Galway Film Fleadh is Ireland’s leading film event, a six-day international film festival taking place every July at the very edge of Europe on the West Coast of Ireland. ‘Fleadh’ is the Irish word for a feast or a celebration, and like Galway itself, our festival is compact, bohemian, informal and fun. Galway Film Fleadh brings luminaries of the craft and everyday cinephiles together to share in the wonder of cinema.

Founded in 1989, as an opportunity for Irish filmmakers to exhibit their work to their peers, the central goal of the Galway Film Fleadh remains unchanged: to be a platform for the boldest new films, and to bring audiences and filmmakers from around the world together to share in the wonder of cinema. Annually, screening between 80 – 100 feature films and up to 100 short films, the Fleadh welcomes an exciting diversity of filmmaking from around the world, all generations and cultural backgrounds.

Galway Film Fair

Marketplace:
Running alongside the festival, the Galway Film Fair is Ireland’s only film & television marketplace. Galway Film Fair co-ordinates pre-scheduled meetings between filmmakers with projects in development and/or completed films and invited Film Financiers, Distributors, Sales Agents, Broadcasters, Film Funds and Major Producers.

The Galway Film Fair’s unique selling points:
- Transatlantic bridge
- Access to the world’s leading financiers in an informal environment
- Showcasing new Irish, European and International cinema to leading Film Buyers, Distributors and Festival Programmers

Forum:
The Fleadh Forum is an annual symposium for filmmakers and industry professionals to explore and share ideas about what is happening in the audio-visual industry. Joined by a host of Industry Experts, discussion topics include the process of development, the future of co-production, as well as film sales, distribution and exploitation.

Masterclasses:
Each year the Fleadh invites masters of filmmaking craft to be the subject of our series of masterclasses for industry professionals. Previous subjects have included:

Acting:
Tim Roth, Matthew Modine, Vicky Krieps, Andrew Scott, Marisa Tomei, Michael Smiley, Ruth Negga, John C. Reilly, Will Forte, Martin Sheen, Isabelle Huppert, Amanda Plummer, Annette Benning, Michael Fassbender, Jessica Lange, Jeremy Irons, Kathy Bates, Colm Meaney, Woody Harrelson, Zachary Quinto, Saoirse Ronan, Brendan Gleeson, Anjelica Huston, Peter O’Toole, Maureen O’Hara, Pierce Brosnan.

Directing:
Ali Abbasi, Anthony Chen, Richard Kelly, Najwa Najjar, Abbas Kiarostami, Mira Nair, Alex Gibney, Mohsen Makmalbaf, Stephen Daldry, Jon Jost, Volker Schloendorff, Stephen Frears, Anthony Minghella, Agnieszka Holland, Gillo Ponecorvo, Arthur Penn, István Szabó, Michael Winterbottom, Michael Moore, Oliver Reed, Madeline Olnek, Jim Sheridan, Neil Jordan.

Screenwriting:
Carol Morley, Lisa McGee, Ed Solomon, Kirsten Smith, Scott Alexander, Larry Karaszewski, Paul Schrader, Robert Towne, Sir Ronald Harwood, Christopher Hampton, Mark Fergus, Allison Anders, Daniel Waters, Nicole Holofcener.

Animation:
Lee Unkrich, Pete Docter, Jimmy Murakami, Cartoon Saloon, Brown Bag Films.

Wild Atlantic Pitching Competition:
Having provided many writers with an opportunity to get their foot in the door of the industry, participants have found that our Pitching Competition opened the door to producers, key contacts and mentorship in addition to bolstering their confidence and having projects optioned. Ten finalists are chosen from written submissions and pitch their idea to a panel of industry judges and a live audience. The winner receives a cash prize of €3000, which can allow time to develop and expand their pitch into a full feature script.

And much more...

Networking breakfasts, our (in) famous Rowing Club, pop-up panels, debates, BBQ’s...come and see why we have been named one of Moviemaker Magazines ‘50 Film Festivals Worth the Entry Fee’ and one of the ‘20 Essential International Film Festivals.’

Awards & Prizes

Short Film Awards
- Best International Documentary Short
- Best International Fiction Short
- Best International Animation Short
- James Flynn Award for Best First Short Narrative
- Best First Short Animation
- Donal Gilligan Award for Best Cinematography in a Short Film

Oscar Qualifying Awards
- Tiernan McBride Award for Best Short Drama
- James Horgan Award for Best Short Animation
- Best Short Documentary Award in association with TG4

Individual Artist Awards
- Pitching Award
- Bingham Ray New Talent Award in association with Magnolia Pictures
- Best Marketplace project in association with Bankside Films

Feature Film Awards
- Peripheral Visions Award (for a first or second feature)
- Best Irish First Feature
- Best Irish Film
- Best Irish Documentary
- Best Independent Film
- Best Irish Language Film
- Best International Film
- Best International Independent Film
- Best International Documentary
- World Cinema Competition
- Best Cinematography in an Irish Film
- Generation Jury Award
- Audience Award

Rules & Terms

Feature Film Submissions:

• The festival gives priority to World, European and Irish premieres in considering competition categories. Films that have screened at other festivals in Ireland will receive less priority in terms of programming and if selected will screen out of competition. We do not accept films that are online, screened on television or available on streaming platforms.

