Discoveries from Ireland World Cinema

A man develops a strange relationship with his Christmas tree.

Written and directed by Conor Gannon, In memory of Barry Flynn, fly high sweet prince.

A young dad in rural Ireland must face his own anxiety around gender and bullying when his baby is born intersex.

A biker in his fifties reminisces about a pinnacle moment of his adolescence to his protege, who now confronts a similar life changing scenario.

This short film follows a train journey from Roscommon to Dublin in 1947. When everyone is aboard the train leaves Castlerea Station and the camera captures the stunning landscape of the trip. -IFI Archive

Sequel to ‘The Unusual Duo’.

A bored warehouse worker's quest for an enduring legacy as an animator takes a darkly comedic turn when she signs up for an eco-friendly burial.

A heartbroken boy can't get his ex-girlfriend out of his head. When he finds her, they make up. The couple are oblivious that an agency has pulled the strings to make that happen.

On a quiet farm, identical twin sisters are inseparable. When one is lured into a forest by a mysterious force, the other faces a tough decision: follow the darkness to stay with her sister or let her go.

During the peak of lockdown in July 2020 Fontaines D.C. performed an electric live set in the iconic location of Kilmainham Gaol as part of Other Voices Courage 2020. That celebrated performance has since been released as a limited edition LP for Record Store Day 2021 which reached number 7 in the charts and was nominated for best Livestream at the prestigious Libera Awards in 2021 where they took how the Best Rock Record award.

Firefighters at work in Belfast.

After his mother’s funeral in rural Ireland, Fergus is taken to a techno rave by the sea outside Dublin with Mick, Alan and Conal. Based on a short story by Colm Tóibín (Brooklyn).

An aspiring botany student seeks out her disgraced mentor, only to find out he's not what he once was.

In this long-awaited, landmark documentary on Mary Black, widely regarded as the first lady of the Irish music industry, we gain a rare, unprecedented insight into her life and career.

"This Is Not a Coup" describes ECB's financial interventions in states like Italy, Ireland, Portugal, Cyprus and Greece. Featuring well known academics, politicians and journalists, it analyses the relation of EU institutions with big corporations and banks. In order to guarantee full independence from private companies and interests, the project is financed through crowd-funding - namely donations from citizens, trade unions and independent organizations and foundations across the globe.

A survivor of the Rwandan Genocide struggles to forgive the man who killed her children. A victim’s daughter strikes up an unusual friendship with the ex-IRA bomber who killed her father. And two men—one Israeli, one Palestinian—form a bond after tragedies claim their daughters.

When a new guest arrives at his family's B&B, Thomas begins to present increasingly obsessive and unpredictable behaviour.

Sarah, a timid babysitter, must find a way to cross the river with her infant charge while avoiding a motorcycle gang.

Living in a post-apocalyptic world of the zombie apocalypse, Aaron, a reclusive survivor, is asked for help from a couple who are split from their group.

Produced by Alexis Bicât, To Catch a Crow tells the story of a pompous English film crew who find themselves in desperate need of a live crow while on location in rural northwest Ireland. Starring Peter Caffrey (Ballykissangel, Father Ted) and Michael Roper (The Winter Lake, Mapmaker) as the local farmers roped in to help.

Exploration of the troubled inner workings of a young woman's mind.

Mike Denver performs in front of a capacity crowd at the Royal Theatre, Castlebar, Co. Mayo.

Dreaming Is Not Sleeping is an introspective essay film exploring the relationship between memory, existence, and time, narrated by a spectral voice drifting through ancient ruins. The film contemplates perception, clairvoyance, and whether the present can be seen through the lens of memory, blurring the lines between past, present, and future. As the voice moves through decaying structures, it reflects on human impermanence and defiance of time. Vignettes of past lives illustrate universal human experiences. The film concludes by pondering existence, consciousness, and humanity’s drive to create meaning amidst an indifferent universe, challenging viewers to reflect on their own place in time and memory.

A dirty container filled with holy water. A city canal. A haunted father struggles to make amends as a family falls apart.

An autistic boy's world is thrown into chaos as he searches for his mother.

The story of one of New York's darkest secrets: An island where one million American souls are buried. Those who fell through the cracks of the American dream buried by prisoners from Rikers Island.

A visual investigation into the influence of Norm MacDonald on impressionable young males.

A precursor to Reefer and the Model, Waterbag involves the relationship between two fishermen and a pregnant woman, and ends with an apparently self-induced miscarriage.

A bilingual coming-of-age drama about a boy from the Gaeltacht struggling with changes as he prepares to leave home.

Light / Sound chronicles a ghostly, sonic encounter between performer / sound artist Vicky Langan, out hunting for sound with her recording apparatus, and an ancient 35mm projector.

An Irish animated short film

There is a new banker in town, making his name, scorching the earth under distressed borrowers. While unwinding in a local pub, he discovers a further business opportunity.

In post-apocalyptic Ireland, a suave American jet pilot tries to rescue a beautiful young woman from her domineering mother - but he soon finds out that around these parts, family can be deadly.

