Sheffield Doc/Fest 2016 Opens Today
Sheffield Doc/Fest opens today with a strong Irish contingent heading to the six day celebration of the best in new documentary. Ireland is well represented with Crash and Burn, Bobby Sands: 66 Days, Mattress Men and The Land of the Enlightened screening as part of the flagship documentary festival.
The world premiere will take place in Sheffield of Crash and Burn, written and directed by Seán Ó Cualáin (Men at Lunch). This film charts the rise and fall of Drogheda's Tommy Byrne who for a fleeting moment in the early 80's, was the world's greatest driver.
Saturday June 11 10.15am ITN Source Showroom 4
Following its world premiere at Hot Docs in Toronto earlier this week, Bobby Sands: 66 Days will screen in Sheffield. Written and directed by Brendan J Byrne, this film tells the story of the Northern Irish hunger striker who grabbed the attention of the whole world in 1981.
Monday June 13 17.45 Bertha DocHouse Library Theatre
Tuesday June 14 17.30 PBS America Showroom 3
Also fresh from its world premiere at Hot Docs in Toronto is Mattress Men directed by Colm Quinn. In an attempt to save his struggling mattress selling business, sixty-something Michael Flynn reinvents himself as the eccentric online persona ‘Mattress Mick', under the guidance of his good friend Paul Kelly.
Monday June 13 14.15 Beijing Showroom
Having scooped the World Cinema Cinematography Award, Documentary at Sundance in January, and following a screening at Hot Docs, The Land of the Enlightened is an Irish co-production directed by Pieter-Jan De Pue. It centres around Bagram Airfield - the bastion of U.S. military in Afghanistan - where exists a wartime economy that is run and controlled entirely by children
Wednesday June 15 10.00 Beijing Showroom 1
In addition, two Irish Film Board funded projects have been selected from hundreds of applicants for the MeetMarket at Sheffield Doc Fest. This offers extensive marketplace opportunities for selected participants from across the world. Hundreds of executives, distributors, commissioners, funders, advisors and buyers from documentary and cross-platform attend. The selected projects are Bullock Rock (Directed by Joel Conroy and produced by Besom Productions and Inis Films) and It's Not Yet Dark (Directed by Frankie Fenton and produced by Lesley McKimm and Kathryn Kennedy).
The IFB would like to invite those travelling to Sheffield to meet the Irish delegation of filmmakers at Sheffield Doc/Fest and celebrate the screenings on Monday June 13 at 8pm in Sheffield Winter Garden.
You can download a guide to Irish Films at Sheffield Doc/Fest here.