Get Involved

Find out how you can get involved with Sunrise Film Festival, from joining the festival committee to being one of our online pre-selectors or becoming a festival steward.

About us

Sunrise Film Festival, based in Lowestoft, Suffolk, UK, was founded in 2021 and is run voluntarily by passionate independent film enthusiasts and filmmakers to provide an important accessible platform for filmmakers like themselves every August.

We’re passionate about creating a platform for filmmakers who are yet to be discovered (or picked up by the bigger film festival circuit), whilst making film accessible and proudly showcasing independent film to new audiences across overlooked communities.

Since our inception, we’ve proudly screened over 600 indie films and presented 65 awards, becoming a BFI Film Audience Network-backed and BIFA-qualifying festival for British Short Films. Our mission is to uplift undiscovered talent and bring fresh, diverse stories to the big screen.

Here’s what Holly Donoghue, a 2024 festival attendee, had to say: “Sunrise Film Festival was a fantastic experience! I had a wonderful day, and so much hard work goes into making it so great – excited to see where things are going for Sunrise.”

If you’re passionate about film and want to be part of something special, we’d love to have you join our volunteer team.

Pre Selectors (Screening Committee)

Volunteer to be a pre-selector for our 2026 festival edition online screening committee.

As a pre-selector on our online Screening Committee, you will receive 20-30 films to watch in your own time, and personally critique them via a scoring system, where you will also give concise written feedback on each film watched.

Pre-selectors are vital to helping us fairly create our programming long-list, which ultimately will shape our final programme, + you’ll get invited to our 5th anniversary edition festival for free.

Applications for our online pre-selectors will be accepted on a rolling basis.

Please note that the application form below is for our screening committee only.

Our Festival Committee Roles

Marketing Assistant

1 Position Available – Marketing Assistant (you will lease with Joshua Freemantle our founder)

Location: You don’t have to be based in Lowestoft and can support us remotely.

Closing Date: 12th October 2025

Volunteer Role: Expenses only – Travel & Food

We would not expect you to do anymore than 5 hours a week and this is purely a guide.

Role purpose:

This role sits within our festival committee, as our Marketing Assistant you will help spread the word about Sunrise Film Festival (SFF) across all media forms, including our social media and newsletters.

You will shape the unique look of Sunrise 2026 guided by our brand guidelines, and will have the opportunity to assist with the creation of our posters, flyers, merchandise, and online branding; along with shaping a year-long marketing strategy and putting out content before and during the annual festival.

This role within our team make for excellent career experience in the creative and film exhibition industries for someone who is looking to use their design and communication skills to support a growing film festival and have their work posted publicly on social media, printed, displayed, and seen by thousands of people online and in-person.

You will also be invited to be part of our 2026 festival from 20-23 August.

Our Ethos:

We are committed to discovering new emerging talent and working class filmmakers, that are yet to be discovered on bigger platforms and across the industry.

Whilst focusing on sharing progressive and underrepresented stories, across lived experience on screen, societal and environmental issues.

Main Responsibilities:

Excellent communication skills, both for external communication and internal communication – you will be working closely with Joshua Freemantle, our festival founder.
Willingness to understand the Sunrise Film Festival brand and communicate it across many different platforms.
Ability to think creatively about what would make for engaging content on social media and across our newsletters.
Ability to take initiative in relation to what festival information should be widely publicised and when it is best to do this.
Ability to work on quick turnarounds and in a fast-paced environment during the festival.
Any previous press and comms, social media and/or online newsletter skills are a plus.

Programming & Assistant Curators

2-3 Positions Available – Programming & Assistant Curators

Location: You don’t have to be based in Lowestoft and can support us remotely.

Closing Date: 12th October 2025

Role purpose:

This role sits within our festival committee, as one of our Programming & Assistant Curators you will play an integral part in the success of the smooth running of producing our annual festival programme aligned with our festivals key programming focus and ethos. You will be guided by our festival founder and programming lead, and shared input from other festival committee festival members, you will also get the chance to shape and pitch new festival strands.

