We are delighted to be partnering with the Galway Film Fleadh to bring you a series of podcasts spotlighting filmmakers whose work is screening at this year’s festival.
In this podcast Gemma Creagh talks to Gar O'Rourke, Director of 'Sanatorium', which screens at this year's festival as well as Short Film Programmer Holly Buckley, who casts an eye over the short films playing in the programme.
The Galway Film Fleadh runs 8-13 July 2025.
On the outskirts of Odesa, stands Kuyalnyk Sanatorium. Each summer, thousands of Ukrainians come here, drawn by Soviet-era therapies and the chance to relax beside the salt lake. The biggest attraction though, is the mysterious black mud, said to cure infertility, physical disabilities and other ailments.
Sanatorium takes us through a summer season at this place, following the staff as they work hard to provide care, comfort, and entertainment for visitors – even with the war nearby. For the guests, it’s a time to seek healing, love and renewal. Despite the airstrikes close by, there’s something about the pastel pink and lime green halls of the sanatorium that keeps pulling people back.
Sanatorium screens on 11th July at 15:30 at the Town Hall Theatre as part of Galway Film Fleadh 2025.
Gar O'Rourke
Gar O'Rourke is an award-winning Irish director working across documentary, branded content, commercials, and art films. His work has screened at some of the world’s leading film festivals and been acquired by major broadcasters across North America and Europe. Gar’s debut feature documentary, Sanatorium, premiered in the international competition (DOX:AWARD) at CPH:DOX in March 2025. It was acquired by BBC Storyville for their Oscar-winning documentary strand and produced by the Sundance- and BAFTA-winning Venom Films, in co-production with 2332 Films (Ukraine). He is currently in production on his second feature documentary, set in northern Italy — a co-production between Ireland and Switzerland.
Holly Buckley
Holly Buckley is a Film Programmer and Filmmaker from Cork, based in Galway. She is the Short Film Programmer for the Oscar®-accredited Galway Film Fleadh and Programmer for GENERATION Fleadh, where she champions and supports young filmmakers.
Holly is the Co-Founder and Programmer of Cinephile Paradiso, a Galway-based classic film collective that hosts monthly screenings, panels and discussions celebrating and dissecting classic cinema. She is also a founding partner of the Silent Film Festival, a new festival launching in September 2025 dedicated to showcasing and preserving the legacy of silent film. Her work reflects a deep interest in underrepresented voices in cinema, with a particular focus on forgotten women filmmakers such as Alice Guy-Blaché, Dorothy Arzner, and June Mathis, a passion that informs both her research and the events she curates. As a filmmaker, Holly recently produced Galway Film Society @ 60 and is currently developing a new silent short film. Over the years, she has worked on numerous short films, with experience in screenwriting, producing and directing.