In the landscape of Irish sport, Handball is an island within an island. Once hugely popular, it has since fallen into obscurity. Today the countryside is littered with abandoned alleys and crumbling old walls, the remains of a once great game whose time would appear to have passed. Less than 10,000 players remain. These athletes strive for immortality in a game most consider “dead”.

In a uniquely personal journey on the 50th anniversary of the deployment of British troops in August 1969, Peter Taylor reflects on almost a half century of covering the Northern Ireland conflict.

Tensions arise when a young woman returns from London to her family in Ireland.

Three prisoners in each of their cells recount the story of their crimes in song, with each blaming his excesses on an accomplice, the enigmatic man in 301.

A daring artist takes on shame and societal expectations in her mission to paint 100 nude portraits of breasts from the female gaze, redefining beauty and empowering Irish women to reclaim their bodies.

The sex drive of the single-celled organism comes under the microscope.

Danny ‘Danger’ Kelly is a retired journeyman boxer who accepts a last minute fight, the only problem is, its his weekend to look after his teenage daughter Leah.

Photograph, is a short film that was written, directed and shot by Seán Leahy.

A cryptic exploration of a sitcom apartment.

Nuala Ni Bhraonáin, electronics whiz, is a stylish woman about town in Dublin of 1981. She's invented the 'Reilly 9000', the world's first calculator with a square root function. Donnchadh is her flatmate and an egomaniacal Gaeilgóir poet with an unfortunate penchant for plagiarism -- and Rita, one of Nuala's workmates, makes the mistake of getting between Donnchadh and the top prize in Slógadh.

Illuminating the challenges often unseen beyond the toys, trees and tinsel, people in a small Irish village reflect on their difficult relationships with Christmas. "So This Is Christmas" is a heartwarming and charming portrait from award-winning director Ken Wardrop, which perfectly exemplies his innate ability to tell the stories of ordinary people, depicting their thoughts, feelings and experiences in an empathetic way. Beautifully rendered in 35mm, the film is authentic and compassionate, and a valuable addition to the Irish documentary canon.

Marie faces her first day on the job as a social care worker. Despite her optimism, a house call to a family in crisis quickly brings her down to reality.

Blues for Jimi is a live album and Blu-ray/DVD by the Northern Irish, Blues-Rock guitarist and singer, Gary Moore. The live performance was originally recorded on the 25th of October, 2007 at the London Hippodrome. The performance features Gary Moore playing a selection of Jimi Hendrix classics. The concert was part of the launch for the Jimi Hendrix Live at Monterey program. It features a special guest appearance by Billy Cox and Mitch Mitchell

Part of a Canadian educational series, this visual illustration of the poem ‘The Beggars of Dublin’ by renowned Canadian poet Alden Nowlan follows a visitor to Dublin, as he disembarks from a plane and wanders the streets of Dublin encountering beggars and homeless people along the way.

Aron, a single thirty something, attempts to navigate falling in love, while struggling to hide his insecurities.

After his best friend's father invents a time machine, Joey O'Neil uses it to travel back in time to his favorite decade; The 80s!

Not every story made it into the Bible.

An intimate beautifully wrought and deftly handled meditation on trauma, offering hope and insight, The Days of Trees, dare we say, surpasses all those with its skillful storytelling, formal elegance, and canid and charismatic subject, Tomás Hardiman.

A cinematic journey into the heart of the Europe through the life-changing experience of young participants of Erasmus - the most ambitious mobility programme of our times. The film’s characters leave the comfort zone of their country, to prove to themselves that they can survive in a foreign environment, overcoming their fears and adapting to different cultures and mentalities. Set against the current European crisis, fueled by unprecedented youth unemployment and fears about the refugee situation, their journeys offer a bird’s-eye view of a continent in transition, giving a sense of what the future holds.

A hot, thirsty man in the desert is tormented when the things he needs drop from the sky only to disappear again or hover out of his reach.

Studious teen Emma is left home alone for the first time in a while, when she unexpectedly gets an invite to her first party, she embarks on a whirlwind of adventures meeting new people.

Redrum, is a micro short film that was directed and co-produced by Seán Leahy. The film was made as a part of a secondary school project for his school.

Wrath is a short horror-drama which weaves the story of Badhbh, the goddess of war & destruction from Irish mythology, throughout a haunting narrative to interrogate the idea of the loss of bodily autonomy women experience in the journey from girlhood to womanhood and exacts a bloody and cathartic revenge on the patriarchy for creating this phenomenon.

In Passing is a collaboration between seven different filmmakers from around the world in response to Jesse Richards' 2008 Remodernist Film Manifesto.

Dubliner Andrew Maxwell is more than a stand up comedian - he's your clown and friend. Renowned for his unique blend of comedy and well-observed fast-paced streams of consciousness, Andrew's first ever live DVD has been filmed in his hometown, Dublin.

Set in a near future where a government- approved drug can alter your sexuality, the corporation marketing the drug targets vulnerable gay people who have checked into a cruising resort which doubles as a correctional facility.