One evening in October 2026, a wellness hotel just off Hyde Park will turn into a mini cinema for the ocean. Inhabit Southwick Street hosts the Oceanic Global Short Film Festival on Thursday 8 October 2026, part of a touring programme that takes the festival's winning films to Design Hotels properties around the world. Doors are 18:30 to 20:30, and tickets are free via Eventbrite - a rare cheap culture fix in the W2 postcode.
The festival has been running since 2020 and now reaches audiences in 11 countries. This year's edition, titled "Films That Awaken New Depths," was judged by a heavyweight panel: oceanographer Dr Sylvia Earle, filmmaker James Honeyborne, former Marvel Studios chairman David Maisel, surfer-scientist Dr Cliff Kapono and climate activist Xiye Bastida. Four winning films make up the London screening.
The line-up is a genuine global tour in miniature. Grand Jury Prize winner NIO KO BOKK follows two young men in Dakar who build their lives around the sea instead of risking the migration crossings many peers attempt. Wild Summon - BAFTA-nominated and Oscar-shortlisted, narrated by the late Marianne Faithfull - imagines wild salmon as humans. Save the Fear for Later dives beneath Greenland's ice with an Arctic freediver, and ŌSENI follows a Tongan voyager campaigning for the humpback whales that gather in his islands' waters. After the films, a 30-minute panel asks a nicely local question: why is the ocean relevant to London?
The catering is worth a mention too. Yeotown, Inhabit's plant-led kitchen, serves an ocean-inspired menu of coastal canapés, sea-vegetable dishes and its signature Blue Latté. Inhabit, part of the Montcalm Collection, was the first UK hotel group to gain B Corp certification, so the sustainability angle is on-brand rather than bolted on.
If you're in London that week, it's an easy add-on to a trip: an intimate screening, a panel, and snacks with a conscience, all at no cost. Book ahead - free events in a small library room fill up fast.
