The Galway Film Fleadh is back with inspiring and entertaining films & events in Galway from July 11th to 16th!

The 35th Galway Film Fleadh will feature Irish Talent: New Shorts 1: Way Out West, Who Would Jesus Bomb?, Stolen, Love without Walls, Louder than You Think at Town Hall Theatre on the 12th.

Screenings;
Irish Talent: New Shorts 1: Way Out West at 12pm
This out-of-competition selection of shorts showcases work from creatives working in the West of Ireland, including Irish-language dramas set in Connemara, the winner of the Little Cinema 48hr Challenge and student work from ATU and Technological University of the Shannon.
Featuring; I Dream For You, Juniper, DEAD MAN NO GOOD, Lunar Kicks, Milk. Galway’s Pirate Women, Forest/ry, His Name Is Scott, Nothing to be Done, and Feel, Felt, Found

Who Would Jesus Bomb? at 2pm / World Premiere
Around 3 million US troops have gone through Ireland’s Shannon Airport since 2002. Who Would Jesus Bomb? explores Ireland’s complicity in the global War on Terror, and how a small number of Christian activists risked their freedom trying to stop the American war machine and save lives. 20 years on from the disastrous US-led invasion of Iraq, this film aims to raise important questions about Irish neutrality, spark debate about forms of activism, and challenge what it means to be a Christian.
Post Show discussion will follow

Stolen at 4pm
Described by Screen as “essential viewing for Irish society”. Stolen reveals how women who had the misfortune to fall pregnant ‘out of wedlock’ were treated in an Ireland that was heavily influenced by the Catholic Church. Over 80,000 unmarried mothers were incarcerated in mother and baby institutions run by nuns from 1922 to 1998. Most were cruelly separated from their babies after birth. Many of the children were adopted within Ireland and abroad – rendered untraceable and unaware of their birth story. Others were fostered as cheap farm labour from the age of six, often in circumstances abysmally devoid of care and love. 9,000 infants died in these institutions from 1922 to 1998, a rate that, on occasion, was five times the national average infant mortality rate. Survivors expose the shocking details of their treatment in a scandal that sparked a government inquiry into the fate of unmarried women who fell pregnant in 20th-century Ireland.
Post Show discussion will follow

Love without Walls at 7pm / European Premiere
Winner of ‘Best UK Feature’ awards at both Manchester Film Festival and London Independent Film Festival, Jane Gull’s second feature follows Sophie and Paul, two passionate souls chasing their dreams in London. Paul is a talented musician, and Sophie is a trainee photographer and dedicated roadie. But when they fall behind on rent, they face the harsh realities of life on the streets. Despite their struggles, their shared love for music gives them the strength to carry on. Their story is a powerful testament to the transformative power of music and the human spirit, inspiring us to believe that anything is possible with perseverance, love, and a little bit of music. Featuring an original soundtrack from actor/musician Niall McNamee
A special post show discussion with lead actor Niall McNamee, Director Jane Gull and Producer Karen Newman.

Louder Than You Think at 10pm / European Premiere
Winner of the SXSW 2023 Audience Award for the 24 Beats Per Second screening section, an up-close cinematic walkabout through the life of Gary Young, the original (and highly unlikely) drummer of indie rock royalty Pavement. His booze and drugs-fuelled antics (on-stage handstands, gifting vegetables to fans) and haphazard production methods (accidentally helping launch the lo-fi aesthetic) were both a driving force of the band’s early rise and the cause of his eventual crash landing. Leaving a wake of joy and/or destruction at every turn, Gary teeters the thin line between free-form self-expression and chaotic self-destruction. 30 years on with scoliosis, blood clots, and a shrivelled liver, Gary is still drumming with no regrets.
Post-show discussion with Producer Brian Thalken

Photos courtesy of Galway Film Fleadh