Hastings Smugglers, a film by Nick Bloomfield

Nick Bloomfield is screening his film Hastings Smugglers at Hastings Museum & Art Gallery on Saturday 2 November, starting at 14:00. He'll introduce the film before it runs and take questions afterwards, so you'll get to hear from the man behind it on the day.

Hastings Smugglers looks at England's long, love-hate relationship with smuggling, told through the lens of Hastings and the Sussex and Kent coast. Around here, contraband wasn't just a crime; it was an economy, a culture, and sometimes a way of surviving. The film is set in the chaos of the Georgian era (1714-1837), a time of wars, crushing taxation and rampant corruption in which everyone, from the authorities to the locals, became entangled in the shadow industry. It's a vivid and occasionally darkly comic journey through that world.

Bloomfield mixes documentary, live action and animation to retell those stories, and there's a strong musical thread running through it that reimagines old traditional songs. The combination of styles lets the history breathe rather than just listing it, and the music keeps the whole thing grounded in the folk traditions of the coast.

Tickets are £10, and the screening is at 14:00 on Saturday 2 November at Hastings Museum & Art Gallery.