Baton Rouge’s embrace of Irish American culture is on full display every spring at the city’s wildly popular Wearin’ of the Green St. Patrick’s Day parade. But another local gathering also showcases the Red Stick’s fascination with all things Erin. The 15th anniversary of the Baton Rouge Irish Film Festival takes place this Saturday, Aug. 2, at the Manship Theatre, with multiple film screenings and cultural events. Festivities will continue on Sunday and Monday at other venues.

The Baton Rouge Irish Club organizes the slate of activities, which starts with the feature film Four Mothers, a zany story about an author whose book tour is upended by his elderly mom and three of her friends.

The afternoon continues with 10 short films, followed by a final feature, The Spin, a comedy about two friends attempting to save a record store.

Attendees can buy individual tickets to see each of the features and the group of 10 shorts.

Viewers who attend the short film segment have a chance to vote on their favorite, with the winner earning the Baton Rouge Irish Club’s original O’Kalem Award, given out annually since 2013.

Made by Baton Rouge artist Nick Oldenburg, the award is crafted from green glass in the shape of a flame set atop a stained wood base.

The Baton Rouge Irish Film Festival got its start in 2010 after Irish Club member Phil Brady—the original founder of Phil Brady’s Bar & Grill—attended the Baton Rouge Jewish Film Festival, which had been launched three years earlier in 2007, says organizer Joanna Anselmo. Brady suggested the group start an event to highlight Irish cinema.

This year’s team selected films from numerous works made by Irish directors or with Irish themes. Anselmo says the group was particularly interested in uplifting stories.

“We wanted them to be more on the comedy side,” Anselmo says. “We have one drama, one fairy tale, a documentary and an action film, and the rest are all comedy or comedy-drama. We want people to laugh. We want them to leave smiling.”

This year marks the second year the festival has returned to the Manship since 2019. The pandemic shuttered it in 2020 and 2021. It was moved to Celtic Media Centre in 2022 and 2023. The Manship’s larger seating capacity drew the fest back last year, Anselmo says.

On Sunday, Aug. 3, the fun continues with a free gathering at the USS Kidd Veterans Museum.

“We always hold an event to honor U.S. veterans of Irish descent,” Anselmo says.

From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., the Sunday lineup will include a screening of The Last Rifleman, a 2023 movie starring Pierce Brosnan. The film is about a World War II veteran’s escape from a Northern Ireland nursing home to attend the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landing.

The festival’s final get-together, Pub Night, takes place on Monday, Aug. 4, at Phil Brady’s with $2 burgers and additional short film screenings.

While the film festival is its biggest annual event, the Baton Rouge Irish Club also organizes a float in the Wearin’ of the Green parade, an annual Bloomsday event to honor author James Joyce, and other Irish cultural activities. For more info, visit bririshclub.org.

The lineup

Editor’s note: This article has been updated to reflect that day passes are now sold out.