VMDIFF Catalogue 2021

Bring on Amazing

Booking Information

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Website: www.dif.ie

Phone: 01 687 7974

Monday to Friday: 10am – 6pm

(From January 18th until March 14th)

Saturday: 12pm – 4pm

(From February 3rd until March 14th)

Sunday: 12pm – 4pm

(From March 3rd until March 14th)

Welcome

There’s no doubt that 2020 has been a strange year, but never has flm been more important in bringing people together, showing us the power of shared experience and allowing us to explore the world in new ways.

In 2021, in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, Virgin Media DIFF has been re-imagined to bring our audiences the best of new flms and old classics, all while allowing you to attend the festival in the safest way possible.

This year, walk your own red carpet!

The festival programme will come right to you, via our new screening platform Eventive. For the frst year, you will enjoy all the festival from the comfort of your home.

Tickets

Box Ofce Information

Booking tickets for the Festival couldn’t be simpler. Simply book online, or give us a call on 01 687 7974

Ticket Prices

Ticket Prices

Online Ticket: €9

Online Gala Ticket: €11

Online Shorts Programme Ticket: €7.50

Senior Prices

Online Ticket: €8.50

Online Gala Ticket: €10.50

Online Shorts Programme Ticket: €6.50

Student Prices

Online Screening Ticket: €8.50

Online Gala Ticket: €10.50

Online Shorts Programme Ticket: €6.50

See More & Save!

TICKET BUNDLES & PASSES:

5 Online Screenings Bundle*: €35

10 Online Screenings Bundle*: €60

Online Festival Pass: €150

SENIORS & STUDENT

5 Online Screenings Bundle*: €31.50

10 Online Screenings Bundle*: €54

Online Festival Pass: €135

10% of bundles including Online Festival Pass using the Discount Code

SENIOR21 or STUDENT21

Terms & Conditions

We operate as a members’ festival and membership is included in the ticket price. Unless otherwise stated, all ticket holders must be 18 years or older to attend festival events and screenings.

For full details of our ticketing terms and conditions see: www.dif.ie/terms-and-conditions

A booking fee of up to €2 per transaction applies to all pass and bundle bookings.

Screening Bundles and Online Festival Passes are redeemable against flm screenings only

*Online Screening Bundles exclude Gala Screenings

If you have any additional queries about your booking, visit www.dif.ie for answers to Frequently Asked Questions or contact us at boxofce@dif.ie

Social Media

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DublinFilmFestival All Festival News: #VMDIFF21

Chairperson’s Welcome

The Virgin Media Dublin International Film Festival’s goal is to give you a unique, exciting and stimulating festival experience. Given the times that we are in, we have never needed that more. While this year will be diferent, let us focus not on what we’re missing, but on the massive opportunities the new format allows. In this programme, you will fnd our most diverse range of cinema events to date. We will be giving you unprecedented access to flmmaker conversations, workshops and experiences designed to remind us all why we love cinema.

2021 marks the third year of our title sponsorship with Virgin Media. This partnership has gone from strength to strength, allowing us to expand the scope and depth of the festival and enabling a broader audience to “Discover Diferent.”

We are endlessly grateful for the support from our long-term funding partners, the Arts Council and Screen Ireland, especially in this exceptionally challenging time.

On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank the extraordinarily creative, resilient, resourceful and dynamic Festival team. As always, the most important thanks goes to you, the audience. These past months have been a difcult time for cinema-lovers. We hope this Festival will allow us all to get lost in the power of flm once more.

Managing Director’s Note

There are many people to thank this year, but I would like to begin by thanking the festival team who have adapted quickly to the challenges the past 12 months have brought. Despite being situated in various countries, they have pulled together, creating an exciting platform to showcase our wonderful flms and events.

I would like to thank our principal partner, the Arts Council, who have ofered constant support during these difcult times, and our title sponsor for standing alongside us during this ever-changing period. The last year has shown us how vital the arts are to our society. Whoever we are and whatever background we come from, the need to see our stories and lives refected on our screens has never been greater. I believe the power of flm can provide us with the cathartic communal experience that we all crave, but which has recently seemed so out of reach.

We are all missing a great deal of life’s habitual pleasures, our cinemas, theatres, concerts and galleries. We therefore ask you, our audience, to reach out to your friends and family across the country and share the joy of flm with them. We believe the Virgin Media Dublin International Film Festival 2021 brings us a programme of flms in which we can all feel at home and everyone can be heard. Enjoy.

Introductions

Sponsor’s Introduction

We are very excited to return for our third year of partnership with the Virgin Media Dublin International Film Festival. 2021’s online format provides a great opportunity to extend reach across the breadth of Ireland to new audiences and flm lovers alike.

This year’s line-up includes an exciting variety of world cinema and the very best of Irish Film. The programme emphasizes a wide range of voices, from Black women in flm to the LGBTQ+ community, creating one of the most diverse festivals to date. This acts as a reminder of the power of flm in showcasing diferent stories that inspire, entertain and empower.

At Virgin Media we are invested in providing access to great entertainment – whether it’s discovering a new release or nurturing emerging talent via the Virgin Media Discovers Short Film Competition in association with Screen Ireland. We know that Irish people love flm, and through this partnership we want to help Irish audiences discover the best of cinema while connecting even more people to Ireland’s premier flm festival.

We are thrilled to be announcing the two winners selected from a panel of industry judges for Virgin Media Discovers, a short flm competition launched by Virgin Media in June 2019.

The winning entries will be celebrated by the Festival and Virgin Media by having their world premiere of their shorts later this year.

Keep an eye on www.virginmedia.ie/ discovers for more details.

Niamh O’Driscoll

Head of Brand & Marketing – Virgin Media

Festival Director’s Introduction

Welcome to the 2021 Virgin Media Dublin International Film Festival.

In 2020, we were the last international flm festival to dodge the global shutdown; this year it seems we too must bend to the universe and go online. Although initially extremely challenging for small organisations like ours, a wonderful sense of solidarity has developed across the international flm community. Our 2021 line-up has benefted from the relationships and mutual respect between flmmakers and flm organisations, and ultimately our audiences will also beneft from these partnerships and collaborations from around the world. I would like to start by acknowledging all the flmmakers who have given so generously with their flms and to thank them for their trust.

This year we will present our programme 100% online, and as an organisation we hope our 2021 event will refect the core elements of the traditional festival with some exciting new initiatives. We have embraced the advances in technology to engage more efectively with audiences and to present our 2021 programme way beyond our usual venues, from across the whole of Ireland all the way to Los Angeles and beyond. It’s a cracking programme with auteurs and discoveries, music documentaries and archive celebrations, shorts flms and lots of special guests.

We will open with the heartbreaking Supernova which features two of our favorite festival guests, Stanley Tucci and Colin Firth, recipient of this year’s Volta Award. As ever we have a fantastic line-up of world cinema with

highlights such as Gagarine, Minari, Limbo and the wonderfully named Preparations to be Together for an Unknown Period of Time. Our 2021 documentary competition is extremely strong with award-winning flms such as The Reason I Jump, Gunda and Acasa My Home Inspired by a phrase by Mark O’Connell, our new strand “Future Shock” will examine our anxious present tense and includes flms such Michel Franco’s New Order and David Burke’s Father of the Cyborgs.

Our Irish selection includes our Closing Film, Rachel Carey’s deliciously dark comedy Deadly Cuts; Cathal Nally’s gangster comedy Be Good or Be Gone; Ivan Kavanagh’s much anticipated Son; and as a really special treat for this year, Tadgh O’Sullivan’s wonderous To the Moon. We have expanded our short programmes, and as ever we will celebrate emerging Irish flm talent with our Discovery project. This year marks the second year of our First Frame Film Student Initiative, and we are delighted to welcome famed US producer Dede Gardener to speak to the young flmmakers. Additionally, we are partnering with TCD’s flm department to present a series of flm talks around our Retrospective season celebrating Black Women directors, and our festival lineup will be reviewed by the Young Film Critics Initiative.

