Cinemagic Seeks Film Consultants – 12 June 2007
                                                           
Cinemagic is recruiting 20 young people aged 10-18, from all over Northern Ireland to take on the role of film consultants to help select the films for this year’s festival. The Coca-Cola Cinemagic World Screen Festival for Young People will take place in Belfast and surrounding areas from 16th November–2nd December 2007. The award-winning festival will be action packed with over one hundred film screenings including special premieres, international features, documentaries, shorts, foreign language films, industry masterclasses and competitions.

Over the course of a three-day workshop beginning on Monday 2nd July the young consultants will work with the film programmer and the Cinemagic team to help steer the choice of films for the festival, as they watch and critique films from around the globe. 
  
Applicants should apply to be considered for a place by writing a letter telling Cinemagic why they would like to be a Cinemagic Young Film Consultant, the name of their favourite film and what they like about the film. This information, along with name, address, age, telephone number, email address (if applicable) and name of school should be sent to Claire Baxter, Cinemagic, 49 Botanic Avenue, Belfast, BT7 1JL or claire@cinemagic.org.uk

All applications should be received no later than Friday 22nd June.

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3rd Annual Directors Finders Series Announced – 12 June 2007

The Screen Directors Guild of Ireland, in association with the Directors Guild of America has announced the 3rd Annual Directors Finders Series 2007.

The Directors Finders Series Award presents an Irish director with an opportunity to showcase their film in the state-of-the-art Director’s Guild of America Theatre, Sunset Boulevard, LA, to an audience of American distributors with a view to securing a US distribution deal.

The Directors Finders Series spotlights works of fiction, documentary or drama submissions from Irish directors who have not secured US distribution for their films.

The Directors’ Finder Series, initiated by the Independent Directors Committee of the DGA chaired by Steven Soderberg, has, since its inception, screened more than 75 independent films. Of those films, approximately 29% have gone on to secure distribution. Participating filmmakers have directly acknowledged the Director's Finders Screening Series as providing the key screening which eventually led to their films being picked up.

An international panel of experts including a representative of Pathé UK will select the winning film. The film and the director will then travel to LA where an official screening will take place on 28th September 2007. This year, SDGI will also launch the film on 23rd August in Dublin at a special awards ceremony hosted by internationally acclaimed director Jim Sheridan, to precede the LA launch.

Last year, 15 Irish directors submitted their films and an esteemed panel of judges decided onSmall Engine Repair, by Niall Heery as the winner. Niall travelled to LA, where he had meetings with highly regarded distributors, studios and agents. He then presented and screened his film, following it with a Q&A session chaired by international director, Paul Quinn.

The deadline for applications for this years’ event is 12th July 2007. Applications are available on www.iftn.ie

This award is supported by the DGA, the Irish Film Board, the Arts Council, Culture Ireland and Screen Training Ireland.

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Plaque Unveiled at Site of Volta – 12 June 2007

This morning a plaque was unveiled marking the site of Ireland’s first stationary cinema, The Volta. The Volta was the initiative of James Joyce, then resident in Trieste; he was also the cinema’s first manager. The site of the Volta, 45 Mary Street, is now part of Penneys. The plaque was unveiled by Irish Film Censor John Kelleher and Marc Zimmermann, Founding Chair of the Cinema Heritage Group and author of The History of Dublin Cinemas.

The need for a plaque to mark the site of the Volta was addressed by Film Ireland magazine early in 2006; since then the plaque’s establishment has been an ongoing project of Marc Zimmermann and the Cinema Heritage Group. The project was made possible through the support of Caboom TV, the staff of Filmbase and Film Ireland magazine, the James Joyce Centre, and Penneys.

The unveiling ceremony forms part of this year’s Bloomsday celebrations, which will also include a walking tour, Joyce’s Volta & Beyond, which will be conducted by Marc Zimmermann. For more information see www.myspace.com/dublincinemas and www.jamesjoyce.ie

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Darklight Symposium 21-24 June in Dublin – 7 June 2007

The Darklight Symposium will take place 21-24 June in Filmbase, the IFI and Cineworld.

