An Cailín Ciúin (The Quiet Girl) is a deeply moving coming-of-age film that explores themes of family, neglect, trauma, and love. Based on the 2010 short story by Claire Keegan, it follows a nine-year-old girl, Cáit (Catherine Clinch) who is sent to spend the summer with foster parents where she blossoms in a loving environment. Colm Bairéad’s first film is a cultural milestone and phenomenon of Irish cinema Winner of eight awards at the Irish Film and Television Awards (IFTAs), including Best Film and Best Actress for Catherine Clinch, Ireland’s entry for the best international feature at the 2022 Academy Awards. In association with The Film Corner / University of Galway www.thefilmcorner.eu

John Ford's The Quiet Man remains one of the defining films of Irish cinema and one of the most beloved classics in Hollywood history. Starring John Wayne as Sean Thornton, an Irish-American who returns to the village of Inisfree to reclaim his family's cottage and seek a quieter life, the film follows his romance with the spirited Mary Kate Danaher, memorably played by Maureen O'Hara. Filmed on location in Counties Mayo and Galway, The Quiet Man transformed the west of Ireland into one of cinema's most enduring landscapes and won Academy Awards for Best Director (John Ford) and Best Cinematography (Winton Hoch). Suitable for all ages!

Focusing on the relationship between Portland, Maine, and Cois Fharraige, this panel celebrates the Irish American experience as a dynamic process of connection rather than a one-way journey of emigration. Drawing on material from the IMIRCE archive (University of Galway), the discussion brings together voices from both sides of the Atlantic to explore the movement of people, ideas, and culture that has continually renewed the relationship between America and Ireland. Panelists: Professor Cormac Ó Gráda MRIA, is an economic historian and professor emeritus of economics at University College Dublin. Professor Breandán Mac Suibhne is professor in the School of History and Philosophy in the University of Galway. Mary Concannon, a guidance counselor and teacher at Catholic Memorial Middle School in West Roxbury in Boston

John Ford's adaptation of Seán O'Casey's landmark play The Plough and the Stars (1926) was both a continuation of his interest in Irish literary sources and a further exploration of the political and social divisions that shaped modern Ireland. Set against the backdrop of the 1916 Easter Rising, the film centres on Jack Clitheroe (Preston Foster), his wife Nora (Barbara Stanwyck), the Covey (Barry Fitzgerald), and the colourful ensemble of tenement dwellers whose lives are irrevocably altered by the Rising. While retaining much of O'Casey's dialogue and characterisation, Ford shifts the emphasis from the play's sharp political satire and critique of militant nationalism toward a more sentimental and humanistic account of communal suffering, sacrifice, and national reconciliation. The screening will be followed by a discussion about the adaptation and John Ford’s relationship with the Abbey Theatre during the 1930s.

The Quiet Men is a virtuoso one-man show in which Morgan C Jones celebrates his famous ancestors, Barry Fitzgerald and Arthur Shields, whose long creative partnership with John Ford helped define the image of Ireland on the Hollywood screen. Veterans of the Abbey Theatre and participants in Ireland's revolutionary period, the brothers went on to become two of Ford's most recognisable performers, becoming synonymous with the warm, humane characters that became a hallmark of the director's films. This show explores their extraordinary lives and enduring cinematic legacy. Written & performed by Morgan C Jones and directed by Conall Morrison

The Informer was a major success for Ford, earning him his first Academy Award for Best Director and signalling a move beyond the westerns that had established his reputation toward more artistically ambitious and literary projects. Adapted from Aran Islands' native Liam O'Flaherty's acclaimed 1925 novel, the film is set during the Irish Civil War and centres on Gypo Nolan (Victor McLanglen), a destitute former IRA member who betrays his friend for a reward, only to be consumed by guilt and paranoia. Although a low-budget independent production, Ford employed a visual style heavily influenced by German Expressionism, complemented by an innovative musical score, to create a film of remarkable emotional and atmospheric intensity. Haunting and tense, the film was a box office hit, gaining rave reviews from both audiences and critics, and earning a total of six Academy Award nominations, winning four and would establish Ford's reputation as a serious director. Following the screening, there will be a discussion on Ford and O'Flaherty, with members of the Liam and Tom O'Flaherty Society. Supported by Aran Island Ferries.

Hangman's House is a masterpiece of silent cinema and the film in which John Ford first began to extend his artistic range. Departing from the Western, he embraced darker, more ambitious material in this richly atmospheric adaptation of Donn Byrne's Irish Gothic novel, foreshadowing many of the visual and thematic concerns of his mature cinema of the 1930s.

Who are the new screen storytellers? What are the funding schemes supporting Irish-language filmmaking? Here's an opportunity to see new short films and hear emerging filmmakers discuss their methods and ambitions. All welcome.

Taking on the legend of the O.K. Corral shoot-out, this beautifully photographed western is one of Ford's very best films.  My Darling Clementine considers the sacrifices required to create a stable community. Through Wyatt Earp's [Henry Fonda] efforts to bring order to Tombstone, Ford presents the West as a place where democratic values and social institutions gradually emerge from lawlessness. The film's pace, poetic imagery, and emphasis on ritual and the landscape of Monument Valley demonstrate a more mature and reflective approach to the Western genre. Brilliant performances, stunning cinematography, and Ford's assured confidence in his themes combine to make My Darling Clementine one of the greatest – and most influential – Westerns ever made.