Clay Films is a new strand of British Ceramics Biennial created to reflect the range of ways that artists work with clay – in this context showcasing the high quality of artist film work being made, an area of practice which has to date received limited exposure. Following an open submission opportunity for Global Majority artists of African and Caribbean heritage based anywhere in the world, six artists were selected from over 200 entries by a panel of film experts, artists and curators.

Selected artists:

• Majid Asadi (Iran) for Brother’s Horn, a compelling tale of sibling rivalry set in a pottery studio.
• Gibrán Furlán (Mexico) for Hearth, an experimental short film in collaboration with Maria Fernanda Avina. The film captures the elemental ritual of firing ceramic and clay objects in a pit oven, an ancestral technique rooted in the Mesoamerican tradition.
• Ilias Khlifat (Morocco) for Liquid, an expressive exploration of our human connection to the primordial qualities of clay.
• Valentina Alvarado Matos (Spain) for Throw the Ground, which examines the relationship between art and labour in the most tactile of enterprises. This film is about making things that leave a trace in space and time.
• Marius van Rensburg, in collaboration with Southern Guild Gallery (South Africa), for iThongo featuring Andile Dyalvane. iThongo – meaning ancestral dreamscape in Xhosa – documents the process and ritual behind an exhibition by artist Andile Dyalvane, comprising 24 sculptural stools, chairs, and benches, presented in the tradition of Xhosa ceremonial gatherings.
• Tomisin Sarumi (USA) for Departing, a stop motion animation in which three people visit a temple and summon Yoruba Gods (Orishas), using traditional Yoruba rituals.

Clare Wood, Artistic Director & Chief Executive of British Ceramics Biennial, comments:

‘Clay Films is an important addition to this year’s British Ceramics Biennial. This new programme provides a platform for more international artists within BCB, while also giving a much-needed platform to an area of ceramics practice that has had little exposure until now. I hope the programme will encourage other artists to consider the creative potential of working in film and clay. For the Biennial audiences, it is an opportunity to inspire some new enthusiasts for artists films and expand our visitors’ perspectives about the many ways artists work with clay.’

Watch all six films at the British Ceramics Biennial, which runs from 6 September to 19 October.

Thank you to the Clay Films Selection Panel:  

Sophia Musa, LUX Distribution Manager 

Basil Olton, Artist, Curator and Researcher 

Victoria Thomas, Filmmaker, Producer and Founder of Republic of Story 

Anderson West, Producer, Director and Writer

Image credits:

1. Film still from Brother’s Horn, Majid Asadi, 2023. Courtesy of the artist
2. Film still from Departing, Tomisin Sarumi, 2024. Courtesy of the artist
3. Film still from Hearth, Gibrán Furlán, 2024. Courtesy of the artist
4. Film still from Throw the Ground, Valentina Alvarado Matos, 2021. Courtesy of the artist
5. Film still from Liquid, Ilias Khlifat, 2025. Courtesy of the artist
6. Film still from iThongo, Marius van Rensburg in collaboration with Southern Guild Gallery, 2021. Courtesy of the artist