• A feature film is considered to be 52 or more minutes in length.

• The festival is not obliged to view late entries.

• All categories and genres of film are accepted.

• All languages are accepted. Submissions and screeners of non-English language films must contain English subtitles.

• All competition categories are judged by the audience and/or a jury of industry professionals. Only feature films over 60 mins will be considered for in-competition categories.

• Please upload your video file to FilmFreeway where possible under the “My Project” section on FilmFreeway. If you are providing a link, please use Vimeo or YouTube. Ensure your video is unlisted/private and ensure the password you provide us is correct and the film is live until at least the end of June 2026. We do NOT accept Google Drive or Dropbox links as submission links.

• We accept picture-locked rough cuts of films. Please note this in your submission and notify us when a new version is available to watch. For a work in progress, a new version can be changed out on vimeo/ uploaded to replace your project on FilmFreeway.

• The project you upload/send on FilmFreeway is for the jury, it is not the file that will be screened at the festival. If selected, you will be sent further instructions on what is required for projection. There is a limit of 10GB file size for uploading your film to FilmFreeway, otherwise, follow the standard Vimeo/YouTube requirements.

• All applicable licenses and waivers of copyrights, moral rights, trademarks and other such intellectual property rights must have been secured by the filmmaker(s)

• Selections are made on a rolling basis – therefore, you may be notified before the notification date listed on FilmFreeway.

• If selected, you will be informed of the latest date at which content must be delivered to the festival and all the technical specifications required. You will be required to fill out a technical form detailing formatting specifications such as aspect ratio and audio format etc. This is to ensure that we can provide your film with the best possible screening.

• If selected, the entrant agrees that up to 30 seconds of their film (visual or audio) may be used by the festival in promotional activities. These can include screening a clip on television, radio, the festival’s website, promo reel and/or social media presences.

• If selected, we ask that you observe a standard broadcast safe area for any titles or subtitles, otherwise your subtitles may be cropped during projection in some venues.

• The festival reserves the final say on the awards categorisation of successful entrants.

• In submitting to Galway Film Fleadh, the Festival may occasionally contact you about relevant industry events and updates

• Due to the volume of submissions, the festival is not able to provide feedback on selection status.

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Short Film Submissions:

• A short film is considered to be less than 40 minutes in length.

• The festival gives priority to World, European and Irish premieres in considering competition categories. Films that have screened at other festivals in Ireland will receive less priority in terms of programming and if selected will screen out of competition. We do not accept films that are online, screened on television or available on streaming platforms.

• The festival is not obliged to view late entries. After the final deadline date, digital submission forms will be unavailable online.

• The Galway Film Fleadh short film programme consists of two primary sections: Irish production/co-production and International Production. An Irish production/co-production is defined as a production that features an Irish resident/born director, producer, lead animator or writer OR a production shot on the island of Ireland.

• You may select one category only for each film submitted. For experimental works or works that fall in between the categories below, please select one and describe your film type in the notes section on the submission form. The categories are:

- Narrative (Fiction)
- Animation
- Documentary

• You must indicate if your film is a debut short, i.e., the director’s first short film. If your film is a debut dramatic/animated short, it will automatically be eligible for a Best Debut Drama/Animation Award. This does not preclude it from winning the Tiernan McBride or James Horgan Oscar qualifying awards.

• The festival has both competitive and non-competitive programmes. Competition eligibility is subject to these rules and regulations and at the discretion of the festival. All competition categories are judged by a jury of industry professionals.

• Please upload your video file to FilmFreeway where possible. This is done under “My Project” section of FilmFreeway. If you are providing a link, please use a reputable secure sites such as Vimeo or YouTube. Ensure your video is unlisted/private and ensure the password you provide us is correct and the film can be viewed until at least the end of June 2026. We do NOT accept Google Drive or Dropbox links as submission links.

• All languages of film are accepted. Submissions and screeners of non-English language films must contain English subtitles.

• We accept picture-locked rough cuts of films. Please note this in your submission and notify us when a new version is available to watch. For a work in progress, a new version can be changed out on Vimeo/uploaded to replace your project on FilmFreeway but we may have already watched the older version, so you’ll have to email us at shorts@filmfleadh.ie.

• In submitting to the festival, the applicant confirms that they own all rights necessary for the screening of the submitted film at the festival.

• Please note that selections are made on a rolling basis – therefore, you may be notified before the notification date listed on FilmFreeway.

