SISTALAND 2026
3 DAYS. ONE FESTIVAL
A YEAR’S WORTH OF CREATIVE FUEL
10 - 12 JULY 2026
CHEW VALLEY LAKE, SOMERSET
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2025 was the pilot.
2026 is the expansion.
A three-day lakeside festival for women, trans women and non-binary creatives navigating the film and creative industries.
Not just networking. Not just panels. Not just another industry event.
SISTALAND is a space for honest conversations, real connection, creative expansion, and finding people who understand what it feels like to build a creative life when the industry was never designed for you in the first place.
After an emotional sold-out pilot festival, we’re returning bigger, bolder, and outdoors for 2026.
Expect lakeside talks, workshops, screenings, music, slow mornings, campfires, creative breakthroughs, career-shifting conversations, and the kind of community people spend years searching for.
No fluff. No surface-level panels. Just the truth and each other.
WHAT IS SISTALAND?
SISTALAND began as a small WhatsApp group created out of a need for honest conversations, connection and support within the creative industries, spaces that can often feel isolating, gatekept, financially unstable and inaccessible for many women and underrepresented creatives..
What started as a place for honest conversations quickly became a movement.
Today, SISTALAND is an award-winning creative community supporting women and underrepresented creatives across film, TV, media, music, photography, design, theatre, advertising and beyond.
The festival is the physical manifestation of that community.
A place where people stop pretending. A place where collaboration replaces competition. A place where creativity, wellbeing, identity and survival are allowed to exist in the same conversation.
WHO IS
THIS FOR?
SISTALAND is for women, trans women and non-binary creatives.
Whether you’re:
Trying to break into the industry
Freelancing alone
Burnt out and questioning everything
Rebuilding confidence after rejection
Returning after motherhood or caregiving
Pivoting careers
Feeling disconnected from your creativity
Or simply searching for people who get it
You belong here.
COMMUNITY POWERS CHANGE ★
COMMUNITY POWERS CHANGE ★
THIS YEAR’S THEME:The industry is changing. Budgets are shrinking. AI is reshaping creative work. Burnout is everywhere. People are questioning whether they can continue.
And yet, community remains one of the
most powerful tools we have.
This year’s programme explores what happens when people stop waiting for permission and start building together instead.
From honest conversations about money, motherhood, class, neurodiversity and burnout - to practical sessions around visibility, pitching, sustainability and creative survival, SISTALAND 2026 is designed to leave people feeling less alone and more empowered.
EXPECT
Powerful panel discussions with leading voices across film and creative industries
Hands-on fun creative workshops and fireside convos
Honest discussions around money, burnout, hormones, motherhood and identity
The Exhale — our softer wellbeing and grounding space
The Money Clinic — practical financial support without shame
Lakeside camping and glamping
Creative networking without the awkwardness
Outdoor cinema screenings and theatre in woods
Music, movement, fire circles and after-dark parties
CO THEATRE’S AWARD-NOMINATED SHOW THE WOMB COMES TO SISTALAND FESTIVAL 2026
We are incredibly excited to announce that award-nominated theatre company Co Theatre will be bringing their internationally celebrated production The Womb to SISTALAND Festival 2026 as part of our Friday night AFTER DARK programme.
Written by Aylin Rodoplu and directed by Elise Xiaqi Eriksen, The Womb is a bold, absurd, funny and deeply honest piece of contemporary feminist theatre exploring womanhood, patriarchal systems, trauma, survival, and the lived realities many women continue to navigate today.
Following acclaimed performances at the Arcola Theatre and recognition as a STOFF Best Emerging Artist nominee, the production has built a growing audience both in the UK and internationally.
FRIDAY NIGHT
FEM RAGE X SISTALAND
We’re proud to announce our collaboration with Fem Rage for SISTALAND Festival 2026. Together, we’re creating space for women and underrepresented creatives to release pressure, reconnect with themselves, and embrace creativity without perfectionism.
Whether you’re carrying burnout, frustration, overwhelm, heartbreak, or simply need permission to scream, laugh, cry or make a mess
- this space is for you!
PROGRAMME HIGHLIGHTS
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A conversation unpacking gatekeeping, access, class and visibility in the creative industries.
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An honest session about pricing, confidence, negotiation, creative value and sustainable careers.
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A raw conversation around burnout, boundaries, survival and protecting your creativity.
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A future-facing discussion exploring AI, shifting budgets, evolving pathways and how creatives adapt.
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A conversation about visibility, leadership, self-trust and becoming the representation you once needed.
A FESTIVAL FOR THE OVERLOOKED UNDERESTIMATED AND UNAPOLOGETICALLY UNSTOPPABLE.
CAMPING + GLAMPING
This year, SISTALAND moves outdoors!
Set beside the lakeside at Chew Valley Lake, attendees can choose between:
Camping under the stars
On-site glamping options
Nearby accommodation options
The festival has been intentionally designed with slower mornings, open space, nature and wellbeing in mind.
Because creativity flows differently when people feel safe enough to breathe.
“SISTALAND has been a breath of fresh air - I've laughed and cried and felt so seen by all the beautiful humans that make up this community. I've learned so much from being part of SISTALAND; not just industry tips and tricks, but I've also met new freelancers and also signed up and completed a screenwriting course run by another member. Thank you for all the hard work you put into this - it's so appreciated by us all. Keep doing what you're doing; spread that SISTALAND love!”.
— Yas Haghighat, Creative ProducerOUR PARTNERS
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OUR PARTNERS
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OUR PARTNERS ✳︎ OUR PARTNERS ✳︎
JOIN US
This is more than a festival
It’s a reminder that creativity
survives through community
