Ireland’s Galway Film Fleadh (July 11-16) returns for its 35th edition with a line-up including opening night film Thaddeus O’Sullivan’s The Miracle Club, following its world premiere at Tribeca, that stars Laura Linney, Maggie Smith, Kathy Bates and Agnes O’Casey.
The full line-up includes 21 world premieres, six European premieres and 60 Irish premieres from 43 countries, boasting 95 feature films in total.
Closing the festival will be the Irish premiere of Alison Ellwood-directed Cyndi Lauper documentary Let The Canary Sing, with the US ’Girls Just Want To Have Fun’ singer Lauper set to attend the festival in-person.
Scroll down for the full line-up of world premieres
As previously announced, Irish world premieres include Lisa Mulcahy’s Lies We Tell, George Kane’s Apocalypse Clown and Stephen Wallis’ The Martini Shot. Further Irish world premieres joining the roster include documentaries such as Cathal Ó Cuaig’s Viva Mary, that focuses on a coquettish 90-year-old grandmother and her unquenchable zest for life; Emmet Sheerin’s What Would Jesus Bomb?, a doc about Ireland’s place in the global ‘war on terror’ post the US-led invasion of Iraq; and Gerry Gregg’s Face Down, about the disappearance of German businessman Thomas Niedermayer in 1973 Belfast.
Jack Armstrong’s thriller Made In Dublin, which sees the lives of a desperate actor, washed-up film director, lonely drag queen and a femme fatale’s collide; John Carlin’s drama Lie Of The Land, about a couple who grapple with whether to abandon their farm; and Conor King’s Achill Island-set debut A Passing Place also world premiere.
The world cinema competition returns with a prize fund of €3,000. Among the films in the running are Muayad Alayan’s Rotterdam premiere A House In Jerusalem, Celine Song’s Sundance hit Past Lives and Bas Davos’ Berlin award winner Here.
This year’s country of focus is ‘nowhere’, to champion stories that explore characters left without a place to call home. In this strand will be the Irish premiere of Mijke de Jong’s Rotterdam title Along The Way, Adura Onashile’s Sundance and Glasgow title Girl, Dennis Harvey’s Dublin premiere documentary I Must Away, Jane Gull’s Manchester Film Festival winner Love Without Walls and the world premiere of Dave Byrne’s Somebody.
The festival will pay tribute to two important figures of Irish cinema who both died in the past year. A retrospective screening of Tom Collins’ feature Kings will take place, and The Banshees Of Inisherin co-producer James Flynn’s contribution to the Irish film industry will be marked with the best first short drama award given in his name.
Galway’s 50% gender representation target has been achieved this year with 47% of films directed by female directors, 45% directed by male directors and 8% a male-female directing team.
Galway Film Fleadh 2023 world premieres
Viva Mary (Ire)
Dir. Cathal Ó Cuaig
Who Would Jesus Bomb? (Ire)
Dir. Emmet Sheerin
A Passing Place (Ire)
Dir. Conor King
Demiurge (Ukr)
Dir. Olga Semak
The Fires (Ire)
Dir. Andrew Thomas
John Behan – Odyssey (Ire)
Dir. Donald Taylor Black
The Martini Shot (Ire-Can)
Dir. Stephen Wallis
The Skids: Revolution (UK-Ire)
Dirs. Colin J Graham, Laura Graham
Somebody (Ire)
Dir. Dave Byrne
Verdigris (Ire)
Dir. Patricia Kelly
My Lost Russian Mother (Ire-UK)
Dir. Sam Jones
Apocalypse Clown (Ire)
Dir. George Kane
Croithe Radacacha (Radical Hearts) (Ire)
Dir. Ciara Hyland
It’s A Fine Thing To Sing (Ire)
Dir. Bob Gallagher
Face Down (Ire-Ger-Sp-Australia-UK-US)
Dir. Gerry Gregg
Songs Of Blood And Destiny (Ire)
Dir. Trish McAdam
Made In Dublin (Ire-Port)
Dir. Jack Armstrong
Hungry Hill (Ire)
Dirs. Mieke Vanmechelen, Michael Holly
Lie Of The Land (UK)
Dir. John Carlin
The Graceless Age – The Ballad Of John Murry (Ire-Can-US)
Dir. Sarah Share
Lies We Tell (Ire)
Dir. Lisa Mulcahy
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