2024 Solas Nua Capital Irish Film Festival a Big Hit

The Solas Nua Capital Irish Film Festival for 2024 was once again a big hit. What follows is a letter from Maedhbh Mc Cullagh, director of the festival:
Thank you for joining us at the 2024 Solas Nua 18th annual Capital Irish Film Festival, presented with AFI Silver! Our largest edition yet featured 37 titles including 20 shorts and 17 features, highlighting women directors and screenwriters, premieres, debuts, Academy Award winners, family programming, lively Q&A discussions, gala receptions, and sold-out screenings. Your engagement and enthusiastic participation made the four days of CIFF2024 a memorable success.

The opening night gala screening of Lisa Mulcahy's "LIES WE TELL" at AFI Silver Theatre was a highlight. Deputy Ambassador of Ireland to the United States, Orla Keane, welcomed 350 festival-goers, including dignitaries and special guests from the Irish American community in Washington DC. Special guest artists, Lisa Mulcahy and Elisabeth Gooch, participated in a lively Q&A session with Professor Sky Sitney from Georgetown University. The evening concluded with a post-screening reception sponsored by the Embassy of Ireland, catered by the Henri DC.

The Capital Irish Film Festival showcased 10 Northern Ireland films, emphasizing the region's cinematic talent. Solas Nua honored Keith O'Grady with the Norman Houston Short Film Award for "THE SILENT PEOPLE," attended by the director and actor Abby Oliveira, and the film's producer Cinemagic, board member, Sharon Harroun Peirce. Andrew Elliott, Director of the Northern Ireland Bureau, North America, welcomed attendees, and THE SILENT PEOPLE was screened in a double bill with John Carlin's debut feature LIE OF THE LAND. There followed a Q&A session with the filmmakers moderated by Aideen Gilmore, board member of Irish Network DC. The event concluded with a reception hosted by the Northern Ireland Bureau at AFI, catered by The Henri DC.

The festival also welcomed directors Margo Harkin ("STOLEN"), Sarah Share ("THE GRACELESS AGE: THE BALLAD OF JOHN MURRY"), Alan Gilsenan ("PAUL MULDOON: LAOITHE IS LIRICÍ/A LIFE IN LYRICS"), Andrew Gallimore ("ONE NIGHT IN MILLSTREET"), and producer Martha O'Neill ("STOLEN"), who participated in engaging in talkbacks after their screenings.

On Sunday, March 3rd, the festival was closed at AFI by the Ambassador of Ireland to the United States, Geraldine Byrne Nason with a sold-out special gala screening of the multi-award-winning film VERDIGRIS. The screening was followed by an in-person Q&A with the director Patricia Kelly, producer Paul FitzSimons, and lead actor Geraldine McAlinden, moderated by CIFF Festival Director Maedhbh Mc Cullagh. Guests were invited to a post-screening reception sponsored by the Embassy of Ireland catered by chef Cathal Armstrong.

The Capital Irish Film Festival is grateful for the support of the Government of Ireland Emigrant Support Programme, Culture Ireland, Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland, Irish Film Institute's IFI International Programme supported by Culture Ireland, the Embassy of Ireland, Northern Ireland Bureau and Northern Ireland Screen. 

Thank you so much to our special guests, including dignitaries, the visiting artists who traveled from Ireland to be with us, and to the Q&A moderators. Thanks to our partners and the staff at AFI, to the festival institutional funders, corporate sponsors, individual donors, film videographers, volunteers, vendors, and everyone who traveled near and far to be present at the festival and experience the work together. It has been an incredible privilege to present this program of Irish cinema in the US.

On behalf of Solas Nua, go raibh míle, mīle maith agaibh go léir. A thousand thanks to you all.