Three Irish Films Selected for the Sundance Film Festival
The Irish documentary feature film His & Hers directed by Ken Wardrop and two Irish animation short films Old Fangs and Please Say Something have all been selected to screen at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival.The Sundance Film Festival, which was originally founded by Robert Redford, is world-renowned as a showcase for the best in new independent cinema. The festival runs from January 21st - 31st 2010 and is the largest independent cinema festival in the U.S., with more than 50,000 people attending screenings in Park City, Utah. The festival selects just 200 short and feature films for exhibition from more than 9,000 submissions.
His & Hers, selected to screen in the World Documentary Competition, is a beautiful and innovative documentary feature film that combines observation and imagination to illustrate a universal love story. Produced by Andrew Freedman with funding from Bord Scannán na hÉireann/the Irish Film Board, the film explores women's relationships with men by visiting moments from the lives of 70 female characters.
His & Hers has already received huge praise when it premiered at the Galway Film Fleadh in July, winning the award for Best Irish Feature and was shortlisted for the Grierson Award at the 2009 Times BFI London Film Festival last month.
Producer Andrew Freedman spoke about the success of the film, "We're thrilled that His & Hers has been selected for Sundance, both Ken and I believe the story will resonate with audiences and we're delighted to find that the film is reaching out beyond the borders of Ireland and appealing to international viewers. We are so grateful to the people who contributed their time and effort in making this film possible."
Commenting on the news Bord Scannán na hÉireann/the Irish Film Board Chief Executive, Simon Perry said "Ken Wardrop is one of the most creative and original voices working in the Irish film industry. His short films have won much international acclaim and picked up more than 30 international awards, including a European Film Academy Award for Undressing My Mother in 2005. We were delighted to have the opportunity to finance his debut feature film His & Hers and hope that the Sundance selection will lead to new international opportunities for Ken and his producing partner, Andrew Freedman, to develop their talents further".
Meanwhile, two animations Old Fangs and Please Say Something have also been selected to screen at the world renowned festival.
Old Fangs is directed by Adrien Merigeau and produced by Kilkenny based company Cartoon Saloon, the Irish company behind the successful animated feature film The Secret of Kells which was released in Irish cinemas by Buena Vista earlier this year. The film was produced under the Frameworks short animation scheme funded by Bord Scannán na hÉireann/the Irish Film Board (IFB), the Arts Council and RTÉ.
Please Say Something is directed by David O'Reilly, also from Kilkenny, and won the Golden Bear for Best Short Film at the Berlinale Film Festival earlier this year. The film is also set for theatrical release in Germany next year.
The Irish film industry has been well been very well represented at the Sundance Film Festival over the past few years. Once screened at the festival to phenomenal success in 2006, scooping the Audience Award for Best Film which led to a distribution deal with Fox. This year Five Minutes of Heaven starring Liam Neeson and James Nesbit won two awards at the festival for World Cinema Directing Award: Dramatic and screenwriter Guy Hibbert was presented the World Cinema Screenwriting Award. The Irish short film ‘A Film From My Parish - 6 Farms', written and directed by Tony Donoghue also screened there in 2009 and Bloody Sunday won the World Cinema Award there in 2002.
The Sundance Film Festival takes place from January 21st - 31st 2010.