AWARD WINNING 'PAVEE LACKEEN' CAPTIVATES INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL CIRCUIT
Perry Ogden's debut feature PAVEE LACKEEN has been selected for the prestigious 62nd Venice International Film Festival scheduled to take place on the Lido di Venezia from August 31 until September 10, 2005.Fresh from its success at the Galway Film Fleadh last week, where the film scooped the top prize for Best First Feature Film, PAVEE LACKEEN has been selected as one of only seven films from around the world to screen in the International Critics Week sidebar section of the festival.
This section of the festival focuses on highlighting the work of first time directors and an audience jury will judge the Critics Week prize. In addition, all entries in the sidebar are eligible to compete - along with films in Venice's official selection - for the E100,000 Lion of the Future award for debut director.
PAVEE LACKEEN has already been selected to screen at the Toronto International Film Festival this Autumn, where it will receive its North American Premiere. The film, which charts the story of a young Traveller girl, is acclaimed photographer Perry Ogden's first feature film.
Financed by Perry Ogden with co-finance from the Irish Film Board, PAVEE LACKEEN is an intimate portrait of Winnie, a resilient and spirited young girl and her proud and dignified family. Set in the Traveller community, the film presents a tough but luminous portrait of a marginalised group often living in poverty in a modern, prosperous Ireland. Filmed with a cast of mostly non-professionals, the film uses Travellers to depict lives near to their own.
Responding to the announcement, director Perry Ogden said, "It’s a great honour for PAVEE LACKEEN to be selected for the Venice Film Festival and it is a fantastic platform for the film ahead of it’s screening in Toronto. The story of Winnie and her family is a universal one and I believe that international audiences will strongly identify with it.”
Critics Week has showcased the work of a series of talented filmmakers including Mike Leigh, Olivier Assayas, Jan Sverak, Harmony Korine and Peter Mullan. Peter Mullan’s THE MAGDALENE SISTERS also screened in Venice in 2002 and scooped the coveted Golden Lion Award for Best Feature.