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The Irish film industry has grown somewhat in recent years thanks partly to the promotion of the sector by Bord Scannán na hÉireann (The Irish Film Board) and the introduction of heavy tax breaks. Some of the most successful Irish films include The Wind That Shakes the Barley (2006), Intermission (2001), Man About Dog (2004), Michael Collins (1996), Angela's Ashes (1999), The Commitments (1991) and Once (2007). In the past many films were censored or banned, owing largely to the influence of the Catholic church, although virtually no cuts or bans have been issued in recent years, with one in 2004, one in 2005, and one as of August 2006, with the Irish Film Censor's Office policy being that of personal choice for the viewer.

Ireland has also proved a popular location for shooting films, largely due to the tax-breaks, with The Quiet Man (1952), Braveheart (1995), Reign of Fire (2002) and King Arthur (2004) all being shot in Ireland. The first film ever shot in Ireland was The Lad from Old Ireland (1910), which was advertised as "The first ever film recorded on two continents". The film was a short silent story about a young Irishman who went to the USA to find riches, before returning home to save his family home from the bailiffs.

Ireland has a high rate of cinema admissions (the highest in Europe). The biggest multiplex chain in the country is Ward Anderson (owners of the Cineplex, Omniplex, and Savoy brands), with other cinemas being owned by United Cinemas International, Cineworld (formerly UGC Cinemas), and Vue (formerly Ster Century). One of the largest Irish owned independent cinema chains is Storm Cinemas, with cinemas currently in Belfast, Limerick, Waterford, Naas, Portlaoise and Cavan. In Autumn 2005, a new multiplex cinema chain, Movies@, entered the market, opening its first cinema in Dundrum, with Galway and Swords sites to come. There is also a large video rental market, dominated by Xtravision, a subsidiary of Blockbuster Video.

The first cinema in Ireland (the Volta) was opened by James Joyce in 1909. Ardmore Studios was the first Irish studio, opening in 1958 in Bray, County Wicklow.

The Irish Film Board was set up in 1981 to boost the local industry. Many film critics however point to the fact that the Irish Film Board's output has been poor, as most films which are chosen for funding do little or no business outside of the country, and are rarely popular in Ireland.

In 2005 a Jameson Whiskey-sponsored poll selected the top 10 Irish films: the results are below. [1]

1. The Commitments (1991)
2. My Left Foot (1989)
3. In the Name of the Father (1993)
4. The Quiet Man (1952)
5. The Snapper (1993)
6. Michael Collins (1996)
7. The Field (1990)
8. Intermission (2003)
9. Veronica Guerin (2003)
10. Inside I'm Dancing (2004)

See also List of films set in Ireland

• About Adam (2000)
• Acceptable Levels (1983)
• The Actors (2003)
• Adam and Paul (2004)
• A Further Gesture (1996)
• A Man of No Importance (1994)
• Angel (1982)
• Angela's Ashes (1999)
• Anne Devlin (1984)
• A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (1979)
• Beckett on Film (2001; a series of short films of Beckett's 19 plays)
• The Bishop's Story (1995)
• Bloody Sunday (2002)
• Bloom (2003)
• Bogwoman (1997; TV film)
• The Boxer (1997)
• The Boy from Mercury (1996)
• Breakfast on Pluto (2005)
• The Butcher Boy (1997)
• Circle of Friends (1995)
• The Commitments (1991)
• The Courier (1988)
• Cowboys and Angels (2003)
• Dancing at Lughnasa (1998)
• The Dawn (1938)
• The Dead (1987)
• Dead Bodies (2003)
• Dead Meat (2004)
• December Bride (1990)
• Dementia 13 (1963)
• Disco Pigs (2001)
• Down the Corner (1977)
• Eat the Peach (1986)
• The Eliminator (1996)
• The Fantasist (1986)
• Fatal Deviation (1998)
• The Field (1990)
• Fudge 44 (2006)
• The General (1998)
• Guiltrip (1995)
• H3 (2001)
• Hear My Song (1991)
• High Boot Benny (1994)
• Holy Cross (2003; TV film)
• How To Cheat In The Leaving Certificate (1997)
• If Silence Should End (2001)
• In America (2002)
• Inside I'm Dancing (2004)
• Intermission (2003)
• In the Name of the Father (1993)
• Irish Destiny (1926)
• I Went Down (1997)
• Knocknagow (1918)
• Korea (1995)
• The Lad From Old Ireland (1910)
• The Last September (1999)
• The Magdalene Sisters (2002)
• Maeve (1982)
• Man About Dog (2004)
• Michael Collins (1996)
• Mickybo and Me (2004)
• The Mighty Celt (2005)
• The Miracle (1991
• Mother Machree (1928)
• My Left Foot (1989)
• The Nephew (1998)
• Nora (2000)
• Nothing Personal (1995)
• Omagh (2004)
• Ordinary Decent Criminal (2000)
• P.S. I Love You (2008)
• Pavee Lackeen (2005)
• Pete's Meteor (1998)
• The Playboys (1992)
• Poitín (Film) (1977)
• Puckoon (film) (2002)
• Quackser Fortune Has a Cousin in the Bronx (1970)
• Rat (2000)
• Reefer and the Model (1987)
• The Run of the Country (1995)
• Saltwater (2000)
• The Secret of Roan Inish (1994)
• Shake Hands With the Devil (1959)
• The Snapper (1993)
• Some Mother's Son (1996)
• Six Shooter (2005; Short Film)
• Sunday (2002)
• This is the Sea (1997)
• Traveller (1981)
• Trojan Eddie (1996)
• Ulysses (1967)
• The Van (1996)
• Veronica Guerin (2003)
• Vicious Circle (1999;TV film)
• War of the Buttons (1994)
• When Brendan Met Trudy (2000)
• When the Sky Falls (2000)
• Widows' Peak (1994)
• Wild About Harry (2000)
• Willie Reilley and His Colleen Bawn (1918)
• The Wind That Shakes the Barley (2006)
• Zombie Genocide (1993)

• Herbert Brenon
• Steve Barron
• David Caffrey
• John Carney
• Joe Comerford
• John Crowley
• Barry Dignam
• Paul Duane
• Martin Duffy
• Alan Gilsenan
• David Gleeson
• Brian Desmond Hurst
• Rex Ingram
• Graham Jones
• Neil Jordan
• David Lawless
• Kevin McClory
• John McDonnell
• Michael James McGrath
• John Moore
• Roy William Neill
• Damien O'Donnell
• Michael O'Herlihy
• Bob Quinn
• Jim Sheridan
• Kirsten Sheridan
• Gerard Stembridge
• William Desmond Taylor
• Rick Whelan

The Irish Film & Television Awards have been given out in their since 1999, and in their current form since 2003. The 2007 winner for Best Film was The Wind That Shakes the Barley by Ken Loach.

• The Irish Film & Television Awards website]
• IFTA on IMDB