A still from the documentary Katie. (Courtesy Irish Film Fest Boston)
Exactly one year ago, the Irish Film Festival Boston (IFF) debated canceling its 20th annual celebration of contemporary Irish cinema. With a banner roster of films and guests locked, jury awards selected but not yet announced, plane tickets, print ads and merchandise purchased, and the Somerville Theatre and surrounding restaurants and bars ready and waiting, it felt like an impossible decision to executive director Dawn Morrissey.
“With my hand on my heart, I still sit and cry. The 20th was going to be amazing,” says Morrissey. The fest had even taken a break in 2019 in order to muster resources for its milestone year.
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As communities around the world prepare for their socially distanced St. Patrick s Day celebrations, the Irish Film Institute is delighted to announce the launch of a brand new platform to bring the best of Irish film to homes across the globe.
Supported by Culture Ireland, the IFI International streaming service, now live at IFIInternational.ie, will allow partner Irish film festivals worldwide to bring the very best of Irish cinema to audiences.
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The new IFI International site launches with six festivals: the Belgrade Irish Festival (March 12-21), the British and Irish Film Festival Luxembourg (March 15-22), Irish Film Festival Boston (March 17-21), Irish Film Festa Rome (March 17-21), the San Francisco Irish Film Festival (March 25-28), and Irish Film Festival Ottawa (April 9-13). Content for each of the festivals will be available exclusively to audiences in those territories.
This is the BBCs description of the plot: When a car containing a possible suicide note is pulled out of Strangford Lough, Northern Irish police detective Tom Brannick (James Nesbitt) quickly connects it to an infamous cold case with enormous personal significance. Bloodlands follows his hunt for the legendary assassin known as Goliath , an explosive cat-and-mouse game where the stakes have never been higher.
Mercurio, the man behind thriller hits like Line of Duty and Bodyguard is producing Bloodlands, the script is being written by first time TV writer, Chris Brandon.
He told the BBC he was “absolutely delighted that the first opportunity I get to tell a story on this scale, it is one that is so close to home and the people and places that raised me”.
First look of Belfast based thriller Bloodlands starring James Nesbitt and Charlene McKenna released
The series is executive produced by Line of Duty creator Jed Mercurio
WARNING: Embargoed for publication until 10:00:01 on 11/02/2020 - Programme Name: Bloodlands - TX: n/a - Episode: Cast Announcement (No. n/a) - Picture Shows: STRICTLY EMBARGOED UNTIL 11/02/2020 10:00:01 Tom Brannick (James Nesbitt) - (C) HTM Television - Photographer: Steffan Hill (Image: BBC)
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Here we go again. It’s a dangerous thing, this prediction business. How many of last year’s ‘stars of tomorrow’ got their chance in 2020? How many more will have to wait just a little longer for their big break?
The silver lining, of course, is that Ireland has never before been home to such a vast and magnificent line-up of actors, writers and directors.
Some of them have already started to make a name for themselves on the world stage, including Barry Keoghan, Jessie Buckley and Niamh Algar.
The pandemic may yet continue to play havoc with shoots and schedules, but we can always hope that our most talented artists will finally get a chance to shine over the next 12 months.