An Irish 3D animated feature film produced by Galway’s Magma Films is to premiere at the prestigious Toronto International Film Festival (7-16 September). The Ugly Duckling and Me, a story which is inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s much loved fairytale will have its world premiere play as part of the Sprockets Family Zone which is dedicated to featuring films that represent the best in contemporary international children’s cinema.

'Irish animation is now highly regarded on the international stage for producing award-winning films that are independently financed and made with great innovative skill. Having The Ugly Duckling and Me selected for the prestigious Toronto Film Festival is a another fine achievement for all involved' said Simon Perry, Chief Executive Officer, Bord Scannán na hÉireann / the Irish Film Board.

The Ugly Duckling and Me features voice talents of many Irish actors including Morgan Jones, Paul Tylak and Barbara Bergin and is a cinema debut for Irish writer Mark Hodkinson.

The Ugly Duckling and Me is co-produced by Magma Films (Ireland), A Film (Denmark), Futurikon (France) and Ulysses (Germany). It was financed by the IFB, Eurimages, Nordisk Film and TV Fund, Danish Film Institute, FFA Germany, Media & S481. The Ugly Duckling and Me will be released in cinemas across Ireland in early 2007 by Eclipse Pictures.

Back to top

The Irish Film Board has negotiated a WAIVER of entry fees for Irish films again this year for the Sundance Film Festival in January 2007.

The official submission deadlines for the 2007 festival are as follows:
- U.S & International Short Films: Friday, September 1st, 2006
- U.S. & International Feature Films & Documentaries: Monday, September 11th, 2006

To avail of this offer your film must have been part-financed in Ireland. For more details on how to access the waiver code contact Louise Ryan on +353 91 561 398 or louise@filmboard.ie.

Back to top

The Navan Film Festival (15–16 August 2006) is set to become Ireland's premiere genre film festival. This year's programme includes the best in cutting-edge action, science fiction, fantasy and animation as well as panels, parties and special guests.

'The Navan Film Festival was created to offer exposure to genre films which are often overlooked by the traditional festival circuit' says festival director Paul Cotrulia.

The Navan Film Festival will be the first Irish festival to screen American science fiction thriller Into the Maelstrom, American science fiction thriller Microgravity and the multiple award winning Canadian science fiction short Cost of Living. It will also be the first Irish festival to show Irish made fantasy film The Four Horsemen starring Ruth Negga and Irish made fantasy film Nowhere Man by the Navan Film Festival's very own Paul Webster.

The festival kicks off with a champagne reception at the Diamond Cinema Navan, Kennedy Road, Navan, Co Meath on the night of the 15th at 11:00pm followed by a special screening of Ireland's first martial arts movie Fatal Deviation at midnight.

The Navan Film Festival is supported by Excel Print, Clarke's Sports Den, The Newgrange Hotel, Abfab Video Productions, Silicon Valley Internet Café, Solstice Arts Centre and Probono Publico.

For more details on this years event visit www.navanfestival.com

Back to top

Sonic Eye Media has been set up to provide the best possible training, recording facility and music services available to musician, bands, managers, companies and filmmakers.

Sonic Eye Media aims to provide access to state of the art recording/training facilities, as well as providing an environment that artists/filmmakers and designers at all levels young and old alike can develop and gain knowledge of the Music and Film/TV industry in an accessible and affordable way.

Sonic Eye Media Training is located at 106 Lower Baggot St. where we provide training in all aspects of sound/production for music and TV/film, as well as film editing, music technology and graphic design.

All our courses have been designed by industry professionals with a focus on teaching the skills required to work in your selected industry.

All courses are offered on a full or part time basis:
-Studio Sound Engineering (Basic, Intermediate, Advanced)
-Working your way around the Music Industry
-Sound Post Production for TV/FILM
-Music Technology
-Graphic Design
-Pro Tools for Radio and POD Casting

Sonic Eye Media’s studios are located at 35 Avenue Road, Dublin 8.

The studios have been built to provide the best quality recording at an affordable price. The facility can be hired dry or we can provide producers, engineers, assistant engineers, pro tools engineers and mix engineers.

Back to top

Irish Civil War film The Wind that Shakes the Barley has become the highest grossing independent Irish film at the Irish box office.