This year's Darklight Symposium is shaping up to be a fascinating mix of TV, Animation, Digital Archiving, Film and Art with discussions being held in Filmbase, Temple Bar over the course of the Festival. These discussions, which will feature a host of Irish and International guests such as filmmakers Chris Shepherd and Joe Comerford, computer animators Greg Maguire and Andy Buecker (formerly ILM) and Sheila de Courcy of RTÉ, will be followed by break out sessions where pass holders will get the opportunity to really delve into the speakers area of expertise. Workshops on offer include a Second Life workshop with Samantha Kotey, Mobile Tagging with Saoirse Higgins, Sound for Film workshop with Fionan Higgins and John Stevenson plus Writing Interactive Narrative for Games with Guy Miller of EA Games.

Darklight will also present new work by David Phillips and Paul Rowley, Western Plumbers and Desperate Optimists, screened alongside retrospective pieces from acclaimed Irish filmmakers Vivienne Dick and Pat Murphy.

There will also be a salon section with highlights including the YouTube Lounge, Highlights from the Fast Forward Film Festival and screenings of work from the IFI Archive.

Other events on offer will be the launch night in Filmbase on Thursday 21st June, the Interplay gig in association with the Goethe Institut featuring Max Eastley, Thomas Koner, Dave Lacey and a host of electronic experimentalists on Saturday 23rd and the Darklight BBQ being held in the IFI.

Full information on all speakers, screenings, workshops and masterclasses are available on the website www.darklight.ie. Tickets also available at Road Records, Fade St., Dublin 2. Tickets and registration from 11am Wednesday 20th June 2007 at Filmbase, Temple Bar, Dublin.

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Oscailt Scheme Deadline Announced – 7 June 2007

The Irish Film Board (BSÉ/IFB) and TG4 have announced a call for submissions for the next round of the Oscailt scheme. The new deadline for this scheme is Friday, July 13th 2007.

Oscailt aims to add to short filmmaking in Irish and to encourage talent in all areas of Irish language production financing a broad range of films between 10 and 25 minutes duration from a maximum fund of €290,000.

The scheme looks for filmmakers with imagination and visual flair who can demonstrate an ability to produce fiction, animation, flash animation or docu-drama projects which take a fresh look at Ireland.

The scheme is co-funded by Bord Scannan na hEireann/the Irish Film Board (IFB) and TG4.

For guidelines and checklist details see www.irishfilmboard.ie

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Kerry International Film Festival Calls for Entries – 6 June 2007

Maurice Galway and Tom Hogan (former director and co-ordinator respectively of the Kerry Film Festival) have once again joined forces in a new and exciting film and media festival to take place in Dingle, Co. Kerry, over 4 days from 6-9 September 2007. 
 
Maurice and Tom, having worked for years in the promotion and encouragement of young and independent filmmakers, again have this as their objective – the new festival will showcase the best of Irish and International talent by means of a short film competition.
 
Awards will be presented in 3 categories: Best Film (2000 euros), Best First Short (750 euros) and Best Digital Short (750 euros). It is also the intention of the festival to bring the best of world cinema to the people of Kerry and to hold workshops, seminars and symposiums on film and media during the course of the 4-day festival.

KIFF has also announced, beside the top prize money, a selection of films screened at this year’s festival will also be showcased in London and New York. Screenings will take place at 2 venues in London – at the Electric Cinema, Notting Hill, well known to Londoners for its diverse and wide ranging programmes, and at the prestigious Soho House Club in central London. A further screening will then take place at the new Soho House Club in New York City.