Another exciting new project is Playback x VMDIFF: Irish Hip Hop + R&B, a specially curated season of hip hop music videos selected by Mike Donnelly and Erica Cody. Playback x VMDIFF will launch in Dublin and then travel to eight cities around the world. I would like to thank the Department of Foreign Afairs for their support of this initiative.

“I’m not making any plans. I’m just going to let the universe surprise me.”

– Hot Tub Time Machine

Finally – a HUGE heartfelt thanks to all our partner flmmakers, distributors and sales agents; to title sponsor Virgin Media and Principal Funder Arts Council; to our friends in Screen Ireland; to all our embassy partners and supporters; and of course to our Board of Directors, with a special thanks to both Suzanne Noble and Paula Woods. It’s been a difcult year, but like I said at the start, a new spirit of collaboration has emerged. In particular I would like to thank my network of flm programmer friends – not just in Ireland but in Glasgow, Sundance, Cannes and way beyond – who have helped with advice and support. Closer to home we have a lovely team this year, and I would like to pay special tribute to our MD Helen Hutton, who has kept the lights on and the team focused all year long.

There have been several iterations of the festival this year – initially we planned a hybrid presentation that included driveins alongside cinema screenings; what we present in this catalogue is the blueprint. For the fnal step, we must hand it over to you to make it your own.

On behalf of the festival team, we send our best wishes to all our audiences and hope that you enjoy the show.

Rick Blaine: I never make plans that far ahead.

Films will have a premiere start time and most will be available for 72 hours from purchase. This means you can follow the Festival schedule, or watch the flm whenever suits you!

With flmmaker intros and Q&As with talent, enjoy the whole festival experience from your sofa.

The Festival at Your Fingertips

All you need to know to enjoy the Festival from the comfort of your home!

How to Buy Your Ticket

01 / Browse the Festival Programme watch.eventive.org/vmdif and make your selection

02 / Click “Pre-order” or “Unlock” button 03 / Create an Eventive login, or sign in to your existing account

How to Buy Your Pass

01 / Choose your pass on our website watch.dif.ie/passes/buy

02 / Create an Eventive login, or sign in to your existing account

03 / Enter your payment information and click the “Buy” button

04 / Enter your payment information and click the “Pre-order now” button

04 / Click the My Virtual Passes icon. Add your name or a description to your pass and you’re ready to go!

05 /

Check out what you have already ordered by selecting the profle icon in the top right corner of Virgin Media DIFF’s Programme

05 /

With your festival pass, you can “Pre-order” tickets in advance, or “Unlock” screenings currently available for viewing – providing they haven’t sold out! Browse our Programme to make your selections

The Festival at Your Fingertips

Enjoy the Festival from your home

Just like in a real cinema, each online flm screening has a limited number of ‘virtual seats’. If you want to make sure you see a flm, the safest option is to pre-order!

The online flm screenings are scheduled at diferent times over the 12 days of the Festival. Each online flm is available to unlock for 72 hours after it premieres.

Once you’ve hit play you’ll have 30 hours to fnish watching it, so don’t worry if you get interrupted by the pizza delivery!

If are you unsure about how much time you have left to watch a flm, you can fnd this info on the online flm listing.

Sit back with a snack and enjoy your flm.

The Festival from your TV

If you have Roku or Apple TV (generation 4 or above), download the “Eventive TV” app from the App Store, accessible via your TV. When you open the app for the frst time you’ll see an activation code. Go to watch.eventive.org/tv on your laptop or phone and use the code to connect your account. You’ll still need to unlock content through your laptop or phone, but – when you’re ready to watch it – you’ll fnd all your unlocked content on the app.

If you have a smart TV enabled with AirPlay or Chromecast, set your computer, mobile device or browser to “AirPlay” or “cast” to the TV device.

Unlock the program on the Online Festival, then set your player window to full-screen using the icon at the lower right.

You can also directly connect a laptop or computer using an HDMI cable.

If you experience any issue with the screening: Test your Device Compatibility or Visit our FAQs page

Please Note: Additional events may have been added after this catalogue went to print. Please check our website www.dif.ie for the most current schedule. All flms will be available to view in ROI/NI for 72 hours from the start date and time below (unless otherwise stated).

Sponsors & Supporters

Title Sponsor

Principal Funder

Gold Sponsor

Sponsors & Supporters

Sponsors & Supporters

Film Programme — 3–14 Ma

mme arch

Wednesday 3 March

Supernova Virgin Media Opening Gala —

Premiere Time: Wed 03 Mar / 19:00 / 1hr 30m

(Live broadcast time restrictions)

Director: Harry Macqueen / 2020

Country: United Kingdom

Writer: Harry Macqueen

Cast: Colin Firth, Stanley Tucci

Colin Firth and Stanley Tucci dazzle as a loving gay couple in this touching and beautifully judged drama, now emerging as an awards-season favourite. Sam and Tusker have been together for two decades and are eager to fulfl a long-held dream of travelling across England in their camper van to revisit family, friends and memories of their past. There is a reason they have fnally found this time – their careers as a musician and novelist have been put on hold as Tusker has been diagnosed with early-onset dementia.

Painfully aware that this might be their last holiday while Tusker is still well, they embark on their journey. Directing from his own script, actor-turned-flmmaker Harry Macqueen gently focuses the story around the couple’s relationship as he similarly did in his acclaimed debut, Hinterland. He builds on that promise here, delivering an intimate drama that’s all the more moving for its lack of sentimentality. Firth and Tucci are superb, giving us heartfelt performances in a flm about the power of love.

Thursday 4 March

Underplayed

Premiere Time: Thur 04 Mar / 16:00 / 1hr 27m

Director: Stacey Lee / 2020

Country: Canada

Writers: Georgia Dodson, Neil Blewett, Stacey Lee

Cast: Alison Wonderland, Nervo, Nightwave, Rezz, Sherelle, TokiMonsta, Tygapaw

Nomination: Documentary Competition

Electronic music has long been connected to the ideals of diversity, community and inclusivity. Why then, as recently as 2019, were only seven of Billboard’s Top 100 DJs women? Shot over the course of one summer on the festival circuit, Stacey Lee’s documentary challenges the traditions and conventions that lead to gender disparity. It does so through the exciting music and determined voices of the female pioneers and artists who are championing real change.

Be Good or Be Gone

Premiere Time: Thur 04 Mar / 19:00 / 1hr 33m

Director: Cathal Nally / 2019

Country: Ireland

Writers: Cathal Nally, Les Martin

Cast: Alan Sherlock, Brid McCarthy, Conor Lambert, Declan Mills

Set over the course of four days in modernday Dublin, this Irish dramedy revolves around two petty-criminal cousins released from Mountjoy Prison. Weed is keen to pursue fashion, if only he can break his substance addiction. Ste wants to build a better life for himself, his girlfriend and their daughter. But that’s before they get drawn into a robbery that goes spectacularly wrong in Cathal Nally’s energetic feature debut.

First Frame

First Frame Film Student Day

Thur 4th Mar / 10:00 – 16:00 / Pre-Recorded Event

In association with Warner Media

Each year, Virgin Media Dublin International Film Festival targets the 17 third-level institutions across Ireland that ofer flmrelated courses in order to encourage students to attend our programme’s screenings and events and to foster flm appreciation. Created in 2020, First Frame is an expanded student flm initiative and competition.

First Frame starts with a morning of talks, followed by afternoon screening sessions. This year the Academy Award winning flm producer Dede Gardner (12 Years a Slave) – whose recent project, Minari, will be available to watch later in the festival – will take a look at her career in a pre-recorded interview. This will be followed by two programmes of student short flms, carefully curated from a selection submitted by thirdlevel institutions across the country.

The festival would like to acknowledge the support of Warner Media and are thrilled to welcome producer Dede Gardner at our First Frame event.

