San Francisco Irish Film Festival Announces 2025 Lineup: Celebrating ‘Second Chances’ with North American Premiere of Horseshoe

The San Francisco Irish Film Festival (SFIFF) returns to the Delancey Street Screening Room from September 18–20, 2025, with a vibrant program built around this year’s theme: “Second Chances.” Now in its twenty-second year, the festival remains an important event offering Bay Area audiences an immersive celebration of Ireland’s cultural and cinematic voice.

The festival opens on Thursday, September 18, at 7 p.m., with the North American Premiere of Horseshoe, an 88-minute feature directed by Edwin Mullane and Adam O’Keefe. All families are mad, but when four estranged siblings must reunite to settle their late father’s will, things get very complicated. The screening will be followed by a festive Opening Night Reception. Special guest Neill Fleming, one of the film’s lead actors, will join attendees for an in-depth conversation about the film, his career, and the Irish film landscape.

On Friday, September 19, at 7 p.m., the festival’s acclaimed Short Stories, Tall Tales program will spotlight a diverse collection of contemporary Irish shorts. This year’s selection includes a witty reimagining of the nativity story, a poignant exploration of the ripple effects of gambling, starring Moe Dunford, a nostalgic look at the revival of vinyl records, a touching portrayal of the loss of Dublin’s iconic flats at St. Teresa’s Gardens, and a fresh twist on Ireland’s beloved baking traditions with one very innovative Irish widow.

Saturday, September 20, features a full day of screenings. The afternoon begins with An Fidil Ghorm, directed by Anne McCabe, which offers a deeply moving portrayal of music, identity, and cultural memory. This beautiful wholesome, feel good, contemporary Irish Language movie Fidil Ghorm is one for all of the family bringing together beautiful fiddle music with the innocence and resilience of a gorgeous 10-year-old girl Molly, who is on a heartfelt mission to bring her father out of a coma. Believing that mastering the fiddle and winning the All-Ireland Fiddle Competition might wake him, she’s determined to follow in his musical footsteps.

This is followed by Blue Road: The Edna O’Brien Story, written and directed by Sinéad O’Shea. In 1960, a young Irish woman named Edna O’Brien wrote a sexually frank debut novel, The Country Girls. She became a literary sensation, writing for The New Yorker, delivering provocative interviews, and authoring screenplays. Blue Road is as candid, dark, and enchanting as O’Brien’s wonderful novels.

The evening concludes with Four Mothers, a hilarious and heartwarming comedy from Darren Thornton about the chaos that erupts when one son is left in charge of his friends’ mothers for a weekend while they escape to Pride celebrations. The film is co-written and directed by Darren Thornton, co-written by Colin Thornton, and stars James McArdle and Fionnula Flanagan. It is an Irish-set, English-language remake of the 2008 Italian film Mid-August Lunch.

Backed by IFI, Culture Ireland, Screen Ireland, Network Ireland Television, and the Consulate General of Ireland, the San Francisco Irish Film Festival continues to champion authentic storytelling from Ireland and provide a platform for diverse filmmakers to connect with North American audiences.

Tickets and the full program schedule at www.sfirishfilm.com