OUR STORY

Courageous Films is an independent social justice film production house, following in the tradition of radical filmmaking collectives that have come before. Founded in 2020 by writer, producer, community organiser and filmmaker, Siana Bangura, the house's first film is the documentary '1500 & Counting'. This landmark work investigates deaths in custody and police brutality in the UK following the death of Sheku Bayoh in Kirkcaldy, Scotland, in May 2015. The film was originally released in May 2019 and re-released in 2020 in the wake of the Black Lives Matter protests.

 

We follow the traditions of radical filmmaking collectives such as Migrant Media and are inspired by the work of our peers, such as Rainbow Collective and Black & Brown Films.

 

We have featured in the Guardian, Shades of Noir, VICE, The Fader, and have screened '1500 & Counting' across the UK, in Berlin, in Honolulu and at film festivals including the Peckham & Nunhead Free Film Festival. The film has garnered interest from the likes of the BFI and Spotify and recently completed a successful virtual tour, funded by the Arts Council.

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We have previously proudly partnered with Common House, Impact Hub Birmingham and Impact Hub Islington, Fearless Futures, Edgefund, Northern Police Monitoring Project, Hackney Empire, The Gap Arts, New Art Exchange, and Arnolfini.

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All our films aim to inform, enlighten and move people towards action. We aim to investigate, interrogate, and bring to light the insidious nature of state violence at every level, connecting the dots between key issues of social (in)justice and global struggles. As well as documentaries on policing, we are also developing work looking at issues of Borders and Migration, Climate Justice, Gentrification, and in the future, we have plans to dig deep into issues such as the arms trade. We believe films can be a vital contribution to the revolution - informing, bringing awareness, and archiving.