Ammonite

Premiere Time: Thur 04 Mar / 19:00 / 1hr 57m

Director: Francis Lee / 2020

Country: United Kingdom

Writer: Francis Lee

Cast: Kate Winslet, Saoirse Ronan

Writer and director Francis Lee follows the acclaimed In God’s Country with a drama loosely inspired by the life of top palaeontologist Mary Anning. On the south coast of England in the 1840s, Mary (Winslet) supports herself by selling fossils to tourists, introducing her to Roderick and his young wife Charlotte (Ronan), who is sufering a personal trauma. Neither woman could imagine it, but they are about to embark on a remarkable and passionate love afair that will change both their lives.

THE COMPLEX CLEAR

Friday 5 March

Jumbo

Premiere Time: Fri 05 Mar / 13:00 / 1hr 34m

Director: Zoé Wittock / 2019

Country: France

Writer: Zoé Wittock

Cast: Emmanuelle Bercot, Noémie Merlant

Supported by: Embassy of Belgium in Ireland & French Embassy in Dublin

A shy young woman falls in love with an amusement park ride in writer/director Zoé Wittock’s unique and erotic movie debut, a hit on the festival circuit. After all, Jumbo is tall and handsome, standing as it does 25 feet over the local funfair. Although her mother is aghast at her objectophilia, for Jeanne the feeling is real, in a movie that examines how human beings have distanced themselves from real things.

Radiograph Of A Family

Premiere Time: Fri 05 Mar / 16:00 / 1hr 20m

Director: Firouzeh Khosrovani / 2020

Country: Iran, Norway, Switzerland

Writer: Firouzeh Khosrovani

“Mother married my father’s photograph,” says director Firouzeh Khosrovani in the opening line of her deeply personal flm. Her father, it emerges, was away during his own wedding and encouraged the family to celebrate without him. It wasn’t the only disconnect – her mother would go on to become hugely involved in the Iranian Revolution, signing up for the military and wearing strict revolutionary clothing. Khosrovani’s documentary recalls an extraordinary time of change in Iran’s history.

To The Moon

Premiere Time: Fri 05 Mar / 19:00 / 1hr 16m

Director: Tadhg O’Sullivan / 2020

Country: Ireland

Limbo

Premiere Time: Fri 05 Mar / 19:00 / 1hr 43m

Director: Ben Sharrock / 2020

Country: United Kingdom

Writer: Ben Sharrock

Cast: Amir El-Masry, Kenneth Collard, Kwabena Ansah, Ola Orebiyi

Nomination: ICCL Human Rights Film Award

Tadhg O’Sullivan’s joyful documentary is a cinematic love letter to the moon, celebrating the night sky over the course of a lunar month. There’s a mesmerizing quality to the flm, which along with extraordinary footage from around the globe, looks at the moon’s place in literature, culture and storytelling. Aided and abetted by a remarkable score, To The Moon is contemplative, poetic and sincere.

Four asylum seekers await word of their futures while staying on a distant Scottish island in Ben Sharrock’s award-winning comedy/drama. While waiting to hear their fate, they endeavour to embrace the very diferent people, climate and culture found in their new home. In telling their story, Sharrock mines elements of deadpan humour, satire and humanity as the refugees aim for a sense of identity and camaraderie in this strange new place.

We know that sometimes, no matter which movie, the biggest release in cinema is You.

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Saturday 6 March

Gunda

Premiere Time: Sat 06 Mar / 13:00 / 1hr 33m

Director: Victor Kossakovsky / 2020

Country: United States, Norway

Supported by: Royal Norwegian Embassy in Dublin

A Worm in the Heart

Premiere Time: Sat 06 Mar / 16:00 / 1hr 28m

Director: Paul Rice / 2020

Country: United States

Cast: Igor Kochetkov, Liam Jackson Montgomery, Paul Rice, Peter Tatchell, Polina Andrianova

Nominations: Documentary Competition, ICCL Human Rights Film Award

A real-life Babe is the compelling star of Gunda, Viktor Kossakovsky’s documentary that gives us an intimate account of the life of a pig. A fock of chickens and a herd of cows provide strong support in this black and white flm that leans into the animal’s own sounds instead of human dialogue. Executive-produced by actor Joaquin Phoenix, The New York Times described it as “sublimely beautiful and profoundly moving.”

Six cities spanning the legendary TransSiberian Railway form the backbone of this documentary about the LGBTQ+ experience. Irish director Paul Rice and producer Liam Jackson Montgomery travel from city to city in order to give voice to those who have experienced what it means to be queer in Russia. Told through the accounts of various people within the community, the emerging testament is shocking, poignant and deeply personal.

Horror, Comedy

Boys from County Hell

Premiere Time: Sat 06 Mar / 19:00 / 1hr 30m

Director: Chris Baugh / 2020

Country: Ireland

Writers: Brendan Mullin, Chris Baugh

Cast: Fra Fee, Jack Rowan, Louisa Harland, Nigel O’Neill

Minari

Premiere Time: Sat 06 Mar / 19:00 / 1hr 55m

Director: Lee Isaac Chung / 2020

Country: United States

Writer: Lee Isaac Chung

Cast: Alan Kim, Noel Kate Cho, Steven Yeun, Will Patton, Yeri Han, Yuh-Jung Youn

The allegedly haunted town of Six Mile Hill, connected to Bram Stoker, is the setting for a boisterous Irish comedy/horror from Chris Baugh (Bad Day for the Cut). There, a group of friends like little more than daytime pints and terrifying tourists with vampire tales. But when workmen disturb an ancient plot, the stage is set for a bloody gore-fest in Baugh’s wickedly funny flm, propelled by a spirited cast.

A Korean family makes their home on a farm in 1980s Arkansas in writer/director Lee Isaac Chung’s spirited drama. Based around Chung’s own upbringing, it tells of the family’s eforts to make a life for themselves on modest land in the Ozarks as they navigate the unfamiliar territories of both farming and the immigrant experience. Veteran actor Yuh-Jung Youn shines as the movie’s fabulously festy grandmother.

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Sunday 7 March

Lapsis

Premiere Time: Sun 07 Mar / 13:00 / 1hr 44m

Director: Noah Hutton / 2020

Country: United States

Cast: Dean Imperial, Madeline Wise

A clever and edgy takedown of corporate greed and the gig economy, Lapsis nudges towards science fction in its storytelling. Motivated by a need to help his ill brother, Ray is ‘hired’ by a company that requires trekking into the forest to lay futuristic cables. The job substitutes a base salary and perks for plenty of empowering pep talk, driving Ray to question what he has signed up for in this smart and witty drama about social justice.

Kubrick By Kubrick

Premiere Time: Sun 07 Mar / 16:00 / 1hr 12m

Director: Gregory Monro / 2020

Country: France

Nomination: Documentary Competition

Supported by: French Embassy in Dublin

Featuring unearthed interview recordings from the titan of cinema himself, Kubrick by Kubrick reveals the motivations of one of cinema’s most enigmatic forces through his own words. Structured around a series of interviews with French flm critic Michel Ciment spanning two decades, the flm gives an extraordinary and revealing insight into the mindset of a man who almost never gave interviews. The recordings include views on his Irish-set masterpiece, Barry Lyndon.

Surprise Film

Gala —

Premiere Time: Sun 07 Mar / 18:00 (Live broadcast time restrictions)

A tradition since the early days of the festival. No one knows what the flm is until the very last minute.

2021 ?????

