers through screenings, workshops, and mentoring.
• Unplugged
• Cheltenham Film Festival Plus
• Moving Image

Products and services

• Cheltenham Film Festival
• CineYouth Programme
• Unplugged
• Moving Image / Cheltenham Film Festival Plus
• Friends of Cheltenham Film Festival
• Community Partners Sponsorship Programme

Quantifiable outcome

• Festival has screened 500+ films across 7 editions
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature3 records

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core, supporting and minor.

• Simon PeggcoreOthers · 1 January 2019Festival Honorary Patron. Simon Pegg has been associated with the festival since its founding, introducing opening night film 'Lost Transmissions' via Zoom during 2020 virtual festival.
• British Film Institute (BFI)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Major institutional supporter providing funding and credibility. BFI is listed as a festival sponsor with logo placement on website.
• Everyman CinemascoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVenue partner operating The Everyman and Tivoli cinemas in Cheltenham. Hosts festival screenings and CineYouth programming.
• CineworldcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCinema chain venue partner; became new home for the festival in 2023. Festival programme lists Cineworld as primary venue.
• Cheltenham TrustsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal charitable trust supporting the festival's community programming efforts.
• Roses TheatresupportingChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegional theatre partner in Tewkesbury hosting festival screenings including Spanish season programming.
• The Queens Hotel CheltenhamsupportingGTM or Marketing PartnerLocal hotel partner sponsoring the festival with logo placement on website.
• Cheltenham Film SocietysupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerOldest and largest film society in UK, founded 1945. Festival partner with Michael Bourne serving on BEST FILM jury.
• Film and FurnituresupportingGTM or Marketing PartnerFilm enthusiast media partner founded by Paula Benson, who serves on BEST FILM jury.
• Richer SoundsminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAudiovisual retailer sponsor with logo placement on festival website.
• FilmFreewaycoreTechnology or IntegrationFilm submission platform enabling global filmmaker submissions to the festival.
• YourScreensupportingTechnology or IntegrationStreaming service partner used for online festival screenings during COVID-19 and subsequent virtual programming.
• National Star CollegesupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerEducational partner for CineYouth programming, with focus on young people with disabilities. Hosted film events with American producers.
• University of GloucestershiresupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner for student engagement; students attended CineYouth screenings and film shorts programme.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Sundance Film Festival: The leading global independent film festival and the gold-standard model for emerging-filmmaker discovery that CIFF explicitly emulates via its BEST FILM competition.
• BFI London Film Festival: The UK's flagship film festival run by the British Film Institute, an institutional incumbent that dominates premieres, filmmaker attention, and BFI-aligned funding/promotion that CIFF also draws on.
• Edinburgh International Film Festival: One of the world's oldest continuously running film festivals, serving as a broader incumbent in the UK festival landscape that competes for filmmakers, audiences, and institutional support.

Direct peers

• Sheffield DocFest: UK festival focused on documentary and screen storytelling with strong regional identity and similar programming extensions into industry events and community engagement.
• Cambridge Film Festival: Another UK regional film festival with comparable scale, audience profile and mission of bringing world and independent cinema to a non-metropolitan audience.
• London Indian Film Festival: UK niche film festival (London Indian Film Festival) with comparable size, charity/community positioning, and focus on curated international cinema in a UK regional setting.
• Glasgow Film Festival: Another UK regional film festival of similar scale and year-round programming, useful as a same-country comparator for audience and sponsorship dynamics.
• Raindance Film Festival: UK-based independent film festival with a similar focus on emerging filmmakers and independent cinema; closest scale and positioning analog to CIFF, both operating as discovery platforms for debut and second features.
• Encounters Film Festival (Bristol): Regional UK film festival with overlapping programming (shorts, features, emerging filmmakers) and similar community-engagement orientation, making it a strong regional peer to Cheltenham.

Regional players

• Cork International Film Festival: Charity-backed festival in another part of the British Isles (Ireland) with comparable size, audience-development focus and emerging-filmmaker programming.

Market position

Strengths1 record

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cheltenham-international-film-festival

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Cheltenham International Film Festival