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2nd Temple Bar Film Festival Kicks Off – 5 June 2007

The Temple Bar Film Festival was created in 2006 to provide a platform for independent Irish films. This year the festival programme will include eight programmes of Irish short films (including a specially commissioned programme from Nicky Gogan of the Darklight Festival), two feature screenings (Karl Golden's The Honeymooners and Perry Ogden's Pavee Lackeen) and a panel discussion on the distribution of Irish film. Panelists include: Edwina Forkin (Zanzibar Films), Michael McMahon (Molotov Digital) and Derry O'Brien (Network Ireland).

Also as part of the festival, Filmbase is delighted to be hosting a masterclass entitled 'The Art of Action' with stunt co-ordinator/action choreographer, Roger Yuan. During this 1-day masterclass, members of the public will see how on-screen action sequences are choreographed and filmed as Roger directs a group of actor/performers to perform action sequences in front of a steadicam operator.

Festival outline:

Wednesday 6th June

Short Irish Documentaries
Venue: Basement Space, Filmbase
Time: 7.30pm

Thursday 7th June

Shorts Collection – Recent Filmbase Shorts
Venue: Basement Space, Filmbase
Time: 1pm

Shorts Collection – Irish Language Shorts
Venue: The Auld Dubliner (1st Floor)
Time: 2pm

Shorts Collection – Comedy Shorts
Venue: The Ha'Penny Bridge Inn
Time: 4pm

Feature Screening: The Honeymooners
Venue: Basement Space, Filmbase
Time: 7.30pm

Friday 8th June

Shorts Collection – Dance Shorts
Venue: Basement Space, Filmbase
Time: 1pm

Shorts Collection – Award-winning Shorts
Venue: The Vat House Bar (Blooms Hotel)
Time: 4pm

Panel Discussion: Irish film distribution in the local and international market
Venue: Basement Space, Filmbase
Time: 6.30pm

Feature Screening: Pavee Lackeen
Venue: Basement Space, Filmbase
Time: 7.30pm

Saturday 9th June

Shorts Collection – For Better or For Worse...
Venue: Basement Space, Filmbase
Time: 1pm

Masterclass: The Art of Action with Roger Yuan
Venue: The Ark, Eustace St., Temple Bar
Time: 2–6pm

Darklight Shorts Selection
Venue: Basement Space, Filmbase
Time: 6.30pm

All screenings are free. Festival membership is required for unclassified screenings. Over 18 only allowed to non-classified screenings. Please note Filmbase members automatically receive Festival membership. For more information please contact festival@filmbase.ie or phone 01 679 6716. www.filmbase.ie

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New Director Appointed to the Dublin Lesbian and Gay Film Festival – 31 May 2007

The Dublin Lesbian and Gay Film Festival (DLGFF) has announced the appointment of a new festival director. Michele Devlin will be the programme director of the 2007 festival which will run from 2–6 August in the city of Dublin.
  
The current director of the Belfast Film Festival, Michele Devlin has sat on a number of festival juries including the BAFTA 60 Second, Derry and Cork Film Festival Irish Short panels. With a background in media studies, film studies and photographic technology Michele was appointed director of the Belfast Film Festival in 2000 and led the organisation through seven years of rapid growth and success.    
  
The DLGFF, which is the largest festival of its kind in Ireland, is celebrating 15 years in 2007. The festival exists to challenge and expand cultural cinema in Ireland through showcasing of the best in Lesbian and Gay Film to the public. Since it’s founding in 1992 the festival has contributed significantly to the diversification of cinematic culture in Ireland.
    
Speaking on the announcement of her appointment as Festival Director Michele Devlin said, ‘I am delighted to be working with the DLGFF team on this innovative collaboration between Belfast and Dublin. Sexuality and gender issues are integral to our day to day lives, and important cultural expressions of who we are, film is the perfect medium through which we can reflect upon and celebrate the very personal and political aspects of sexuality and identity‘.

Full details of the festival programme will be announced in July.  