2020 How to Build a Girl

2019 Dragged Across Concrete

2018 Unsane

2017 Get Out

2016 Whiskey, Tango, Foxtrot

2015 Good Kill

2014 Muppets Most Wanted

2013 Welcome to the Punch

2012 This Must Be the Place

2011 Cedar Rapids

2010 Greenberg

2009 Hamlet 2

2008 The Escapist

2007 300

2006 The Jacket

2005 The Squid & The Whale

2004 Starsky & Hutch

2003 Bufalo Soldiers

My Little Sister

Premiere Time: Sun 07 Mar / 16:00 / 1hr 39m

Directors: Stéphanie Chuat, Véronique Reymond / 2020

Country: Switzerland

Writers: Jens Albinus, Lars Eidinger, Marthe Keller, Nina Hoss

Supported by: Embassy of Switzerland in Ireland

Supported by: Goethe-Institut

German acting icon Nina Hoss gives a characteristic frst-rate performance in a drama selected to compete for Berlin’s Golden Bear. She is Lisa, a playwright with writer’s block who yearns for the love and friendship of her twin brother Sven, an actor living abroad. When he’s diagnosed with an aggressive form of leukemia, she vows to do anything she can to get him back on stage – regardless of the personal and emotional costs.

Beasts Clawing at Straws

Premiere Time: Sun 07 Mar / 19:00 / 1hr 48m

Director: Yong-hoon Kim / 2019

Country: South Korea

Writer: Yong-hoon Kim

Cast: Do-yeon Jeon, Ga-ram Jung, Hyun-been Shin

A Louis Vuitton bag full of money causes an outrageous chain of events in Korean flmmaker Kim Yong-Hoon’s much-admired debut. The bag’s discovery leads to a succession of lowlifes, double-crossers, criminals and dealers who come undone through greed as they try to outsmart each other for the money. A jury award winner at Rotterdam International Film Festival, this acerbic crime thriller is a wickedly entertaining debut.

Playback

Gala —

Premiere Time: Sun 07 Mar / 19:00 / 1hr 20m

Curated by: Michael Donnelly & Erica Cody, 2020 Country: Ireland

A dynamic programme of the best contemporary Irish Hip Hop + R&B music videos in Ireland today. Curated for the 2021 Festival by producer Michael Donnelly V and musician Erica Cody, Playback presents 12 music videos alongside specially-recorded interviews with the featured flm directors and music artists. This project showcases the vibrant, energetic creativity of the talents involved and gives them a platform to discuss their process, style and collaborations.

The flm will launch during the festival in March and then travel across the world, linking in with international flm festivals and arts institutions from Ireland to Mumbai to New York to Melbourne to Los Angeles.

Monday 8 March

Maman(s)

Premiere Time: Mon 08 Mar / 13:00 / 21m

Director: Maïmouna Doucouré / 2015

Country: France

Cast: Sokhna Diallo, Maïmouna Gueye, Mareme N’Diaye, Azize Diabaté, Maissa Danon

Supported by: The French Embassy in Dublin

Daughters of the Dust

Premiere Time: Mon 08 Mar / 13:00 / 1hr 52m

Director: Julie Dash / 1991

Country: United States

Writer: Julie Dash

Cast: Cora Lee Day, Barbara O, Alva Rogers

Aida, an eight-year-old girl, lives in an apartment in Paris with her mother Mariam and must adjust to the arrival of her father’s second wife.

Drama

Cited by Beyoncé as an inspiration for her visual album Lemonade, Julie Dash’s 1991 flm is a cutting-edge and groundbreaking piece of work. Set on an island of South Carolina at the turn of the 21st century, it focuses on a family from the Gullah community who live in the tradition of their West-African ancestors. But younger generations yearn to move to the mainland in a tale that is an ode to a way of life.

Daughters of the Dust will be preceded by short flm Maman(s).

Acasa, My Home

Premiere Time: Mon 08 Mar / 16:00 / 1hr 25m

Director: Radu Ciorniciuc / 2020

Country: Romania, Germany, Finland

Writers: Lina Vdovîi, Radu Ciorniciuc Nomination: Documentary Competition, ICCL Human Rights Film Award

Fidelity

Premiere Time: Mon 08 Mar / 16:00 / 1hr 22m

Director: Nigina Sayfullaeva / 2019

Country: Russia

Writers: Lyubov Mulmenko, Nigina Sayfullaeva

Cast: Aleksandr Pal, Aleksey Agranovich, Anna Kotova, Evgeniya Gr, Marina Vasileva, Pavel Vorozhtsov

In Romania’s Bucharest Delta, a large rural family is forced to move to the city after two decades of living peacefully of the land. Investigative journalist Radu Ciorniciuc’s detailed and empathetic documentary explores the societal demands of an urban lifestyle and the struggle of a family to maintain freedom in a modern world. The flm received high praise at Sundance, winning the Special Jury Award for Cinematography in World Cinema Documentary.

Nigina Sayfullaeva’s provocative feature smashes its way through long-held sexual taboos in a story told through the eyes of its female protagonist. Lena suspects that her actor husband, with whom she shares a passionless marriage, is having an afair – and decides that if he’s cheating, she will too. She begins to seek out other men to have sex with, in a manner that threatens to spiral dangerously out of control.

After Love

Premiere Time: Mon 08 Mar / 19:00 / 1hr 29m

Director: Aleem Khan / 2020

Country: United Kingdom

Writer: Aleem Khan

Cast: Joanna Scanlan, Nasser Memarzia,

Nathalie Richard, Talid Ariss

I Never Cry

Premiere Time: Mon 08 Mar / 19:00 / 1hr 40m

Director: Piotr Domalewski / 2020

Country: Poland, Ireland

Writer: Piotr Domalewski

Cast: Arkadiusz Jakubik, Cosmina Stratan, David Pearse

Supported by: Embassy of the Republic of Poland

An impressive feature debut from writer/ director Aleem Khan, After Love is a drama about long-held secrets and lies set in the British port town of Dover. A woman (Joanna Scanlan) discovers a shocking secret about her husband’s life following his death that threatens to turn her world upside down. Scanlan has received high acclaim for her role, described by Screen International as “a phenomenal performance.”

The Polish/Irish emigrant experience is explored to moving efect in this emotional account of the economic migrant experience from writer/director Piotr Domalewski (Silent Night). After teenager Ola hears of the sudden death of her father, a Polish man working as a builder in Ireland, she must travel to repatriate his body. But their relationship, we discover, was complicated, and in death Ola may fnally get to know more about her father’s life.

Tuesday 9 March

Gagarine

Premiere Time: Tues 09 Mar / 13:00 / 1hr 41m

Directors: Fanny Liatard, Jérémy Trouilh / 2020

Country: France

Writers: Benjamin Charbit, Fanny Liatard, Jérémy Trouilh

Cast: Alséni Bathily, Finnegan Oldfeld, Lyna Khoudri

Supported by: French Embassy in Dublin

Aalto

Premiere Time: Tues 09 Mar / 16:00 / 1hr 38m

Director: Virpi Suutari / 2020

Country: Finland

Writer: Virpi Suutari

Nomination: Documentary Competition

Teenager Yuri is named for Yuri Gagarin, the frst man in space, and so is the housing project where he lives. Even as he dreams of leaving home to become an astronaut himself, he is determined to save the project from planned demolition. Alséni Bathily has received strong reviews for his lead role in this Cannes breakout hit from Fanny Liatard and Jérémy Trouilh.

One of the world’s most beloved architects is brought to life in Aalto, Virpi Suutari’s documentary about Finnish architect Alvar Aalto. As well as his works, the flm celebrates Aalto’s personal and professional relationship with his frst wife Aino, also an architect, using stunning black and white photography and iconic images. Wed in the 1920s, the forward-thinking couple went on to co-design several modern buildings around the world.

There Is No Evil

Premiere Time: Tues 09 Mar / 19:00 / 2hr 30m

Director: Mohammad Rasoulof / 2020

Country: Iran, Germany, Czech Republic

Cast: Bahram Mohammad Seddighimehr, Darya

Baran Rasoulof, Hasan Alireza Zareparast

Father

Premiere Time: Tues 09 Mar / 19:00 / 2hr

Director: Srdan Golubović / 2020

Country: Serbia, France, Germany, Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Writers: Ognjen Sviličić, Srdan Golubović

Cast: Boris Isaković, Goran Bogdan, Milica

Janevski, Muharem Hamzić, Nada Šargin

Nomination: ICCL Human Rights Film Award

Multi-award winning flmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof’s latest feature revolves around four diferent cases involving the death penalty in Iran. It focuses on the soldiers tasked with carrying out executions demanded by the state, and the profound impact this has on their life and their family’s lives. Winner of Berlin’s Golden Bear award for Best Film, it’s a deeply moral and complex flm that asks: “What would you do?”

