Syracuse has a deep rooted Irish heritage and a long history of celebrating it. The Contemporary Irish Film Festival gives Syracuse natives new ways to explore their Irish background. Founder and Director, Micha Crook, says parades and cultural festivals are not the only avenues to embrace their culture.

“We do have a lot of Irish heritage in Syracuse and we’re really proud of that connection. And I think that preserving these moments in time are really important for our history in general. They can tell you a lot about a people and a place during that period of time.”

Crook says film is always relatable, giving it the power to universally bring people together.

“You always can kind of connect with the story-telling process in a film, whether it’s a drama or a comedy or sci-fi or whatever, we can connect to it. And I think it’s nice to show Ireland’s a modern place, as Syracuse is. So the same things they’re searching to understand for themselves through films are the same things that we are as people, so we can still connect that way.”

The documentary Older than Ireland is about 30 Irish centenarians who were born before Ireland became a country. The Queen of Ireland follows an Irish drag queen pushing for equality as an unlikely activist. Crook says the film festival gives directors the opportunity to cover more subjects than just embracing Irish culture.

“70-80% of our films actually have LGBTQ story lines running through them. We have them in documentaries; we have them in comedies; we have them in dramas so I think that’s really important to show that you can use art and use it to bring awareness and conversation about community organizations to bring healthier communities together.”

The Contemporary Irish Film Festival offers three featured length films and a series of short films Thursday through Saturday. For more information go to SyrIrishFilmFest.Com.

CONTEMPORARY FILM FESTIVAL SCHEDULE