Leitrim welcomes Oscar-winning director Volker Schlöndorff

International filmmakers join growing North West film scene as festival returns to Leitrim and Sligo from September 16-20

After 12 years celebrating Irish work, the Adaptation Film Festival is preparing to “spread its wings” as it returns to Leitrim and Sligo this September with its most international programme to date.

The 13th Adaptation Film Festival will run from September 16 to 20, with screenings, workshops, networking events and discussions taking place at The Glens Arts Centre in Manorhamilton and the Model Cinema in Sligo.

This year will see the festival expand its focus beyond Ireland, bringing major figures in European cinema to the North West while continuing to showcase filmmakers emerging much closer to home.

“I think we had 12 years of just focusing on Irish work, and I think now we're ready to spread our wings a bit into more international,” festival organiser and filmmaker Johnny Gogan said.

“There’s a good variety of work, I think, both local and international. And that’s the aim.”

Among the headline guests is Oscar-winning German filmmaker Volker Schlöndorff, whose career has spanned six decades and includes some of European cinema’s most acclaimed literary adaptations.

The festival will celebrate a selection of Schlöndorff’s adaptation work before culminating in a special closing event featuring writer Colm Tóibín in conversation with the German director, his friend and collaborator.

Cyprus will also feature in this year's programme, coinciding with Leitrim's focus on the country as part of the Irish EU Presidency. The festival will screen work by Cypriot filmmaker Myrsini Aristidou, whose latest work was a winner at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival.

North West film scene growing

The international expansion comes at a time when Gogan believes filmmaking in Leitrim and Sligo is entering a particularly exciting period.

He said there had been a noticeable increase not only in the number of films being produced locally, but also in their quality and ambition.

“Definitely the quality of the short filmmaking has gone up and we've been making more films and longer-form films as well,” he said.

“It used to be one every few years and now every year there's definitely a couple of features that are going to rear their head.”

That progress is increasingly being recognised nationally.

Gogan pointed to the Galway Film Fleadh, where films made in Leitrim and Sligo have won the Best First Feature award in consecutive years.

“Last year it was Horseshoe, this year it’s You’ll Never Believe Who’s Dead. That just wouldn’t have happened in previous years,” he said.

For Gogan, there is no single explanation for the change.

Rather, he believes filmmakers who previously struggled to find opportunities are beginning to break through.

“The talent — the region is producing talent, and that talent isn't just creative talent, it's producing talent as well,” he said.

A growing support network is also helping filmmakers get projects off the ground.

“There’s a sort of a can-do or have-a-go atmosphere and the sense that you're not going to be left on your own or feel you're doing it on your own,” Gogan said.

Putting North West filmmakers on screen

That local talent will be front and centre on Adaptation's opening night, with a programme of short film adaptations from North Leitrim filmmakers.

Gogan said initiatives in the region are helping filmmakers develop their portfolios and gain practical experience in an increasingly competitive industry.

Up to five short films a year are now being produced through the Creative Heartlands initiative, providing emerging talent with modest budgets alongside mentoring, equipment and community support.

“The industry is very competitive,” he said. “The more a filmmaker can build up their short film repertoire, the better chance they have of progressing, maybe into television or longer-form films.”

The growth of Cinema North West and other film festivals across the region is also helping to create what Gogan describes as a distinct filmmaking identity across Leitrim, Sligo and Roscommon.

It means the North West is increasingly being recognised in its own right rather than automatically being drawn towards Galway.

However, Gogan believes significant challenges remain, particularly when it comes to funding.

“The funding is still very centralised,” he said, arguing that money designed to encourage filming in the regions can often end up going to Dublin companies travelling outside the capital rather than helping regional production companies develop their own work.

He believes a properly functioning regional film fund could help build a sustainable industry outside Dublin.

“There needs to be quite a big shift so that companies from Cork to Donegal are given a proper shake or seen as part of a level playing field,” he said.

Workshops for filmmakers

Adaptation will also offer a strong practical programme for people interested in developing their own work.

Screenwriter Paul Fitzsimons will lead a workshop concentrating particularly on adapting short stories and plays for the screen.

“He really does know his stuff,” Gogan said, pointing to Fitzsimons' work with Screen Ireland and the National Talent Academy.

The festival will also welcome pioneering Irish filmmaker Pat Murphy, whose work includes Nora, based around Nora Barnacle and her relationship with James Joyce.

Murphy will revisit the Joyce story from Barnacle's perspective and will also deliver a directing workshop exploring collaboration in filmmaking.

“She’s a really thoughtful, inspirational person,” Gogan said.

“She was one of the groundbreaking women in Irish film from her first feature in 1981, and she’s still going strong.”

A networking event will explore the potential development of community television nationally, adding another industry-focused strand to the festival.

Environmental filmmaking will also feature through Irish Atlantic Rainforest, an adaptation of a book exploring Ireland's natural environment.

Despite recently being broadcast on television, Gogan believes the documentary deserves to be experienced in a cinema.

“It’s definitely worth seeing on the big screen because visually it’s very, very strong,” he said.

The festival ultimately brings those strands together — international filmmakers with decades of experience, established Irish directors and a North West film community increasingly producing work capable of competing on the national stage.

The 13th Adaptation Film Festival runs from September 16 to 20 at The Glens Arts Centre, Manorhamilton and the Model Cinema, Sligo.

Individual admission is €10, or €8 concession, plus a €1 booking fee. Workshops cost €20, while a €50 season ticket includes admission to all films and one pre-booked workshop.

All bookings are through The Glens Arts Centre.