Global creativity, innovation and inclusion celebrated at the Creative Industries Festival
Artists, actors, entrepreneurs and policymakers will come together for the Oxford Brookes University Creative Industries Festival, taking place from Monday 23 to Friday 27 February 2026.
Free and open to all, the annual festival will feature 50 speakers over 5 days from across the global creative industries, including creatives from Hollywood, theme parks and the UK grime poetry scene. The programme also brings together industry commentators, local pressure groups, and union representatives from Equity and the Musicians’ Union, offering perspectives that span creative practice, labour and policy.Researchers from Oxford Brookes University will showcase work exploring the political dimensions of the creative industries, with debates on artificial intelligence, trans rights, and the power of audiences to drive change.
Hannah Yelin, Associate Professor in Media and Culture and Chair of the Creative Industries Research and Innovations Network, said: “The festival offers a week of innovation, diversity and critical discourse on the creative industries globally. We are excited about this year’s programme of talks, roundtables, panel discussions, workshops, exhibitions and receptions designed to inspire practitioners, researchers, students, and industry leaders alike.”
Festival Highlights
Innovative Talks & Keynote Sessions
-
Art & Industry of Immersive Worlds, featuring acclaimed theme park designer Lauren Anderson, exploring the intersection of creativity and immersive technologies.
-
Actors at the Heart of the Creative Economy with industry commentator Lauren Scott-Berry.
Critical Conversations & Roundtables
-
Roundtable: The Creative Industries and the Making of Trans In(visibility) an inclusive and intersectional discussion advancing trans voices in creative practice.
-
Mas + Movies Caribbean Carnival Arts on Screen with Shari Petti, celebrating diasporic storytelling and cultural expression.
Industry Panels & Professional Insight
-
Politics of Creative Work, a panel discussion with representatives from Equity and the Musicians’ Union addressing labour, rights and industry structures.
-
Navigating Hollywood’s Creative Machine: Q&A with Etan Marciano, offering insider perspectives on careers and creativity in global entertainment.
Culture, Archives & Expression
-
Explore the Oxfordshire Artweeks and Paul Oliver Archives at Brookes bridging local heritage and artistic legacy.
-
The Body Is the Music Is the Word: Q&A with Grime Poet Debris Stevenson a compelling fusion of sound, identity and spoken word.
Networking & Community Engagement
-
Wine Reception & Filmmakers’ Debate: AI vs Authenticity an informal evening uniting creators and thinkers around one of the defining questions in contemporary media.
-
The Audience Project Research Showcase (TAP) spotlighting research on creative engagement and audience experience.
-
Hostile Survival: Panel & Long Table Discussion probing resilience, resistance, and creativity in challenging contexts.
Capstone Event
-
Brookes Creative Industries Research Day a culminating celebration of creative research, innovation and interdisciplinary exchange.