A free screening at West Midlands independent cinemas aims to improve access to nature - here’s how

You may be surprised to learn that 92% of land and 97% of all rivers in England are not legally accessible to the public.

This is a huge area of concern for Right to Roam campaigners who have organised ‘mass trespass’ events to increase public access to the English countryside in recent years.

As a result they have come into conflict with England’s landowners who claim to be stewards of the.

Now a new film called OUR LAND is giving voice to those fighting for greater access to nature, and the landowners – all while bringing England’s countryside to the big screen.

And it’s screening for free on May 5-6 at over 110 independent cinemas across the UK - including Midlands Art Centre and Mockingbird Cinema in Birmingham, Lockworks Cinema in Wolverhampton, and Reel Cinema in Halesowen.

These free screenings will give Escapes audiences a chance to see OUR LAND before its UK-wide cinema release on the 8 May 2026.

The initiative is being run by Escapes which is a nationwide cinema initiative on a mission to bring cinema to all by hosting more than 100 free cinema screenings every month. It is supported by the BFI awarding National Lottery Funding.

Director Orban Wallace, said: “I grew up in the Dorset countryside in a rented cottage deep in the forest of a private estate.

“Even though we lived in the woods we were not allowed in them as they were private. I regularly had run-ins with the gamekeeper who would tell us to get out. So, I was a trespasser by necessity from a very young age.