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The Reel Ireland Film Festival Travels to Poland – 31 May 2007

This June will see the first ever-travelling Irish film festival in Poland. Reel Ireland, the organisation which makes items from the Irish Film Archive of The Irish Film Institute available to cultural exhibitors in Ireland and abroad, will be sending 5 films to Poland next month: The Wind that Shakes the Barley, Breakfast On Pluto, Studs, Bloody Sunday, Adam & Paul and Disco Pigs.The festival will travel to Gydnia, Warsaw and Kracow

‘We at the IFI are delighted to be involved in this first ever Reel Ireland event in Poland. Following the success of the inaugural Polish Film Festival here last year, we began planning to bring a programme of Irish films to Poland, many of which have not been seen there before. There are so many connections between Ireland and Poland now this sort of cultural exchange just seems to make perfect sense,’ said Festivals and Reel Ireland Co-ordinator Aoife Coughlan.
     
The three festivals will be held from 15th June: 15-16 June in Gydnia, 22-23 June in Warsaw and 29-30 June in Krakow.

For over a decade the Irish Film Archive of The Irish Film Institute (IFI) has been making its unique collection available to cultural exhibitors in Ireland and abroad. Building on our ongoing work in this area, 2005 saw the creation of Reel Ireland. This touring package of Irish films, designed to promote our film culture internationally, is curated by the Archive and supported by Culture Ireland. The package, which is updated annually, comprises contemporary feature films, documentaries, shorts and classic archive titles, and offers audiences everywhere an exciting opportunity to experience some of the diversity of Irish cinema.

For more information see www.reelireland.ie

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Simon Perry Joins EFP Board – 29 May 2007

Simon Perry, CEO at the Irish Film Board, has joined the Board of Directors of European Film Promotion (EFP). The new members, elected at its General Assembly during the Cannes International Film Festival, are now Christian Dorsch (German Films, Managing Director), Pilar Torre (ICAA, Spain, Deputy Director General Promotion), Claudia Landsberger (Holland Film, Managing Director), Éva Vezér (Magyar Filmunió, Hungary, General Manager) and Simon Perry (CEO, Irish Film Board).

Simon Perry said: 'I believe that EFP has achieved an enormous amount in 10 years but, just as we are in the process of refreshing the whole concept of the Shooting Stars event, I believe it is also essential to be constantly looking for new approaches and new programmes that can keep the work of promotion alive and relevant.'

Since the foundation of European Film Promotion in 1997, the number of members
has increased from ten to 27 export and promotion organisations from 28 countries. In recent years, it has mainly been film organisations from Eastern Europe which have been those joining EFP. EFP is financially supported by the MEDIA Programme of the European Union.

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Manhattan Seeks Entries from Irish Filmmakers – 29 May 2007

New York City’s Manhattan Short Film Festival has put a final call out for entries to Irish Filmmakers who wish to represent Ireland in the 10th annual festival set to screen during the last week of September and be judged by a global audience from over 150 venues across Europe, North, South and Central America.
 
The Manhattan Short Film Festival will select twelve finalists from twelve separate countries. Those films will be transferred to a digital format and distributed to over 150 cinemas. Audience members will be handed a voting card upon entry to each venue and asked to vote for the one film they feel should win the event. Votes are tallied at each cinema and sent to the Festival headquarters in NYC, where the winner is announced after the last screening in Union Square Park NYC on Sunday, September 30th. That same day the event will also be screening in Cork and Galway, as well as many other cities across Europe and as far east as Russia.
  
Deadline for entries is 31st July. Entry forms can be obtained from the Festival’s website at www.msfilmfest.com

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Element Pictures’ Garage Awarded Cannes Prize
– 28 May 2007

Following the fantastic response to its screening at the Directors’ Fortnight in the Cannes Film Festival, the Irish feature film, Garage has been awarded the prestigious CICAE Art and Essai Cinema Prize, awarded by the CICAE (International Confederation of Art House Cinemas) Jury.