Positions within our festival committee are perfect for someone passionate about supporting independent film, and wanting to make the film industry more accessible. Team members in this position are responsible for programming and assisting our festivals curation, this involves watching films, giving your feedback, attending meetings to check progress and formations of strands, as well as curating and suggesting content for enhancing screenings, questions and answers sessions as well as other suitable content, like workshops, talks and other events you think would be suitable for the 2026 festival.

After the notification period, when we notify successful filmmakers via filmfreeway of there inclusion in the 2026 festival, you will support our festival founder with responding to enquiries and logging what films have confirmed there inclusion in the 5th editing programming.

You will also be invited to be part of our 2026 festival from 20-23 August, and will have the opportunity to lead Q&As, and any festival activity.

Our Ethos:

We are committed to discovering new emerging talent and working class filmmakers, that are yet to be discovered on bigger platforms and across the industry.

Whilst focusing on sharing progressive and underrepresented stories, across lived experience on screen, societal and environmental issues.

Main Responsibilities:

A passion for film is the most important thing for this role 🙂
Organisational skills – you will be in close contact with Joshua Freemantle, our festival founder, be included in regular committee updates.
Creative approach to supporting the programming and curation of the festival.
Excellent communication skills, both for external communication and internal communication.
Willingness to understand the Sunrise Film Festival programming focuses.
Ability to work in a team, you will not be an alone in the festival committee.
Knowledge of Excel/Google Sheets is helpful, though not required.
Ability to work on quick turnarounds, this is nothing to be scared about it’s more so about us finalising our full programme for this.

Volunteer at Our 2025 festival

At Sunrise Film Festival we recruit an enthusiastic team of volunteers to help with the running duties associated with the Festival.

It is fair to say we would be lost without the support of volunteers and we would love to welcome you to become part of the team for the 2025 festival.

Roles Available:

Set up / Break down crew
Welcome team
Tech support / Activity co-ordinators
Promo team / Merchandise
Filming / Social media crew
Photography / Videography / Social Media crew

Volunteering roles vary, but being involved with our festival is great fun and a wonderful way to meet like-minded individuals and possibly make new friends. You’ll develop new skills and gain experience within the exhibition/film industry.

Network with students, filmmakers, and some of the industry’s most accomplished filmmakers, writers, and producers (discuss uni, filmmaking, your niche, etc.).
Improve your understanding of event organising, sound/tech for events, customer service and videography/photography.
You’ll be able to understand a lot more about what the small voluntary team does and have a big hand in creative direction, and developing ideas.
We have a variety of levels of commitment as a volunteer depending on what you can and can’t do.
Unlock all the festival features that the public will have, as well as guest list passes to the award ceremony & after-party.
You’ll also be offered a reference from us & potential future job opportunities (you must request from us via email after the festival).

Ranging from ushering/front of house stewards, box office & merchandise sellers, to handing out our festival programmes in the street and informing the public.

Volunteers must be aged 16 or older (if under 18 parental/guardian consent is required).
You also preferably need to be local to the event as we cannot provide accommodation or travel.
Enthusiastic and eager to be part of our ever-growing Film Festival in the UK.

We will provide a short training and ‘getting to know you’ session before the Festival, so it would be useful if you could be available for these as well (this will take place on the evening of Wednesday 21 May 2025).

If you have any questions or are interested in being contacted about our volunteering opportunities please email info@sunrisefilmfestival.co.uk

2025 Poster Competition!

We’re looking for talented artists based in East Anglia to design the official poster for the 2025 Sunrise Film Festival.

One lucky design will be selected as the poster to become the face of our festival’s fourth edition and will be featured on printed adverts around Lowestoft, banners in the Marina Theatre (our festival’s home), the front cover of the festival’s printed programme, as well as other print and digital marketing materials and merchandise.

Be as creative as you like, but we’d especially love your design to include scenes of Lowestoft, such as the Marina Theatre, coastal imagery, a sunrise, or imagery that represents and champions the independent film industry.

Please also consider our festival colour scheme – designs which include orange, purple and pink tones are likely to fit best with our branding.