A Serbian man goes on a journey in the hope of regaining custody of his children in Srdan Golubovic’s latest drama. Following shocking events early in the flm, the children of Nikola (Fargo’s Goran Bogdan) are taken away by social services and he’s not allowed to see them. After exhausting other avenues, Nikola goes on an epic journey by foot, motivated by love and the need to fght for his children.

Alone Once

Premiere Time: Tues 09 Mar / 19:00 / 4m

Director: Polly Creed / 2020

Country: United Kingdom

Cast: Francesca Isherwood

Preparations to Be Together for an Unknown Period of Time

Premiere Time: Tues 09 Mar / 19:00 / 1hr 34m

Director: Lili Horvát / 2020

Country: Hungary

Writer: Lili Horvát

Cast: Benett Vilmányi, Natasa Stork, Viktor Bodó

Supported by: Embassy of Hungary in Dublin

A woman navigates a single day from morning to evening while in lockdown. The flm was shot during the frst lockdown of Covid-19 on a smartphone camera.

Hungary’s entry for Best International Feature Film at this year’s Oscars, Lily Horvat’s striking and unique story has received wide critical acclaim, as has Natasa Stork’s beguiling lead performance. The noirish melodrama centres on a surgeon who encounters her soulmate at a medical conference. But when she confronts him weeks later after being stood up, he’s adamant that he has never met her.

Preparations to Be Together for an Unknown Period of Time will be preceded by short flm Alone Once.

Wednesday 10 March

Cowboys

Premiere Time: Wed 10 Mar / 13:00 / 1hr 23m

Director: Anna Kerrigan / 2020

Country: United States

Cast: Jillian Bell, Sasha Knight, Steve Zhan

Pino

Premiere Time: Wed 10 Mar / 16:00 / 1hr

Director: Walter Fasano / 2020

Country: Italy

Supported by: Italian Cultural Institute

Writer/director Anna Kerrigan’s tender and compassionate flm tells the story of a loving father, Troy, and his young trans son. They disappear into the wild together after Troy discovers the boy’s mother objects his identity. The flm builds into a modern western with a personal family story at its core, set against the majestic backdrop of the Montana wilderness.

Pino Pascali had given great art to the world – and had much more to give – when he tragically died in a motorcycle accident in 1968. The beloved artist was just 32 years old. Walter Fasano’s charming documentary tells how, ffty years later, Pascali’s work

Cinque Bachi da Setola e un Bozzolo (Five Bristle Worms and a Cocoon) is returned to his homeland. The flm features stunning photography from Pascali himself.

Shorta

Premiere Time: Wed 10 Mar / 19:00 / 1hr 48m

Director: Anders Ølholm, Frederik Louis Hviid / 2020

Country: Denmark

Writers: Anders Ølholm, Frederik Louis Hviid

Cast: Jacob Lohmann, Simon Sears, Tarek Zayat

Anders Olholm and Frederik Louis Hviid’s timely and immersive police-action thriller comes to Dublin following strong reviews at Venice Film Festival. It follows two police ofcers whose day becomes anything but routine as they patrol a disadvantaged area. When news breaks that a teenager has died in police custody, angry locals demand answers as the pressure-cooker atmosphere builds. What follows is a tense real-time thriller as the men hastily try to escape – preferably with their arrestee.

The Reason I Jump

Premiere Time: Wed 10 Mar / 19:00 / 1hr 22m

Director: Jerry Rothwell / 2020

Country: United Kingdom, United States

Nomination: Documentary Competition, ICCL Human Rights Film Award

Naoki Higashida’s deeply personal account of living with the silence of autism from a non-verbal person’s perspective was a publishing sensation. Now Higashida and four other young people with autism spectrum disorder share their accounts of living with the condition in Jerry Rothwell’s critically acclaimed documentary. The flm serves as a vital supplement to the book and won both an audience award and Special Jury Prize at Sundance.

Thursday 11 March

Air Conditioner

Premiere Time: Thur 11 Mar / 13:00 / 1hr 12m

Director: Fradique / 2020

Country: Angola

Writers: Ery Claver, Fradique

Cast: David Caracol, Filomena Manuel, José Kiteculo

The Dissident

Premiere Time: Thur 11 Mar / 16:00 / 1hr 59m

Director: Bryan Fogel / 2020

Country: United States

Writers: Bryan Fogel, Mark Monroe

Nominations: Documentary Competition, ICCL Human Rights Film Award

The Angolan capital city of Luanda comes bustling to life in this of-beat and charming movie from native flmmaker Fradique. When air-conditioning units across the city all fall simultaneously, a security guard and housemaid are tasked with solving the problem for their boss, but success will not come easily. An exceptional soundtrack from much-loved Angolan musician Aline Frazao adds an extra dose of vibrancy.

American flmmaker and activist Bryan Fogel, whose Icarus won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature, follows the shocking case of Jamal Khashoggi in his latest feature. In 2018, the US-based journalist and prolifc critic of Saudi Arabian governance entered the country’s embassy in Istanbul, where he was murdered. Featuring unprecedented access to those closest to him, Fogel’s investigative documentary untangles the extraordinary circumstances of his death and his life’s work.

Apples

Premiere Time: Thur 11 Mar / 19:00 / 1hr 30m

Director: Christos Nikou / 2020

Country: Greece, Poland, Slovenia

Writers: Christos Nikou, Stavros Raptis

Cast: Anna Kalaitzidou, Argiris Bakirtzis, Aris Servetalis, Sofa Georgovasili

My New York Year

Premiere Time: Thur 11 Mar / 19:00 / 1hr 41m

Director: Philippe Falardeau / 2020

Country: Canada, Ireland

Writer: Philippe Falardeau

Cast: Margaret Qualley, Sigourney Weaver

Selected as Greece’s entry for Best

International Feature Film at the Oscars, the darkly comedic Apples has been generating enormous buzz on the festival circuit. When the city of Athens is struck by a mysterious pandemic that causes amnesia, one afected man sets out to create a new identity for himself through a state-sponsored programme. Apples is the feature debut of Christos Nikou, who worked as assistant director on Yorgos Lanthimos’s Dogtooth

A big-name cast including the great Sigourney Weaver leads this Irish/Canadian co-production adapted from Joanna Rakof’s memoir, My Salinger Year. It centres on a young woman with dreams of being a writer who is hired as an assistant to J.D. Salinger’s old-school literary agent. A glamorous world of martini lunches is far removed from her rundown Brooklyn apartment. But as Joanna is tasked with replying to fan mail in the iconic author’s voice, she begins to fnd her own.

Friday 12 March

Gipsy Queen

Premiere Time: Fri 12 Mar / 13:00 / 1hr 52m

Director: Hüseyin Tabak / 2019

Country: Germany, Austria

Writer: Hüseyin Tabak

Cast: Alina Serban, Irina Kurbanova,

Tobias Moretti

Dreams On Fire

Premiere Time: Fri 12 Mar / 16:00 / 2hr 3m

Director: Philippe McKie / 2021

Country: Canada, Japan

Cast: Akaji Maro, Bambi Naka, Masahiro Takashima

Roma actor Alina Serban proves a powerful onscreen force in this endearing boxing drama from Huseyin Tabak (Your Beauty is Worth Nothing). She plays Ali, a Roma single mother determined to protect her children and enable them to enjoy a better life in their new home. Disowned by her family and disappointed with her life, Ali faces a tough path – but she has the heart of a lion and a better future in her sights.

One of Japan’s most celebrated dancers, Bambi Naka, takes on her frst lead role in Philippe McKie’s feature. Yume is an aspiring dancer who travels to Tokyo with big dreams, which are swiftly defated by a harsh reality. Undaunted, she takes a job as a hostess in the red-light district while embracing the city’s underground dance community, providing a vibrant and colourful look into Japanese dance culture.

