Event: https://facebook.com/events/s/if-i-could-tell-you-at-birming/1369867398332732/
This insightful documentary follows two friends whose lives have been shaped by Indian Sign Language (ISL) in markedly different ways: a Deaf woman raised in a hearing family, and her hearing friend who grew up as a Child of Deaf Adults (CODA).
Through intimate conversations and reflections from Deaf and queer communities, the film explores how visual language can reshape our understanding of autonomy, care, identity, and belonging. Interwoven with evocative animation by artist Pakhi Sen, it challenges conventional notions of deafness, communication, and listening.
In a landmark first for Indian cinema, the film also features an original ISL poem by a Deaf poet.
BIFF 2026 presents summer of cutting-edge, independent South Asian cinema at Midlands Arts Centre and Lockworks Cinema Wolverhampton. Featuring premieres, documentaries, shorts, restored classics from the Indian sub-continent and diaspora, and films showcasing the best of Britain South Asian talent.