Funded by the Irish Film Board (BSÉ/IFB), this award winning film has taken over €2.7 million at the Irish box office surpassing recent major Irish hits Intermission, which took €2.5 million in 2003 and Man About Dog, which took €2.1 million at the Irish box office in 2004.

The Wind that Shakes the Barley, directed by Ken Loach, staring Cillian Murphy (Batman, Breakfast On Pluto), Liam Cunningham (Breakfast on Pluto, Showbands) and rising star Padraic Delaney, is also the 4th highest grossing film released in Ireland this year, beating stiff competition from major Hollywood titles such as Mission Impossible II and Chicken Little.

The next Irish film to be released in cinemas nationwide is The Front Line, directed by David Gleeson (Cowboys & Angels) which will be distributed by Buena Vista International (Ireland) on August 25th.

Back to top

No Strings Attached, a Gothic short starring Camille O'Sullivan (Mrs Henderson Presents) and Sam Corry (The Clinic) has been selected for screening at the Los Angeles International Short Film Festival, an Academy Award qualifier.

Written and directed by Maria O'Loughlin, the short film was produced for Buckshee Films by Rachael Moriarty. Maria recently completed the EU MEDIA North by Northwest programme for professional screenwriters and this year is starting as a visiting scholar on the graduate screenwriting program at the School of Cinema-Television, University of Southern California. A course completed by scriptwriter Paul Laverty a few years ago.

The film, which was commissiond by RTÉ and the Galway Film Centre, only recently premiered at the Galway Film Fleadh as part of the New Irish Shorts Programme.

Back to top

The Irish Film Institute has decided to cancel the sponsorship provided by the Embassy of Israel in Ireland for the screening of Walk on Water, one of the feature films part of the Gay and Lesbian Film Festival.

IFI Director Mark Mulqueen has said 'The decision is taken in light of the current activities of the Israeli government and prompted by the performance of your Ambassador in explaining these acts to the Irish public. It is important for us to separate the screening of an Israeli feature film from activities of the Israeli government. In allowing the screening to go ahead, this is not an act of artistic censorship, something we would be loath to do.'

Back to top

The TG4/Filmbase short film Mac an Athar (His Father's Son) has been selected for official screening at both the Rhode Island International Film Festival and the Los Angeles International Short Film Festival, both of which are Academy Awards qualifiers. This follows on from its recent award winning success at the prestigious Cleveland International Film Festival and at the Filmstock International Film Festival in the UK.

Written and directed by Colm Bairéad and produced by Greg Corcoran for Fingers Crossed Films, Mac an Athar is a moving examination of a father-son relationship in the aftermath of a devastating family tragedy.

Colm Bairéad and Greg Corcoran are currently developing an Irish-language feature entitled An Rún (The Secret) and a short film called The Fairytale of Frankie Doran.

Back to top

This Autumn, the Irish Film Institute expands its touring programmes of film packages to venues around the country. Alice Black has joined the IFI as its new Regional Development Manager to coordinate this new level of activity.

Among the first partnerships are:

In August, Look Out! Dublin’s Lesbian and Gay Film Festival will be getting out of the capital for the first time. On Sat, Aug 19th, the Dundalk Outcomers will be hosting Queer Cuba, two new documentaries about life in Castro’s Cuba. In Galway, The Eye Cinema will be screening three films: Fabulous! A History of Queer Cinema (Tues Aug 22), Go West (Wed Aug 23) and Saving Face (Thurs Aug 24)

The Irish Film Archive are presenting West of Kerry, Patrick Keenan Heale’s 1938 film of a love triangle on the Blasket Islands will be shown at the Ionad An Bhlascaoid as part of the Kerry Film Festival Mhóir in October.

Building on last year’s touring success, the Stranger Than Fiction Documentary Film Festival is already confirmed for both Galway and Belfast in September.

From 4-7 November, Horrorthon, the annual extravaganza of new horror films will be touring six films to the Queen’s Film Theatre in Belfast. The French Film Festival will also be touring in November, expanding its traveling schedule to a number of regional cinemas including Cork.

Alice Black has joined the IFI as its new Regional Development Manager. Alice had spent the past six years as Manager of access>CINEMA, a resource organization for film societies and arts centres across Ireland. Before that she had worked as film grant co-coordinator for the Cultural Services of the French Embassy in New York, and in the film department of the MoMA, the Museum of Modern Art (NYC).

