GENERATION Fleadh, the youth branch of the Galway Film Fleadh, returns from 22nd to 25th October, offering an exciting line-up for audiences aged 12 – 24. Discover what this year's fleadh has in store right here..
Screening the best of new international films for young audiences, the festival features afternoon and evening screenings with educational films in German, Spanish, French and the Irish language, alongside short film programmes curated by the GEN Council. With workshops, discussions and more, GENERATION Fleadh is a vibrant platform for young film lovers to connect and celebrate film culture in Galway. The festival will take place in Pálás Cinema and venues around Galway City and County.
above: Circus Boy
GENERATION Fleadh will host screenings of feature films that have screened at international festivals such as Sundance, Berlinale, TIFF, Rotterdam and Cannes. Notable screenings include the documentary CIRCUS BOY, which tells the story of a child of the circus and his extraordinary friendship with his eighty-year-old great-grandfather. Following international acclaim, Marjolijn Prins’ debut documentary FANTASTIQUE is a magic realist portrait of 14-year-old Fanta, a contortionist in Guinea balancing school, her love of acrobatics and caring for her ailing mother.
Other screenings include Sundance favourite OLMO, set in 1979 New Mexico where a teenage boy navigates family responsibilities while longing for adventure; SPILT MILK, the story of a precocious eleven-year-old obsessed with detective Kojak in 1980s Dublin whose brother suddenly goes missing, followed by a post-show discussion with actors Cillian Sullivan and Naoise Kelly; FIDIL GHORM, about a young girl who believes learning to play the fiddle will wake her father from a coma, followed by a post-show discussion with director Anne McCabe; and WHERE THE WIND COMES FROM, Amel Guellaty’s Tunisian road-trip tale of two friends whose journey to an art contest tests their bond and which won the 2025 GENERATION Jury Award.
above: Olmo
GENERATION Fleadh will also present two special retrospective screenings this year. A 30th anniversary screening of LA HAINE, Mathieu Kassovitz’s groundbreaking portrait of Parisian youth and one of the defining films of 1990s French cinema. The festival closes with THE LOVE WITCH, Anna Biller’s cult feminist classic. This gothic, Technicolor-styled horror-comedy will be followed by a panel discussion with GENERATION Council Members.
Three short film programmes curated by the GEN Council include World Shorts, showcasing films from France, Finland, Italy, Iran, the USA and Bulgaria; Gearrscannáin, with seven Irish-language shorts; and GENERATION Shorts, featuring fifteen short films by young filmmakers from across Ireland.
above: Fantastique
Workshops include Assistant Director Bootcamp with Flavia Pordominsky and NTA CREW West, Script Supervisor Workshop with Eleanor McSherry, Super 8 Film Workshop with Julien Dorgere, and Designing Film Poster Workshop with Jonathan Carton.
GEN Beyond, the festival’s outreach initiative, will screen Berlinale award-winning film CHRISTY and French film LES CHORISTES at Clifden Station House in Clifden, Co. Galway as part of Clifden Cinema Day. GENERATION Fleadh will also bring 15 young people to visit the Ros na Rún set in Spiddal to meet industry professionals and see behind the scenes of the popular Irish-language TV drama series.
GENERATION Fleadh will take part in the Young Audience Film Day in early 2026 with the European Film Academy (EFA) with film criticism discussions and screenings in real time with young audiences across Europe.
Tickets can be booked via galwayfilmfleadh.com or for more information or any queries please contact: generation@filmfleadh.ie
GENERATION Fleadh is supported by the Arts Council of Ireland, Screen Ireland, Galway City Council, Galway County Council and Young Irish Filmmakers.
All photos courtesy of Generation Fleadh.
Main image by Andrew Downes Exposure.
above: Fidil Ghorm
