Cork International Film Festival proudly presents film events and outreach activities throughout the year. Check this page and follow our social media channels to hear about events coming up in 2025. You can also subscribe to our e-newsletter here.
PAST EVENTS
2025
European Film Weekend: FREE FEATURES & SHORTS, 24th – 26th January
A bite-sized CIFF European Film Weekend, running Friday 24th – Sunday 26th January, in partnership with the European Parliament Liaison Office in Ireland and The Arc Cinema Cork comprising FREE films shortlisted for the LUX Audience Award 2025 and two programmes of short films selected from the European Film Academy network.
2024
Culture Night/Oíche Chultúir 2024 @ CIFF: Free Irish & European Shorts, 20th September
Discover the best of Irish and European cinema with Cork International Film Festival’s special free online short film programme for Oíche Chultúir/Culture Night 2024, Friday 20th September! This Family Programme is bound to engage and inspire film enthusiasts of all ages.
Culture Night/Oíche Chultúir 2024 @ CIFF: Hungarian Animation Shorts, 20th September
Celebrate 110 years of Hungarian Animation with Cork International Film Festival’s special free online short film programme! This virtual event offers a curated selection of award-winning animated short films that showcase the outstanding work of Hungarian artists. Don’t miss this unique opportunity to immerse yourself in the vibrant world of short films—entirely online and completely free!
Cruinniú na nÓg, 15th June
A FREE lineup of Festival short films from Ireland and Europe that will inspire and delight as part of this year’s Cruinniú na nÓg, our national celebration of creativity for children and young people. A handpicked selection of enchanting short animations and live-action film gems along with a chat with ‘To Be What We Are’ director Claire Murphy and CIFF Senior Programmer Don O’Mahony! A free online programme available from 9am to 9pm on Saturday, 15th June.
Europe Day Screenings at Cork International Film Festival, 9th May
Cork International Film Festival is pleased to host a curated programme of European short films to mark Europe Day 2024. Three programmes will be available to watch comprising an in-cinema programme of short films screening at 6.15pm on Thursday, 9th May in The Arc Cinema Cork; an online shorts programme; and a family online shorts programme, available nationwide from 6pm on Thursday, 9th May to 6pm on Saturday, 11th May.
Europe Day at Cork International Film Festival is supported by the Communicating Europe Initiative from the Department of Foreign Affairs.
NIGHT OF IDEAS: REHAB (FROM REHAB), 1st May
The Night of Ideas is a global event led by the Institut Français that honours the exchange of thoughts across nations, cultures, and generations, bridging countries and offering unique pathways for idea exploration. We are delighted to present Ila Bêka & Louise Lemoine’s Rehab (from rehab) for The Night of Ideas at 6pm on Wednesday 1st May at The Arc Cinema Cork and is followed by a panel discussion with Margaret Murphy (Ireland), Lead Advisor Emeritus WHO Patients for Patient Safety and John McLaughlin, a practicing architect and senior lecturer in architectural design at CCAE in University College Cork, hosted by Anna Kopecká, artistic curator.
CIFF SPRING SCHOOLS SCREENINGS, 15th – 26th April
CIFF is proud to host curated schools screenings as part of our commitment to education and accessibility in the arts. These features are selected for Junior Cert, Transition Year, and Leaving Cert students with the goal of fostering a deeper understanding and appreciation of film as a powerful medium for storytelling, education, and cultural exchange among young audiences. The spring programme will take place at the Arc Cinemas Cork City and Midleton, 15th-18th April and at The Reel Picture Ballincollig, 22nd – 26th April.
FEAR SCREEN: EUROPEAN THRILLERS AND HORRORS AT CIFF, 7th – 28th March
Fear Screen: European Thrillers and Horrors at CIFF presents a selection of gripping tales and chilling masterpieces, curated by CIFF and screening every Thursday at 8pm for the month of March at the Triskel, Cork. From Gothic thrillers to the best of the ‘found footage’ genre to darkly comic folklore, each feature will be introduced by CIFF Programme Manager, Si Edwards.
ST. PATRICK’S FESTIVAL AT CIFF, 15th – 18th March
In celebration of St. Patrick’s Day, Cork International Film Festival is thrilled to offer a complimentary special Festival programme featuring a selection of Irish and Cork short films from the latest edition in November 2023. Enthusiasts of Irish culture from across the country are invited to indulge in a complimentary collection of cinematic delights, accessible at no cost on our Digital Festival Platform from 10am on Friday, 15th March, until midnight on Monday, 18th March.
EUROPEAN FILM WEEKEND: FREE FEATURES & SHORTS, 26th – 28th January
Cork International Film Festival will kick off its year-round film and event programme with a weekend of FREE screenings of the five acclaimed features short-listed for the LUX Audience Award 2024 and two exciting programmes of European shorts!
