Irish Film Institute -International Film Directory

Once We Were Punks

Frank Shouldice, 96 minutes, 2025

1980s Bailieboro, Co Cavan, four school friends form a punk band and set their sights on world domination. When the big breakthrough never comes, careers, adulthood, and emigration intervene. But when they meet up at a funeral 25 years later…

Patchwork Family

Sara Sulej, 55 minutes, 2023

Patchwork Family is a documentary showcasing a passion for life, music, and creation. The band consists of 12 musicians. The film delves into the lives of each band member, exploring their history, and gradually assembles the individual pieces of the…

Piano Dreams

Gary Lennon, 95 minutes, 2022

When Gary Lennon (I Dream in Photos) lived next door to a Music Conservatory in Shanghai he became acutely aware of the piano-mania sweeping the country. With over 40 million piano students in China, the competition to secure places in…

Ryan McMullan: Debut

Brendan Byrne, 80 minutes, 2021

Ryan McMullan and his musical team gather on Cruit Island, Co Donegal for an intense 4-day recording and listening session as they work on Ryan’s debut album, a pivotal moment in his career. Against the majestic landscape, we meet singer/songwriter…

Samanta Nobody

Ciarán Creagh, 2025

Samanta, is sixteen, homeless, and a master of living on the streets. Wise and organised, she lives in a derelict prefab, washes her clothes in a local launderette, eats in a Mission kitchen and is well known in the homeless…

The Science of Ghosts

Niall McCann, 80 minutes, 2017

Director Niall McCann’s observational drama centres on well-known Irish musician Adrian Crowley. While being interviewed by a film crew for his latest album, an interruption causes Adrian to ponder – what would a film about his life be like? Could…

Shellshock Rock

John T. Davis, 48 minutes, 1979

Exploring Northern Ireland’s 1970s punk scene, Shellshock Rock begins with teenagers explaining how punks’ non-conformist attitude offers, in the context of the Troubles, an anti-sectarian identity for those without a mainstream political agenda. Inviting both punks and public to speak…

Sing Street

John Carney, 106 minutes, 2016

This film was released 18th March 2016, and is no longer screening. With money tight in a boozy, middle-class 1980s Dublin household, youngest son Conor (Ferdia Walsh-Peelo) is forced to transfer from his private school to the Brothers in Synge…

Slán Leis an gCeol

Cathal Ó Cuaig, 52 minutes, 2019

A lyrical portrait of a brilliant yet tormented artist, Slán leis an gCeol (Farewell to Music) explores the complexities of a talented and philosophical man. Tony MacMahon, one of Ireland’s most remarkable traditional musicians, was recently diagnosed with Parkinson’s and…

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