Back to top

The Cavan County Council Arts Office has developed a Film Bursary to support an innovative collaboration between film and another art form. This may allow the artists involved the opportunity to work in a new way, employ new skills and techniques or create a new partnership. Closing date for receipt of proposals is August 25th. For further information and an application form, please contact the Arts Office on 049 4378300 or email artsoffice@cavancoco.ie

Back to top

Monday 7th of August marks the deadline date for all Early Bird entries to the 19th Seagate Foyle Film Festival which will run from the 10-19 November 2006.

Entries received between August 8th and August 23d will incur a charge of £5, and a £10 fee will be applied to those received by September 4th. A fee of £20 will be charged for entries received by the extended and final deadline of September 8th.

This year the 19th Seagate Foyle Film Festival will host the competition for the prestigious Stella Artois Film Awards in the categories of: Best Irish Short, Best International Short, Best Animation, Best Documentary, and Best Short Feature.

Since the Seagate Foyle Film festival is accepted by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science as a qualifying festival, the winners of the Best Irish Short and Best Animation categories will immediately qualify for consideration for an Academy Award.

To submit your entry to the 19th Seagate Foyle Film Festival log onto www.foylefilmfestival.com for entry forms and application information.

Back to top

Submissions are currently being sought for Silent Light, the Cork Super8 Fringe. The closing dates for entries is September 25th 2006.

Silent Light is Ireland's first and only dedicated Super8 Film Festival. It is a one-day celebration of the format, taking place on October 7th in the Unitarian Church on Prince's St. Cork, Ireland. It is an open submission event – as long as it's been shot on Super8 film and under 8 minutes long then anything goes (submissions can be either on original format or DVD).

Further information regarding submissions, as well as the programme of free afternoon events, can be found on www.corksuper8fringe.com

Back to top

Darklight in collaboration with Axis Arts Centre Ballymun and Dogmedia Productions brings you the unique documentary experience that is Bag O' Bags.

During a 10-day shoot and workshop with local teenagers, the team and filmmakers went door-to-door to collect plastic bags from under the sinks of Ballymun homes. Tesco supermarket in Finglas became the site of a bizarre case of synchronicity ...

Bag O' Bags is screening at Axis Arts Centre, Main Street, Ballymun on Friday 28th July at 6pm.

See a trailer of Bag O' Bags here.

Back to top

FilmmakersNetwork.ie is an Irish networking space for people who want to make films.

For everyone from novice filmmakers to busy professionals, it's a place to make contacts, share opinions, get advice, discuss movies, contribute ideas, discover talent, build creative relationships and make films. FilmmakersNetwork.ie is independent, non-profit making and run by filmmakers for filmmakers. It's both an online and offline community with future events planned such as social member meets, screenings and film projects.

Back to top

The Office of Public Works (OPW) continues to play an active role in making Dublin a film friendly location for film and television production.

Recent film productions using OPW property include The Tudors, starring Irish Golden Globe winner Jonathan Rhys-Meyers and Sam Neill. Dublin Castle, The Royal Hospital Kilmainham and the Phoenix Park will all feature prominently in this major US series which will be broadcast to US audiences on the Showtime channel in 2007.

The OPW manages State property and heritage sites throughout the country, looking after some of the most prestigious buildings and scenic locations in Ireland. They are an important member of the FILM DUBLIN Partnership, the Irish Film Boards network that ensures that Dublin remains an attractive base for film and television production.

Tommy O'Shaughnessy, General Manager in Dublin Castle, has worked with many productions over the years from Michael Collins to Jackie Chan's film The Medallion and has a huge understanding of the needs of filmmakers. O'Shaughnessy also serves as OPW representative in the FILM DUBLIN Partnership.

Irish tourism also benefits from films that promote a positive image of Ireland. Failte Ireland figures indicate that foreign tourists attracted to Ireland by film and TV spend an estimated €250 million annually.

Back to top

Eclipse Pictures wishes David Burke the very best in his new position as General Manager with Universal Pictures Ireland. David has worked with Eclipse Pictures for 4 years and with Clarence Pictures previous to that. He takes up his new position in September 2006 and will remain with Eclipse until end August. His replacement will be announced shortly.

