Details: Antoine Lanciaux / France / 2025 / 77 mins / animation

Family Film

“A beautiful feature, depicting a little girl’s summertime investigation into her family’s past with great narrative and visual tenderness.

Wholly made with cut paper, The Songbirds’ Secret proves to be a work of great sensitivity, full of the softness of childhood and typical experiences of holidays in the countryside (woodland and farmland creatures, tractors, old mopeds, casual adventures, etc.). Imbuing the film with a spirit which seems half-way between The Famous Five and Scooby-Doo and which is highly accessible to younger audiences, the director spins a delicate yarn touching upon family ties (and wounds) which have been undone by the vagaries of life, while slowly and suggestively drawing the most out of the story’s natural setting. It results in a luminous and visually beautiful film which is both humble and technically subtle, a movie which will win over the youngest viewers, stir up good summer memories for older audiences.” Cineuropa

Best Animation/Animated Feature, Golden Goblet Award, Shanghai International Film Festival, China

Audience Award, Lucas Film Festival, Germany

Irish Premiere

Details: Marcel Barelli / Switzerland / 2025 / 72 mins / Animation

Screened with the support of the Embassy of Switzerland in Ireland.

In 1811, Mary Anning, an inquisitive and tenacious twelve-year-old girl, spends her days searching for fossils. Her father passed on this passion to her, but her life suddenly changes when he disappears, leaving behind a mysterious drawing and a struggling family.

Determined to help her mother and brother, Mary tries to uncover the secret of the drawing.

She will discover so much more than just fossils: friendships, adventures, and the very start of palaeontology.

Locarno Kids Award, Locarno Film Festival, Switzerland

Irish Premiere

Details: Cédric Klapisch / France / 2025 / 126 mins

Starring: Suzanne Lindon, Abraham Wapler, Julia Piaton, Vincent Macaigne

United by the unexpected inheritance of a house in Normandy, four estranged cousins discover their family history. While exploring the house, left untouched since the 1940s, they excavate the life of their ancestor, Adèle Vermillard, a 20-year-old woman who lived there in 1895. The end of the 19th century saw the birth of both photography and the Impressionist movement, which profoundly changed painting. Through back-and-forth journeys between 1895 and 2025, they find in the relics of the past what will help them better envision their own future.

“Cédric Klapisch delivers a crowd-pleasing comedy of France past and present” Screen Daily

César nominations for Best Female Newcomer, Best Costume Design, and Best Production Design

Cork Premiere

Details: Éric Besnard / France / 2025 / 98 mins

Starring: Grégory Gadebois, Bernard Campan, Alexandra Lamy, Isabelle Carré

Closing film

From the director of Délicieux, the Opening Film of the 2022 Cork French Film Festival, Éric Bernard, comes this magnificent portrayal of the protagonist of Victor Hugo’s masterpiece, his 1862 novel Les Misérables. The story depicts the character’s struggle to lead a normal life and redeem himself after serving a 19-year-long prison sentence for stealing bread to feed his sister’s starving children and attempting to escape from prison.

Released in November 2025.

Irish Premiere