Screening Friday 26th to Sunday 28th January at The Arc Cinema, North Main Street, Cork
2023
LUX Audience Award Film Weekend with CIFF: View and Rate for the best European films for FREE with CIFF, 24th-26th March.
Rate your favourite LUX Audience Award films here
Celebrate Irish Short Films in a Free Online Programme from CIFF2022 on St. Patrick’s Weekend, 17th-19th March 2023
Fear Screen: European Thrillers and Horror at CIFF, 23rd February – 16th March 2023 at Triskel Arts Centre
2022
CIFF Film Club: European Shorts Season, April to August 2022
Special Event in Support of Ukraine: CIFF Raises €700.06 in aid of Ukrainian Filmmakers with ‘Donbass’ Screening by Acclaimed Ukrainian Filmmaker Sergei Loznitsa, April 2022
Irish short films with Cork International Film Festival on St. Patrick’s Day 2022
As part of Cork’s St. Patrick’s Day Festival celebrations, Cork International Film Festival was delighted to present a delightful online selection of Irish, and Cork, shorts from the most recent Cork International Film Festival edition last November, specially curated by our programmers. This selection of film treats in our online programme included:
Emerge blinking and dazed into the reality of post-lockdown life in TJ O’Grady Peyton’s Broken: A Lockdown Story.
Meet the wonderful Seanie Barron, who takes us on a journey of the imagination in our Audience-Award-winning short documentary Seanie Barron: Only in Askeaton, directed by Michael Holly.
See life through the eyes of an eccentric immigrant in A Cup of Sugar, directed by Denis Kiely.
Witness a friendship blossom over cycling lessons in Ronan Burke’s As Easy as Riding a Bike.
And hang on to your seats for the dark comic thriller Flash_Thunder93, directed by Reuben Harvey.
The Horizon (L’Horizon) by Emilie Carpentier followed by a post-screening discussion as part of the 5th Night of Ideas, 27th January 2022
2021
CIFF2021 Film Club: ‘Kontora + Q&A’
CIFF Shorts Programme on RTÉ Player 2021
Full Programme:
‘Flicker’ – Luke Daly, Nathan Fagan (Ireland, 2020)
In the aftermath of a violent assault, 20-something Danny struggles to accept the full extent of his injuries. Winner, Grand Prix Irish Short – Cork International Film Festival 2020.
‘Ballast’ – Jesse Gilbert (Ireland/UK, 2020)
Beset by grief, a man builds himself the means to escape the pain of his existence. Winner, Best Cork Short – Cork International Film Festival 2020.
‘The Appointment’ – David Moody (Northern Ireland, 2019)
A young man must find a way to connect with his ailing mother.
‘A Christmas Drop’ – Steve Canty (Ireland, 2020)
An Irish pub. Christmas Eve. Phenomenal company.
‘Forest’ – Dermott Burns (Northern Ireland 2020)
A reflection upon humanity’s ignorance of its destructive nature.
‘Birthday Girl’ – Portia A. Buckley (UK, 2019)
A single mother’s 43rd birthday party ends in disaster when her lover unexpectedly arrives and clashes with her overprotective son.
CIFF2021 Film Club: ‘Belly of the Beast’
Online Tues 18 May at 7pm – Fri 21 May 2021
Special Earthday Screening: ‘Groundswell’
Online Thurs 22 April at 7pm – Sat 24 2021
CIFF2021 Film Club: ‘Running to the Sky’
Online Tues 20 April at 7pm – Fri 23 April 2021
CIFF2021 Film Club: ‘Wake Up on Mars’ + Q&A
Online Tues 23 March at 7pm – Fri 26 March 2021
CIFF Film Club: ‘Redemption of a Rogue’ + Live Q&A
Online Tues 23 February at 7pm – Fri 26 February 2021
CIFF2021 Special Event: Green Night of Ideas – ‘We Have 20 Years to Change the World’ + Live Panel Discussion
Online Tues 26 January at 6pm – Thurs 28 January 2021
Presented in association with the French Embassy, the Alliance Française Network in Ireland and Institut Français.
50 Years of La Francophonie 2020: Online Screening of Arab Blues (Un Divan à Tunis)
Online Tues 24 November at 7pm – Sat 28 November 2020
Presented in association with the embassies of La Francophonie represented in Ireland, the Alliance Française Network, the Cork International Film Festival and Ireland’s Department of Foreign Affairs.
Martin McGuinness – I Fought, I Made Peace, I Made Politics
Online Wednesday 25 November 2020 at 6pm
Presented in Partnership with Belfast Film Festival