Is There Anybody Out There?

Premiere Time: Fri 12 Mar / 16:00 / 1hr 12m

Year: 2021

Country: Ireland

Directors: Jamie Lane, Émilie Dumesny, Hugh Whelan, Ricardo Agostini, Barry Murphy, Jinjin

Sang, Kaiyin Lin, Victoria Keane, Riley McKeon, Mariana Rios Sanchez, Emma Nickle, Lizzy Vallely, Juliette McBain, Benita Dederichs, Robert Browne, Franciscoos Ramírez-Burgos, Andrew Boner-Scally, Grainne Quigley, Brian Murray, Marieke Oggel, Lauren O’Hare, Markéta Ní Eithir, Molly Boyne, Lorraine James, Barry Deegan, Aisling Ellis, Ottoline MacIlwaine, Melanie O’Donnell, Hector

Wright, Arianna Owens, Riona Sakurada, Peter Kenny, Jiayi Lin, James Doran, Megan Whitham, Mark McDonnell, Jordanne Jones, Bonnie Gill, Martha Robinson, Salvija Dabuleviciute, Ellen

Jacob, Mairead Marron, Aoife Breathnach, Molly Donnery, Chloe Fetherston, Ted Goodson Treacy, Curtis Winkelmann, Anika Kidd, Olivia Masetti Nolan, John Dugan, Niamh Ni Mhaoldomhnaigh, Isabel Kveder, Mia Sherry, Sadha Byrne Hanna, Matthew Harris, Anna Conway, Justin MacGregor

When Ireland went into lockdown due to COVID-19, the students of Trinity College Dublin started documenting what was happening to themselves, their friends, their families, and their world. This feature length documentary contains material created by 60 flmmakers from 14 countries to tell the story of young people seeing their world change forever.

Father of the Cyborgs

Premiere Time: Fri 12 Mar / 19:00 / 1hr 23m

(Geoblocked ROI only)

Director: David Burke / 2020

Country: Ireland

Cast: Dr Phil Kennedy

Dinner in America

Premiere Time: Fri 12 Mar / 19:00 / 1hr 46m

Director: Adam Carter Rehmeier / 2020

Country: United States

Writer: Adam Carter Rehmeier

Cast: Emily Skeggs, Grifn Gluck, Kyle Gallner, Lea Thompson, Mary Lynn Rajskub, Pat Healy

Document

Phil Kennedy made history and headlines when he connected the brain of a paralysed man to a computer in the 1990s. He became known as The Father of the Cyborgs – but the neurologist’s quest for knowledge didn’t end there. In 2014, he stunned his peers and his family when he agreed to have his own brain implanted to continue his research. This Irish production follows his remarkable and unprecedented journey.

A smash at Sundance, Dinner in America tells the story of a punk rocker and his young superfan whose paths cross, leading to a wild journey across the fading suburbs of America. What follows is an ofbeat comingof-age comedy from writer/director Adam Rehmeier that blends pitch-black humour, mischief and romance. It features widely praised performances from charismatic leads Kyle Gallner and Emily Skeggs.

New Order

Premiere Time: Fri 12 Mar / 19:00 / 1hr 28m

Director: Michel Franco / 2020

Country: Mexico, France

Writer: Michel Franco

Cast: Diego Boneta, Mónica Del Carmen,

Naian González Norvind

Supported by: French Embassy in Dublin

A wealthy couple’s wedding in Mexico comes under the radar of protesters during a working-class uprising in Michel Franco’s dystopian thriller. When a man approaches the party seeking support for his sick wife, he’s treated largely with disdain as a violent coup unfolds on the streets. Franco, following on his Jury Prize winner at Cannes for April’s Daughter, traces the collapse of a political system in microcosm in this tense commentary on inequality.

Saturday 13 March

History, Action

Wild Swords

Premiere Time: Sat 13 Mar / 13:00 / 1hr 32m

Director: Li Yunbo / 2019

Country: China

Writer: Li Yunbo

Cast: Zhang Xiaochen, Liu Yongxi, Sui Yongliang

He Dreams Of Giants

Premiere Time: Sat 13 Mar / 16:00 / 1hr 25m

Directors: Keith Fulton, Louis Pepe / 2019

Country: United Kingdom

Cast: Adam Driver, Jonathan Pryce, Terry Gilliam

Li Yunbo’s gritty action thriller focuses on a mysterious thief that seems to be connected to a bloody battle that still resonates. The Nameless and Tang-Man sects duelled bitterly through the ages – until a violent swordsman named Chang ended their feud in massacre and vanished without a trace. An ambiguous new swordsman aims to discover the fates of Chang and his victims in this stylised and stylish wuxia flm.

For three decades, Terry Gilliam’s eforts to make a flm about Don Quixote became almost as legendary as the flmmaker himself, while also redefning the term “development hell.” Lost in La Mancha documented how his initial shoot was abandoned within days amid fash-fooding, illness and other disasters. Those flmmakers return for this follow-up documentary as Gilliam fnally looks set to realise his dream of bringing his own unique rif to Cervantes’s classic.

Undine

Premiere Time: Sat 13 Mar / 19:00 / 1hr 30m

Director: Christian Petzold / 2020

Country: Germany

Writer: Christian Petzold

Cast: Anne Ratte-Polle, Franz Rogowski, Jacob Matschenz, Julia Franz Richter

Nomination: Documentary Competition

Supported by: Goethe-Institut

Son

Premiere Time: Sat 13 Mar / 19:00 / 1hr 37m

Director: Ivan Kavanagh / 2020

Country: Ireland, United States

Writer: Ivan Kavanagh

Cast: Andi Matichak, Emile Hersch

Following the huge success of his last feature, Transit, writer/director Christian Petzold turns to the world of the water nymph. A contemporary take on the ancient tale of a woman who moves from water to land, German historian Undine is betrayed by the man she loves, and she fears a call to return to the water. Petzold’s flm blends folklore and modern romance, winning lead Paula Beer the Best Actress award at Berlinale.

Thriller, Horror

Irish flmmaker Ivan Kavanagh (Never Grow Old) turns to horror for his latest feature. A mother who escaped a cult as a child must face her past when cult members return and attempt to kidnap her son David. On the run from the sinister sect, they are helped by a detective – but since the attempted abduction, something has changed in David. Emile Hirsch and Andi Matichak lead an on-form cast in Kavanagh’s meaty thriller.

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Sunday 14 March

Paris Qui Dort

Premiere Time: Sun 14 Mar / 13:00

Director: René Clair / 1924

Country: France

Writer: René Clair

Cast: Charles Martinelli, Albert Préjean, Henri Rollan, Madeleine Rodrigue, Marcel Vallée

This 4K restoration was carried out by the Jérôme Seydoux-Pathé Fundation in 2018 at L’Immagine Ritrovata laboratory, with the support of CNC.

An eccentric scientist who uses magic to freeze people in often-embarrassing positions is the subject of this wonderfully ofbeat 1925 sci-f comedy. René Clair’s groundbreaking silent flm centres on a worker who fnds himself in a fantasy where he uses a ray gun to zap the citizens of Paris into a slumber. That he unleashes his superpowers from the top of the Eifel Tower only adds to the sense of futuristic fun.

Voir Le Jour

Premiere Time: Sun 14 Mar / 13:00 / 1hr 31m

Director: Marion Laine / 2019

Country: France

Writer: Marion Laine

Cast: Aure Atika, Brigitte Rouan, Kenza Fortas, Sandrine Bonnaire

Supported by: French Embassy in Dublin

French flmmaker Marion Laine, who previously directed the legendary Juliette Binoche in À Coeur Overt, sets her latest feature in a busy maternity ward in Marseille. Jeanne and her colleagues toil to protect mothers and newborns in a climate of understafng and management pressure. Following a tragedy, Jeanne is forced to confront both her relationship with her daughter and her own past. Arguably one of France’s greatest actors, Sandrine Bonnaire shines as the troubled Jeanne.