Garage is the second film from director Lenny Abrahamson and writer Mark O’Halloran the team behind the award-winning black comedy Adam & Paul. It stars Irish comedian Pat Shortt and features a cast which includes Anne-Marie Duff (Shameless, The Magdalene Sisters) and newcomer Conor Ryan and is produced by Ed Guiney, executive produced by Andrew Lowe for Element Pictures and co-financed by Bord Scannán na hÉireann/the Irish Film Board, Film4, RTÉ and the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland
 
Regarded by his neighbours as a harmless misfit, Josie (Pat Shortt) has spent all his adult life as the caretaker of a crumbling petrol station on the outskirts of a small town in the mid-west of Ireland. He is limited, lonely, yet relentlessly optimistic and, in his own peculiar way, happy. Garage follows Josie’s hapless search for intimacy over the course of a summer which sees his life changed forever.

Speaking of the Award, Director Lenny Abrahamson said ‘I am totally delighted with this award coming after such a fantastic reception for the film at Cannes. Its the best possible launch for its journey around the world.’

Producer Ed Guiney added ‘The film which won this prize last year, Italy's Libero went on to do strong box office in Europe and beyond so the omens are good for us.’

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Future Shorts Screenings for May – 28 May 2007

Future Shorts swings into May with another tour de force of cinematic acrobatics. This month’s programme of short films features David Russo's supreme I am not Van Gogh which narrates a confused artist's pitch to a US film festival panel. This features alongside Daniel Elliott’s dark and moving The Making of Parts, a production from
Newcastle which took home the Venice Film Festival short film prize in 2006.

The Irish shorts are Imagine This by John Cal, In this Way by Princess Pictures and Squelch by Aaron O Reilly.

The international film lineup includes Feist - 1234 by Patrick Daughters, The Making of Parts by Daniel Elliott, Before the Light Goes Off by Daniel Swiatly, Manderlay by Paul Barritt, Tell it to the Fishes by Wiliam Sinclair, The Agreement by Russell Edwards, Quietsch by Baran bo Odar, Libre indirecto by Juanjo Giménez, Tales of Mere Existence by Lev Yilmaz and I Am not Van Gogh by David Russo.

Future Shorts takes place at 7:45pm on Wednesday 30th May at 4 Dame Lane. For more information see www.futureshorts.com

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Charity Serenity Screening – 28 May 2007

As part of the second global fundraising for the charity Equality Now and to celebrate Joss Whedon’s birthday, Firefly fans (Browncoats) announce 5 UK and Ireland screenings of the film Serenity taking place in May and June. In 2006, global screenings of Serenity in support of Equality Now raised $65,000 and were an unqualified success. 

16th June: Dublin at the CineWorld – Contact dublin.serenityscreening@gmail.com
16th June: Oxford at the Ultimate Picture Palace – Visit www.spiritofwash.com/2/SNEN/Home.html
23rd June: Edinburgh – Contact sadja87@aol.com
23rd June: London – Contact ensn.london2007@ntlworld.com

Equality Now works on behalf of women worldwide providing women’s advocacy and is supported by Joss Whedon (creator of the TV shows Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly and writer/director of Serenity) as well as celebrities such as Meryl Streep, Alanis Morrisette and Marisa Tomei. Please visit www.equalitynow.org and www.cantstoptheserenity.com for further information. 

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Speed Dating Wins Audience Award at Indianapolis – 14 May 2007

The Irish film Speed Dating has won the Audience Award at the Indianapolis International Film Festival. From the first time Director Tony Herbert, Speed Dating is a romantic comedy which tells the story of James Van Der Bexton (Hugh O'Conor) as he approaches his 30th birthday. After the devastating break–up of his relationship with the love of his life, he has taken up speed dating without much success.

In the past few weeks Speed Dating has also scooped the Audience Award at the European Independent Film Festival in Paris, and the Jury Award For Best Feature Film at the 8th Malibu International Film Festival.

Speed Dating is currently playing at selected cinemas nationwide.

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