Funded through the Film Audience Network, the programme is a ground-breaking initiative developed by the British Film Institute to enable organisations and film experts in the independent cultural exhibition sector to work in partnership to boost film audiences across the UK, particularly in the areas of specialised and independent British film.

Since the launch of 4REEL in 2015, The Drum has partnered with a number of organisations including 4WardEver Film Club, providing monthly screenings and discussions focusing on issues of social justice. A collaboration with Birmingham Jazz during the FlatPack Film Festival treated the audience to a screening of the archival documentary The Colony, with a live jazz score.

4REEL also screened the seminal film Handsworth Songs, in the lead up to Birmingham Opera Company’s latest production The Ice Break. It was also a key partner of Come the Revolution, a collective of curators, programmers and creatives from Bristol and Birmingham committed to exploring and challenging black life, experience and cultural expression through cinema.