David O Mahony report his gruelling but enjoyable schedule at this year's Jameson Dublin International FIlm Festival, plus a report on the Canadian showcase by Mary Rose Doorly

We film buffs really are gluttons for punishment: ninety six films over a ten day period, more films, I think you'll agree, than you could shake a stick at. This year's Dublin International Film Festival (hereafter referred to as the DIFF) was certainly a behemoth in the content stakes, but thankfully the quality was, for the most part, of a comparably high standard.

The smorgasbord of delights on offer seemed at first glance confusing and discordant – seasons, retrospectives and one off events vied for my attention like hungry little chicks in a celluloid nest. How could I possibly see all of these, I fretted, without courting the onset of deep vein thrombosis? The answer was simple enough – I couldn't – a fact, once resigned to, which brought with it the salve of common sense. Thus began the arduous task of navigating my way through the programme (a practice endorsed by said document), accepting here, rejecting there, all the while amassing a body of films that would eventually constitute my own private, mini-festival. This active engagement with the programme is one of the things that make the DIFF memorable. So, after feats of procrastination that would make Hamlet proud, I confirmed my list and began my festival journey.

The full article is printed in Film Ireland 103.