Eclipse Pictures has a number of exciting films in the months ahead including an Eclipse production Middletown. Directed by BAFTA-nominated Brian Kirk (Murphy’s Law, Pulling Moves) and scripted by Daragh Carville, Middletown features an outstanding cast including Matthew Macfadyen (Pride & Prejudice, In My Father’s Den); Eva Birthistle (Ae Fond Kiss, Breakfast on Pluto); Daniel Mays (Vera Drake) and Gerard McSorley (Omagh, Veronica Guerin).

Back to top

The Stranger than Fiction Documentary Film Festival and Market , takes place from September 28th – October 1st 2006.

The Festival is now accepting entries for their Short Documentary Competition, which offers a €2000 cash prize to the winner. If you have a film between 3 minutes and 18 minutes in length, please put it forward for consideration. The closing date is Tuesday, 1st August 2006.

The documentaries chosen will be screened on Sunday October 1st at the Irish Film Institute. There will also be a number of international commissioning editors present at the event.

The market element of the festival is sponsored by the Irish Film Board. Other festival sponsors include Screen Producers Ireland, Screen Training Ireland, RTE, TG4 and Cobra Beer.

For more information on the festival and documentary competition visit: www.irishfilm.ie

Back to top

Next Thursday, July 27th at 2.30 Filmbase will host an information session for members where the Irish Film Board will explain the the new guidelines that have been introduced and the rationale behind them. They will also explain the practicalities of how the system will work and take questions from the floor.

Copies of the new guidelines will be available and there will be refreshments.

We hope to see a lage number of members there and look forward to a lively discussion. If you wish to attend please email info@filmbase.ie with FILM BOARD SESSION in the subject line.

You can do some advance research on the Film Board website.

Back to top

FERA, the representative body for European Film Directors, have issued a statement welcoming a draft proposal made by European Commission last December revising the Television Without Frontiers Directive. FERA believes that review of the Directive was urgently needed to keep pace with the rapid changes in the forms of distribution of works and the development of new audiovisual medias services, especially online services.

The main innovation of the EC proposal for a Directive is to extend the scope from traditional (linear) broadcasting services to new (non linear) audiovisual media services in order to incorporate them both in one single piece of legislation.

European directors strongly believe that these new forms of broadcasting and distribution will not only give European audiences access to a broader range of audiovisual works but is a unique opportunity to further strengthen the production base and promote the diversity of cultural and artistic audiovisual works created in Europe.

FERA have made the following points to the commission in relation to the New Directive:

1. All Audiovisual Media Services must encourage the promotion and circulation of European audiovisual films and programmes.
2. Adequate levels of investment in the production of Audiovisual work must be maintained.
3. Legislation is needed to protect the artistic integrity of the work in relation to advertising, product placement and product integration.
4. For the sake of fair competition, the means to fight against delocalisation should be strengthened beyond that currently proposed by the EC in its draft proposal.
5. Adequate monitoring on the implementation of all above mentioned objectives and provisions should be included in the new directive.

FERA is a network of over thirty European directors’ organisations lobbying on issues of major importance in the creation and promotion of audiovisual works.

Back to top

The board of the Screen Directors Guild of Ireland (SDGI) are delighted with the general thrust of the Irish Film Board’s New Procedures and Principles. In particular SDGI has congratulated Simon Perry for refocusing the Irish Film Board on 'high quality' film and television with 'awareness of the market but not a prostration to it'. They have welcomed the recognition of the importance of the role of the director, the emphasis on Irish talent, distinctive voices and originality.

They have appreciated the IFB’s aspiration to accelerate the process of assessment, to engage with projects at an earlier stage and to commit to long term active development. The board recognises that the IFB’s new guidelines aspire to the encouragement and recognition of the director’s involvement in the initiation and development of projects and their need for payment during this period.

Back to top

Brian Cross (B+) is coming over to present an exclusive screening of his Brasilintime documentary this Thursday, 27th July, at the Lobby Bar, Harcourt St, Dublin 2. The film has been 4 years in the making and it is an essay-istic documentary which sets out to correlate the similarities between Brasilian and Funk music from the 1960's and 1970's. All the usual suspects are in there like Cut Chemist, Babu, J.Rocc, Madlib, DJ Nuts and of course the amazing range of Brazilian musicians that collaborated on the project. Dj Nuts from Brasil will be on hand to play music for the after screening party. Check out the Mochilla website for more info.

Tickest can be purchased online at www.tickets.ie or at the usual spots in Dublin like
All-City, Road Records, Carbon, City Discs or Big Brother.

