71st edition. From 23 to 31 October 2026.
71st edition.
23/31 Oct. 2026
23/31 Oct. 2026
Set in the wild mountains of Connemara where normal rules don’t apply, ‘Shelter’ tells the story of a naïve recluse, John Cunliffe, who is suddenly propelled into manhood at the ripe old age of 28. When his over-protective parents pass away, friendless John inherits mountain land that is in the way of a lucrative wind-farm development, and he is forced to navigate the choppy waters of romance, trust and vengeance for the first time.
Seán Breathnach is a writer/director from Galway, Ireland. Seán has written and directed a number of award winning short films that have screened at film festivals in Europe, North America and Asia, like ‘The Driving Test’ (2009), ‘Th3 Room’ (2010), ‘Searching for Ten’ (2012), ‘Sonnet 90’ (2014), ‘Breathe Out’ (2017), and ‘Mother Father Monster’ (2019). He has both photographed and directed a variety of documentaries for the Irish national television broadcasters RTÉ and TG4. Seán lectures at the National University of Ireland, Galway on screenwriting, film aesthetics and design, and on film production. He has been published on the aesthetics of minority language screenwriting for the screen. ‘Shelter’ is his first feature film.