BIG vs SMALL

Premiere Time: Sun 14 Mar / 16:00 / 1hr 16m

Director: Minna Dufton / 2020

Country: Finland

Nomination: Documentary Competition

Hope

Premiere Time: Sun 14 Mar / 16:00 / 2hr 5m

Director: Maria Sødahl / 2019

Country: Norway

Cast: Andrea Bræin Hovig, Stellan Skarsgård

The power and magnifcence of the sea is captured to impressive efect in this documentary about big-wave surfer Joana Andrade. The Portuguese athlete and extreme competitor is one of the greatest in a sport traditionally dominated by men, but for Andrade, courage and fear are not mutually exclusive. She goes to train under revered free diver Johanna Nordblad as both women seek to empower themselves and be the greatest they can be.

Early reviews have been universally strong for Maria Sodahl’s intimate drama about a couple whose lives are impacted by a cancer diagnosis. When artist Anja is rocked by the latest news of her illness, she decides to keep the diagnosis private from everyone but her husband, Tomas. This tender drama reveals both the strengths and difculties in their relationship as Anya wonders how she can possibly break the news to her children, family and friends.

Deadly Cuts

Closing Gala —

Premiere Time: Sun 14 Mar / 19:00 / 1hr 30m

(Geoblocked ROI only)

Director: Rachel Carey / 2020

Country: Ireland

Writer: Rachel Carey

Cast: Aidan Mc Ardle, Angeline Ball, Ericka Roe, Lauren Larkin, Pauline Mclynn, Shauna Higgins, Victoria Smurft

Rachel Carey’s highly anticipated comedy is this year’s Closing Night flm. Shot on location in Dublin and featuring true-blue Dublin humour throughout, Deadly Cuts proudly returns to its hometown for its world premiere. The flm centres on a group of city hairdressers who work hard while having the craic with their customers and each other in a local salon. But when the community they hold dear comes under threat from a criminal gang, the stylists become accidental vigilantes as they take them on to protect the place they call home.

Boasting a predominantly female cast including Angeline Ball, Ericka Roe, Lauren Larkin, Shauna Higgins and Victoria Smurft, the movie builds into both a laugh-out-loud comedy and a love letter to city life. “I made this flm because I’d felt for a long time that a Dublin comedy was well overdue – especially one that featured the style, wit, and occasional murderous urges of the Dublin young one – and I can’t wait for audiences to watch it fy,” said Carey of her flm.

Shorts Programme — 3–14 Ma

mme arch

Screen Ireland Shorts

A selection of Screen Ireland shorts curated by Virgin Media Dublin International Film Festival.

Her Song

Directors: Éabha Bortolozzo, Jack Kirwan / 7 mins

The Banshee’s song comforts Peggy as she unspools the threads of her past, weaving myth and reality, and she tells Eve her devastating story.

The Dead Hands Of Dublin

Director: Leo Crowley / 8 mins

Sidney, a failed pianist, comes into the possession of a pair of enchanted gloves. He soon fnds himself playing the piano like a maestro.

STIR

Director: Rory Bresnihan / 14 mins

Following a car accident, a young woman fnds herself convalescing in the home of an old man who has recently lost his wife.

Expulsion

Director: Sinead Murphy / 10 mins

Haunted by visions, a young woman revisits an abusive past, seeking to expel inner demons and put an end to her torment.

Country: Ireland

Barry

Director: John Robert Brown / 5 mins

Susan is trying to enjoy a spot of gardening when her neighbour’s maddening dog, Barry, destroys the peace.

HUM

Director: Maureen O’Connell / 9 mins

Following a heated discussion with his partner, Tim seeks refuge in an empty gallery space, where gallery regular Cecil takes him on an abstract journey.

The Fear

Director: Stevie Russell / 5 mins

The Fear is a monster with an important job: striking doubt, shame and regret into unsuspecting victims. He preys on those that feel alone.

Seven Feet Nine and a Quarter Inches

Director: Peter O’Brien / 13 mins

The story of a young girl defying gender streotypes and turning heads in the highly competitive world of youth darts.

Virgin Media Dublin International Film Festival

Shorts #1

I am afraid to forget your face

Director: Sameh Alaa / 15 mins

Country: Ireland

After being separated for 82 days from the one he loves, Adam travels down a rough road: nothing will stop him.

Dinner

Director: Linh Tran / 10 mins Country: Viet Nam

Quan is a stubborn but mature 11-yearold. One day, coming home from school, he witnesses something that makes him question his family’s dynamics.

The Invisible Boy

Director: James Fitzgerald / 21 mins

Country: Ireland

When a young girl goes missing in a small town, a troubled fsherman is forced to confront the past that destroyed his family.

Solitaire

Director: Edoardo Natoli / 8 mins Country: Italy

Love happens when least expected: Renaud is a loner, but when a woman moves into the apartment across the street, they both discover a new desire.

Info: 3–14 Mar / 1hr 43m

Country: Various International

4x4

Director: Ayla Amano / 16 mins

Country: Ireland

In rural Ireland, a simple decision pushes two teenage sisters to contemplate their future and their ties to the family farm.

Kosher

Director: Gideon Imagor / 13 mins

Country: Israel

Racheli, a young Orthodox woman, struggles with her community’s strict expectations and cultural practices after feeling oppressed and humiliated during her monthly immersion in the Mikveh.

Scrubber

Director: Sophia Di Martino / 8 mins

Country: United Kingdom

A lonely woman becomes increasingly infatuated with her neighbor as she spies on them from her kitchen window while washing the dishes.

PADDY

Director: Roisin Kearney / 13 mins

Country: Ireland

London, late 70s: Patrick is trying to stay true to his Irish heritage, but he discovers a music that speaks to him: Punk.

Virgin Media Dublin International Film Festival

Shorts #2

Imprints

Director: Cathy Dunne / 9 mins

Country: Ireland

An exploration of the passing of time as Mary recalls memories of her late husband Denis. Moments from the 1960s imprinted onto Denis’ cine reels.

To All My Darlings

Director: Lia Campbell / 12 mins

Country: Ireland

Adaeze feels isolated in her relationship and within her community, after a traumatic miscarriage and the revelation that further pregnancy attempts will be difcult.

The Granny

Director: Aram Shahbazyan / 24 mins

Country: Armenia

An elderly lady will not allow a TV crew that is interviewing a priest in a church to stop her from her work.

A Simple F*cking Gesture

Director: Jesse Shamata / 8 mins

Country: Canada

A simple road manoeuvre results in a heated exchange: emotions escalate for a husband and wife when another driver doesn’t give them a “thank you wave”.

Info: 3–14 Mar / 1hr 37m

Country: Various International

Guard Up

Director: Tony Doyle / 7 mins

Country: Ireland

A young boxer’s secret is exposed. Gavin Quinn believes his participation at the Olympics is at risk, because his true identity is publicly revealed.

Cranberry Nights

Director: Sara Robin / 16 mins

Country: United States

Can an undocumented young woman in America trust her friends? Juana tries hard to ft in, but at a party her best friend exposes her secret.

The Edge

Director: Emma Iris Benson / 4 mins

Country: France

Supported by: French Embassy in Dublin

In a world covered with ice and snow, a man lives alone with his dog. Every day he goes fshing, hoping to catch some food.

Omé

Director: Wassim Geagea / 17 mins

Country: Lebanon, Qatar

After the death of his mother, Elias makes a deal with God to try to bring her back from heaven, all while defying his faith.

Virgin Media Dublin International Film Festival

Shorts #3

How to Fall in Love in a Pandemic

Director: Michael-David McKernan / 11 mins

Country: Ireland

A capsule romance accelerates dramatically against the backdrop of the pandemic as two flmmakers who met on Tinder are forced to move in together.