Back to top

On Wednesday 26 July 2006, Future Shorts Ireland in association with the Project Arts Centre will present an evening of contemporary surrealism and sardonic satire with the screening of Faust, a remarkable re-score of the 1994 cult fantasy by Czech filmmaker Jan Svankmajer. This polemical piece forms a potent commentary of the moral laxity brought about by the onslaught of democracy in the Chezch Republic. Svankmajer effortlessly weaves live action, animation and puppetry together to form an exceptional film.

Red Square will be providing a deeply moving live sound scape for the film. This superb quintet will bring a unique and beautifully crafted dimension to this highly acclaimed cult classic.

The night also includes a titillating mini-slate of both Irish and international shorts, along with other surprises. The event is in the Project Arts Centre, Temple Bar, this Wednesday 26th July. The doors open at 7.30pm with the show beginning at 8.00pm sharp. Tickets are €10 with a student price of €8.

Back to top

Minister John O’Donoghue TD has announced the establishment of the Irish Film and Television Academy, an all-Ireland organisation for the Irish film and television industry. The Academy is now open for membership from the industry and has repositioned the annual IFTA Awards to February each year.

The Irish Film & Television Academy’s mission is the stimulation of original and creative production work and the encouragement of excellence through recognition, education and leadership in film and television.

Given the growing success of the IFTA Awards (with it’s strong industry support, primetime live broadcast to 640,000 peak viewers and increasing international recognition), IFTN (the Irish Film & Television Network www.iftn.ie), who organise the Awards, initiated talks in late 2005 with key industry organizations and representative agencies with a view to introducing an all-Ireland Academy which would encourage excellence within the industry, driving a range of industry initiatives with focus on education and leadership along with industry events including the annual IFTA awards ceremony.

As a result, the Irish Film and Television Academy has now been established with full representation from across the industry; The Department of Arts, Sport and Tourism and Bord Scannán na hÉireann/Irish Film Board, Northern Ireland Film & Television Commission, broadcasters; RTÉ, BBC, TV3, UTV, TG4, Screen Producers Ireland, SIPTU, Irish Equity, Screen Directors Guild, Irish Playwrights and Screenwriters Guild and IFTN.

The first decision of the Academy has been to reposition the IFTA Awards to February each year in line with the international awards season and to build a strong membership of industry professionals who will be entitled to vote in the annual IFTA awards under the ‘peer voting’ system within their field of expertise. The Awards date change also now establishes a full calendar year submission period of Jan 1st to Dec 31st each year. The next awards will be held on Friday 9th February 2007.

To become a Founding Member and to vote in the next Awards, applicants must submit their application by Friday 25th August 2006.

Members of the ‘Board of Advisors’ of the new Academy are:
Áine Moriarty, CEO IFTA
Simon Perry, CEO Irish Film Board
Richard Williams, CEO NIFTC
Clare Duignan (Director of Programmes, RTÉ Television (representing Irish broadcasters).
Jane Boushell (representing unions and Irish Equity members)
David McLoughlin (CEO of Screen Producers Ireland)
Alan Moloney (film/television producer)
Deirdre Hopkins (IFTN Director, and liaising with representatives from Screen Directors Guild and Irish Playwrights and Screenwriters Guild)

Further information, including Academy Chapters, Eligibility, Application Forms, etc, is available at: www.ifta.ie

Back to top

Project '06 is a large open-access arts festival currently taking place in Galway. As part of Project '06, The Ensoart Bus Tour features a selection of animated films from the Darklight Festival 2006.

The Ensoart Bus Tour is a moving venue gathering its audience at various points throughout Galway. Streets, promenade, docks, Salthill beach all become venues for this unique art extravaganza: a one day series of events in a mobile installation/performance experience, culminating in an outdoor projection of Darklight Festival on tour.

Detailed programme route at www.ensoart.com/home

Back to top

Returning to Kilkenny following their sell-out performances at last year’s Kilkenny Arts Festival, eclectic music ensemble 3epkano present live music accompaniment to two of the most outstanding movies from the silent film era: Man With a Movie Camera and Blood of a Poet.

Man with a Movie Camera is Vertov’s striking, avant-garde documentary which celebrates Soviet workers and filmmaking, Vertov uses radical editing techniques and cinematic pyrotechnics to not only portray a typical day in Moscow, but to transform it through the power of the kino-glaz (cinema eye).

