Created in London in 2007, Filmville was set up with the goal of showcasing cinema from Portuguese speaking countries in the UK.

In 2010, thanks to the support of Instituto Camões and the Portuguese Embassy in the UK, Filmville launched the UK Portuguese Film Festival. In a period spanning 11 years, the festival showed and promoted Portuguese-spoken film in such diverse venues as the Barbican Arts Centre, the ICA, the Royal Academy of Arts, Ciné Lumière - Instituit Français du Royame-Uni, The Picture House and FACT Liverpool, amongst many others. The festival has also served as a bridge between universities and the general public, organising a number of conferences around significant topics.

Following a Covid motivated hiatus, the festival returns in 2024 with a diverse programme that includes films from the archive, directorial debuts and filmic essays.