The truly international focus of the festival means audiences can see films from places they might never even dream of visiting. Many hardcore festival buffs, who can see dozens of films during the two and a half weeks the festival runs, were impressed with the number of great films from unexpected places.
Every year there are themes that run through the festival.
This year there was an abundance of films focusing on exile and music, familiar themes to those of Celtic extraction. Some films, like Comedia Infantil - Nelio's Story from Mozambique or Underground Orchestra, which looks at the lives of the exiles who busk in the Paris Metro, combine both. There were two films from Ireland at the festival, although Dancing at Lughnasa was a last minute addition due to the cancelation of another film. Dancing at Lughnasa is based on the brilliant Brian Friel play of the same name. For those who've seen a good staging of the play, the big screen version suffers by comparision.