Cocteau’s groundbreaking first film, Blood of a Poet, depicts a distinctly personal world, capturing the poet’s obsession with the struggle between the forces of life and death. Immersed in surrealism, this inventive representation of artistic feeling and thought explores the technical capabilities of film to magically transcend time, to capture creativity and to suspend physical laws.

For the full festival programme please visit www.kilkennyarts.ie

Back to top

Ob-Scene is a video event being organized for the opening of Art Trail 2006 in the cave at Tígh FíIí in Cork City on Friday 29th of September.

Ob-Scene is looking for video works relating to: 'anything other'; out of the ordinary; different; odd; unusual; unobvious or extraordinary. There is no subject restriction, though video works should not exceed 5min.

Works should be submitted to the Art Trail Office, Wandesford Quay, Crosses Green, Cork on Mini DV or DVD, not later than Friday 1st of September 2006 (a stamped addressed envelope must be included or works will not be returned).

For further information contact info@arttrail.ie

Back to top

Back to top

Back to top

In addition to Wilder’s eccentric turn, there is a great performance by Eileen Colgan, as the blowsy Betsey Bourke, who Quackser regularly calls into for a spot of sex and tea. Shot on location in Dublin the film serves as a vivid snapshot of Dublin in late '60s, in addition to the wonderfully stylised fashions, there are some great scenes in Trinity College, the 'Gravediggers' pub, Kavanagh’s in Prospect Square and at the back gate of Glasnevin cemetery.

The film will be screened the 16th August at 6.30pm in the Irish Film Institute.

Back to top

Back to top

Among the more popular events in this year's programme was the public interview with Kathy Bates which took place on the 16th July in the Town Hall Theatre. The powerful American documentary The Trials of Daryl Hunt also drew a large crowd and an unprecedented reaction from a moved Galway audience in its first ever international screening.

The fleadh culminated in the annual awards ceremony last night which saw director Niall Heery walk away with the award for Best First Feature for his movie Small Engine Repair which proved to be one of the jewels in the Fleadh crown this year. The Stella Artois Pitching Award was presented to Mark Wale for Physical Memory Dump. Full listings of all awards are available on the fleadh website.

Back to top

Back to top

The New Talent scheme is open to companies who have undertaken a long term MEDIA supported training course and who wish to finance further development of that project with MEDIA.

Moonstone International Screen Labs is an advanced development programme for experienced European screenwriters and directors, who are working on feature film projects for an international audience. The next Screenwriters’ Lab will be held in November 2006 (deadline for applications 1 Sept 2006), and its next Filmmakers’ Lab in February 2007(deadline for applications 8 Sept 2006).

Back to top

Three New Staff Members at the IFB – 14 July 2006

Three new staff members have been recently appointed to the Irish Film Board, completing the new team at the Board since it was restructured last year.

Alan Maher has been appointed to the position of Production Executive where he will work directly with Chief Executive Officer Simon Perry and existing Production Executive Noemi Ferrer on the consideration of production funding applications for feature films, documentaries, animations and TV drama. The role also involves the management of projects to which the Irish Film Board commits funding. Alan was previously the Head of Development at Element Films and began his career in Vinegar Hill where he specialised in producing documentary projects. Alan has also produced a number of short films including Some Kind of Voodoo.

Patrick O’Neill has taken up the newly created position of Business Affairs Co-ordinator and is responsible for contracting documentary, completion, and P&A funding, certifying International Co-Productions under the European Convention on Cinematographic Co-Production and other Bi-Lateral treaties. He will also look after the collation and analysis of statistical data from the Irish Film industry. Patrick has over 6 years experience in the film industry, having worked in production on several feature films including The Count of Monte Cristo and Song for a Raggy Boy, and for sales company MR Films. In 2004, Patrick completed a Masters in Audiovisual Management from the Media Business School and since then has worked in development for the London based International Sales Agent Capitol Films and undertaken consulting projects for broadcaster BSkyB and International film acquisition consultants Trans Pacific Media.

Sarah Dillion is the new Administration Assistant at the Irish Film Board whose duties will include reception, responsibility for the organisation of the Galway office and providing invaluable backup and administrative assistance to all units across the organisation. The position will also act a key point of contact for general enquiries from the industry and will be responsible for the management of the IFB archive. Sarah’s has previously worked as a Press Liaison for the Irish Film and TV Awards and was also an Administrative Officer for the Department of Education.