• If selected, we will require a high-resolution digital copy of the film for exhibition. The format should be Pro Res (ideally ProRes 422 or ProRes 422LT preferred) or if not, then H264 is fine. The file will later be converted to DCP. We only accept DCPs if made professionally through a production house. The exhibition files/DCPs must be either 24 or 25 frames per second.

• If selected, you will be informed of the latest date at which content must be delivered to the festival. All content must be uploaded to our cloud server which you will get more details about if successful.

• We recommend that you observe a standard broadcast safe area for any titles or subtitles, otherwise your subtitles may be cropped during projection in some venues.

• The Oscars Academy will make no exception to the following rule:

To be eligible for Oscar consideration upon winning a qualifying category: Your film must be available in the “SMPTE DCP” format. SMPTE DCP refers to SMPTE ST 429-2 and related specifications, should you wish to enter it.

Trailers/previews of no longer than 10% of a short film’s length are permitted online.

-If selected, the entrant agrees that up to 30 seconds of their film (visual or audio) may be used by the festival in promotional activities. These can include screening a clip-on television, radio, the festival’s website, promo reel and/or social media presences.

• The festival reserves the final say on the awards categorisation of successful entrants.

• In submitting, the Festival may occasionally contact you about relevant industry events and updates.

• Due to the volume of submissions, the festival is not able to provide feedback.

• The Galway Film Fleadh reserves the right to change the Terms and Conditions at any time.

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XR/VR/Immersive Experience Submissions:

• We accept works in progress, however all works must be finalised for presentation at Galway Film Fleadh. 

• All applicable licenses and waivers of copyrights, moral rights, trademarks and other such intellectual property rights must have been secured by the producer(s) 

• The call is open to XR creations in virtual reality and mixed reality, including interactive works and realtime narratives.

• An Irish production/co-production is defined as a production that features an Irish resident/born director, producer, lead animator or writer OR a production shot on the island of Ireland

•Projects must only be submitted by link for this section. Please do not upload a 2D version of your project.

•Accepted links = A streaming link i.e. YouTube/Vimeo or other private password protected viewing platform (no public links please) / A downloadable link from a transfer or cloud storage service i.e. WeTransfer, Google Drive, Dropbox, MyAirBridge, etc.

•Experiences must be playable on Meta Quest 2 or 3 and should be submitted as a 360º video file (.mp4) or .apk file.

•Projects can be Seated VR- interactive/ non-interactive or Roomscale VR interactive/ non-interactive.

•If you have any technical issues or queries that you require assistance with, send an email to immersive@filmfleadh.ie

•Entries should not exceed 40 minutes

Last updated 3 March 2026

31 Reviews
Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • RORY RYDER

    Lost Silverfish of Berlin (2024)

    The Galway Film Fleadh was an extraordinary experience.. intimate, welcoming, and filled with people whose dedication and passion make the whole festival truly shine. I was amazed at how much care goes into every detail, from the programming to the way filmmakers are supported, and even the reopening of the beautiful Palas cinema in the heart of Galway to host screenings.

    I felt deeply honoured that Lost Silverfish of Berlin was selected. That recognition meant a great deal to me personally as I grew up in Galway as a child.. and the genuine interest in the film extended well beyond the screenings themselves. The warmth, generosity, and professionalism of the team behind the festival cannot be overstated..they are simply inspiring!

    I can say with absolute confidence that this is not only the best film festival in Ireland, but also one of the most professional I’ve experienced anywhere.. from the seamless website and promotion to the thoughtful organisation and even assistance with accommodation. It was a truly special and unforgettable time.

    A huge thank you to everyone who makes this festival possible your hard work and heart are what make it so exceptional.

    Thanks a million!

    Rory Ryder
    Director, Lost Silverfish of Berlin
    www.silverfishberlin.com

    September 2025
    Helpful
  • Charlotte Rose Ainsworth

    Wonderful festival and incredibly well organised. Would highly recommend submitting your work to Galway.

    August 2025
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  • Cléa van der Grijn

    Delighted to screen my Authored Works second feature film; Elisa in Wonderland. I stayed for the whole festival, saw some incredible films and became entirely immersed in the magic and mayhem.

    August 2025
    Helpful
  • Leah Egan

    Galway is always an incredible time. Such an honour to have had our film programmed this year. Superb atmosphere as ever and the organization and communication with filmmakers was second to none. Thank you, Galway!

    July 2025
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  • Mark Forbes

    Probably one of the best film festivals I have been to and had a screening at. Met so many lovely people at my screening.
    I premiered my third feature documentary, Quiet on Set: The Class Division in the Film Industry? As an experience, the love and support Galway Film Fleadh has shown me was incredible. Its still very hard for me to make the kind of films that I want to make. As I am completely alone without a film crew or any film funding. Thank you Galway for the love and support. Ii really appreciate it!

    July 2025
    Helpful