Northern Youth

Bradford is one of the UK’s youngest cities with a significant portion of its population under 25, and this season champions the bold and blistering spirit of youthful northern characters, actors, film-makers, writers, and mavericks. Punky and poetic, powerful and punchy, this season celebrates Northern Youth in all its glory.

The season is curated for Bradford 2025 by Dominic Leclerc, the Bradford born, raised and based director of Sex Education, Skins and Shameless, and the upcoming Bradford-set feature Flesh and Flamingos about queer northern youth. His passion in complex and daring stories about youth drive this rebellious and raw season.

The selections in Northern Youth span several decades, from a ’60s British New Wave classic celebrating teenage rebellion, to a provocative contemporary film debut about consent. The stories transport us from the back streets of Salford, to the majestic Yorkshire moors; from the Liverpool of a teenage boy’s lyrical imagination, to the underbelly of Nottingham’s council estates. The stories are unique and bursting with youthful spirit: from a group of ’80s skinheads exploring their collective and individual identity, to a teenage girl in Yorkshire pushing at the realms of her sexuality, from a young northern rebel boldly defying authority, to a group of adolescents navigating their bodies and emotions on their first clubbing holiday. Together, these films celebrate northern youth in all its complexity – championing diversity, the individual experience, and both the frailty and wonder of being on the cusp of adulthood.