The documentary MRS ROBINSON celebrates Mary Robinson’s legacy, including as the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, successor of Nelson Mandela as former Chair of The Elders, and a passionate advocate for gender equality, women’s participation in peace-building, human dignity and climate justice.
WASHINGTON, DC (January 16, 2024) - Solas Nua, Washington, DC’s premier contemporary Irish arts organization, announced that the 2025 Capital Irish Film Festival will open with the North American premiere of award-winning Irish director Aoife Kelleher’s (ONE MILLION DUBLINERS, THE CASE OF MAJELLA MOYNIHAN) MRS ROBINSON. For the first time ever, the film tells the inspiring life story of iconic change-maker Mary Robinson in her own words: Ireland’s first female President, the pioneering United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, the successor of Nelson Mandela as Chair of The Elders and the influential global voice of Project Dandelion: the women-led campaign for climate justice. President Mary Robinson and Ambassador Byrne Nason will attend the CIFF opening night gala screening, and guests and pass-holders will be invited to a post-screening reception at the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center, sponsored by the Embassy of Ireland.
The film, which premiered at the 2025 Galway Film Fleadh, charts Mary Robinson’s extraordinary life of fearless advocacy and activism in the service of equity, justice, human rights, and peace from her early days as a trailblazing reforming constitutional lawyer and senator in Ireland where she fought epic battles for equality: in the courts, at the ballot box, and on the streets, helping bring about legislative change that radically changed the lives of women in Ireland forever. MRS ROBINSON tracks tectonic shifts in personal, political, and social values over 50 years and allows Mary Robinson to tell her story, in her words, for the first time.
President Mary Robinson shares, “I’m excited to come to Washington, D.C. to attend the opening night of the 19th edition of the Solas Nua Capital Irish Film Festival presented in partnership with the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center. I'll be there in attendance with the Ambassador of Ireland to the United States, Geraldine Byrne-Nason, for the gala screening of MRS ROBINSON. I look forward to sharing the film and to talking about my work with Project Dandelion, the women-led project for climate justice”.
Festival Director, Maedhbh Mc Cullagh says, "We are honored to announce this special opening-night gala screening of Aoife Kelleher's award-winning documentary. President Mary Robinson changed the course of Irish history and the lives of every woman in Ireland through the groundbreaking legislation she helped bring about as a young constitutional lawyer and senator, and through her pioneering and transformative thought leadership. To this day, she continues to work for peace and pluralism, to champion the underserved, and use her power, influence, and indefatigable energy to support the most marginalized communities affected by the climate crisis, most significantly in her work with Project Dandelion, the woman-led global campaign for climate justice, which she co-founded."