Back to top

Darklight Festival 2006 Award Winners – 13 July 2006

Darklight has announced the winners of the first Darklight Festival Awards.

Animation Award: Who I Am And What I Want by David Shrigley and Chris Shepherd Irish Short Award: Covered Road by Anne Maree Barry
Long Form Film Award: Columbarium by Tony Kenny and From Hell to Heaven by Khaled Abu Ajamia
International Short Award: Fingering and Footing by Catherine Ross
Honourable Mention: New Game: The War by Anna Maliszewska
Student Film Award: December Version 1 by Anita Delaney
Honourable Mention: My Life At 40 by Laurie Hill
Audience Award: Fallen Art by Tomek Baginski

Back to top

This year’s opening presentation will be the Irish premiere of John Cameron Mitchell’s Shortbus, which was the toast of the recent Cannes Film Festival. Shortbus explores the lives of several emotionally challenged characters as they navigate the comic and tragic intersections between love and sex in a post 9/11 New York City. The gala opening night screening will be preceded by the official opening of the festival by special guests Dr’s Katherine Zappone and Ann-Louise Gilligan.

Other titles to be shown at this year’s festival include; 50 Ways of Saying Fabulous, Happy Endings, The Journey, Show Me and Walk on Water. There will also be a special party screening of Pedro Almodóvar’s Pepi, Luci, Bom….along with an impressive array of short films and a special panel discussion on Partnership Rights.

Tickets for the opening gala night of the festival as well as all other screenings are available from the IFI Ticket office on 01 6793477. For the first time, it will be possible to purchase tickets online from the IFI’s website. For the full festival programme please visit www.dlgff.ie.

Back to top

Honeymoon, adapted from the award-winning Los Angeles stage play by Mary Anne McGarry, tells the story of a young American stuntwoman who joins her reckless brother and his uptight bride on their ill-fated honeymoon at the racetracks of Galway, to fulfill a deathbed promise to her mother. The film is produced by McGarry's company, Honeymoon Productions.

Back to top

Barley Shakes the Box Office – 12 July 2006

Ken Loach's Palme d'Or-winning Civil War drama, The Wind That Shakes the Barley took €887,000 at the Irish box office in its first ten days of release. This makes it Ken Loach's highest grossing film to date. The film stars Cillian Murphy, Pádraic Delaney, Liam Cunningham and Orla Fitzgerald, and is written by long-term Loach collaborator Paul Laverty.

Back to top

The International Experimental Cinema Festival Call for Entries – 12 July 2006

TIE - The International Experimental Cinema Exposition invites submissions for the autumnal 2006 festival (October 11-15). Since the festival's inception in Telluride, TIE has screened over 600 innovative historic and contemporary films and joined over 150 of the world's most influential avant-garde filmmakers. TIE has also become home for ground-breaking world premiers, from legends such as Stan Brakhage to a new generation of leading experimentalists.

TIE seeks films that challenge popular and conventional modes of cinema. From difficult and hand-made films to extraordinarily radical and obscure compositions, TIE selects only outstanding celluloid cinema from the outerspaces of contemporary screen-culture.

If a submitted film is selected, the exhibition print must be film (8mm, Super-8, 16mm, 35mm). All lengths are considered. A nominal entry fee is required. Films are considered on a rolling basis. Therefore, filmmakers are encouraged to submit as soon as possible. The extended submission deadline July 15, 2006.

For further information and submission form visit www.experimentalcinema.com

Back to top

In his letter of forward to Michael McDowell, Kelleher lends his support to the introduction of a similar initiative for the certification of limited release DVDs and videos. Irish and international distributors have found the cost of certifying non-mainstream work in Ireland to be prohibitive, and in many cases this has led to the non-distribution of certain films in this country. John Kelleher believes that an introduction of a reduced fee scale for minority interest titles 'would both help in the fight against piracy and would make the distribution of non-mainstream, minority interest titles more viable'.

The report also shows a general increase in feature films certified for the cinema (252, an increase of 1.2%) and for DVD/video (9,632, an increase of 28%). It notes the positive response to the new '16' cinema certificate, the re-designation of the '12A' and '15A' certs, and the National Public Awareness Campaign.

For more information visit the IFCO website

Back to top

<< 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 >>