BASURERO

Director: Eileen Cabiling / 17 mins

Country: Philippines

As the drug war rages in the Philippines, Bong, a fsherman desperate for money, reconsiders how to make ends meet.

Cemile

Director: Belkis Bayrak, Belkıs Bayrak / 11 mins

Country: Turkey

Cemile is an ambitious kickboxer and, while she prepares for her upcoming match, she needs to focus not only on her physical training, but also on her emotions.

The Love and Death of Yosef and Zilli

Director: Dean Gold / 19 mins

Country: Canada

After 62 years of marriage, Yosef and Zilli decide to take their lives together. Their son Doron documents their life through his videotapes.

Info: 3–14 Mar / 1hr 49m

Country: Various International

Regarding Annabel

Director: Garry Simpson / 5 mins

Country: United Kingdom

Why was Annabel not accepted to the prestigious Winterbourne School for girls? Her mother Melissa knows the truth, but she must hide it from her friends.

Anita

Director: Sushma Khadepaun / 18 mins

Country: India

While attending her sister’s wedding in India, Anita comes to an unpleasant realization: her life in America is not better than those of who remained in her hometown.

Hanging Over The Atlantic

Director: Fionn Walshe / 9 mins

Country: Ireland

Life on Dursey Island has never been easy: a single cable car is the sole link to the rest of Ireland and the world.

Unliveable

Director: Enock Carvalho, Matheus Farias / 20 mins

Country: Brazil

In Brazil, where a trans person is murdered every three days, Marilene searches the streets for her daughter Roberta, a trans woman who went missing.

Virgin Media Dublin International Film Festival

Shorts #4

Hold Your Tears

Director: Remi Bassaler / 23 mins

Country: France

Supported by: French Embassy in Dublin

A father, his son’s girlfriend and a journey to pay their respects to the son who died in an accident and to his motorbike.

Ebb and Flow

Director: Alice Ward / 12 mins

Country: Ireland

Three women surf the waters of the west coast of Ireland, in a celebration of the radiant female surf community.

Push This Button if You Begin to Panic

Director: Gabriel Böhmer / 13 mins

Country: United Kingdom

An animated view of Bartholomew’s visit to the doctor to treat an unusual illness, that doesn’t stop him from seeing the quiet beauty around him.

Cloud Forest

Director: Eliane Esther Bots / 18 mins

Country: Netherlands

Five girls share their memories of their parents’ experiences of war in the former Yugoslavia. A war which the girls haven’t physically experienced themselves.

Info: 3–14 Mar / 1hr 40m

Country: Various International

Tides

Director: Rowan Gray / 12 mins

Country: Canada

Eden cares for her sick grandmother who has suddenly gone missing. The young woman must truck her through a harsh Canadian winter landscape.

Kathleen Was Here

Director: Eva Birthistle / 10 mins

Country: Ireland

18 year old Kathleeen faces up to a future alone. What does the future hold when the past is all you’ve got?

Drifting

Directors: Patrick McGivney, Robert Higgins / 14 mins

Country: Ireland

Two best friends face the efects of emigration on their friendship, as they fnd themselves in confict for the frst time.

Dungarees

Director: Abel Rubinstein / 5 mins

Country: United Kingdom

Transgender Blake and cisgender Cane hang out, play video games and grapple with their insecurities. This is their love story.

S.A.M.

Directors: Eyre and Ely, Lloyd Eyre-Morgan / 16 mins

Country: United Kingdom

Every week, two teenage boys both named Sam meet at the swings to escape their dysfunctional home lives, and slowly fall in love. 6:23AM

Director: Geofrey Breton / 4 mins

Country: United Kingdom

Two women, who met during the night, watch the sunrise from Primrose Hill, but one of them may be about to ruin the new romance.

Something In The Closet

Director: Nosa Eke / 12 mins

Country: United Kingdom

Is there really a monster in Madi’s closet, or is it something else that she fears?

Country: Various International

The Passing

Director: Nichola Wong / 15 mins

Country: United Kingdom

Yasmine is a talented mortician, but her world is turned upside down as she encounters the most difcult job of her career.

My Mama, A Man

Director: Helena Middleton / 9 mins

Country: United Kingdom

Julie had a list of 60 things she wanted to do before she turned 60. Top of the list: to be a man for a day.

Young Peoples Shorts

Charlie Surfer

Director: Pia Strømme / 18 mins

Country: Norway

Charlie is 10 years old and has been diagnosed with Asperger’s. He loves surfng and he has great expectations for the summer surf camp.

Ode

Director: Naomi Waring / 3 mins

Country: Ireland

A portrait documentary of a group of young disco dancers from a community in Northern Ireland, to shine a light on their passion and dedication.

Sleuth

Director: Douglas Reddan, Leah Moore / 11 mins

Country: Ireland

Jake’s family have been up to some suspicious behaviour. He will not be left in the dark, so he decides it’s time to do some detective work!

PIVOT

Director: Kristian Mantalvanos / 22 mins

Country: Ireland

Eight senior members of Dublin Youth Dance Company dance their truths – the good, the bad and the beautiful – in a time of lockdown.

Country: Various International

The Abandoned Block

Director: James Bourne / 6 mins

Country: Canada

The story of a useless, damaged, forgotten block of marble that becomes one of the greatest and most beautiful works of art in the world.

The Debs Debacle

Directors: Amelia Jackiewicz, Caroline Joyce, Croi Lenihan, Emily Daniel, Eric Byrne, Katie Walsh, Sean Cooper, Valentina Cecan, Zinedin Labelle / 15 mins

Country: Ireland

Four frenemies are forced to overcome their diferences and work together to organise their school Debs, in the short flm created by the Screen8 programme participants.

Tina Times Two

Director: Bonnie Dempsey / 15 mins

Country: Ireland

All Tina wants is a friend she can perform her dance routines with. And magically one day, a friend appears – an exact double of Tina!

Awards, In Focus, Industry — 3–14 Ma

rds, Focus, Industry arch

Awards

Awards

Every year, the Festival’s diverse range of awards champions excellence in flmmaking. From shorts to features, children’s flms to documentaries, and from emerging artists to some of the most accomplished actors, writers and directors working today, Virgin Media DIFF awards ofer recognition for every type of flm and every type of flmmaker at every stage of the career.

– Volta Award

– Discovery Awards

– Short Film Awards

– Virgin Media Audience Award

– ICCL Human Rights Film Award

– Documentary Competition

– Dublin Film Critics Circle Awards

Colin Firth Volta Award

Academy Award-winning actor Colin Firth is a veteran of flm, television and theatre, with an impressive body of work spanning over three decades. He has appeared in three flms that have won the Academy Award for Best Picture: The King’s Speech, Shakespeare in Love and The English Patient. Colin’s portrayal of King George VI in The King’s Speech earned him the Oscar for Best Actor in 2011, as well as a Golden Globe Award, Screen Actors Guild Award, British Independent Film Award, Critics’ Choice Award and his second consecutive Bafta Award. He was also lauded for his performance in Tom Ford’s A Single Man, winning the Bafta Award for Best Actor

in 2010 and the Volpi Cup for Best Actor at the 2009 Venice Film Festival. His other flm credits include the Oscar-nominated Girl with a Pearl Earring; Bridget Jones; Tinker Tailor Solider Spy; Mamma Mia; When Did You Last See Your Father?; Easy Virtue; Michael Winterbottom’s Genova; The Importance of Being Earnest; Circle of Friends; and the Festival’s Opening Night gala flm, Supernova

The Festival is honoured to award Colin Firth with a Volta Award for contribution to the world of flm.

Aer Lingus Discovery Awards

The Irish flm industry has never been busier –productions both large and small are reaching wider audiences, and there is an abundance of talent working in the sector today. The Aer Lingus Discovery Awards aim to identify, champion, support and encourage new and emerging talent both in front of and behind the camera

Discovery Award Jury

Colin Campbell Editor – The Hole in the Ground, The Young Ofenders

Stephen Faloon General Manager –

The Bord Gáis Energy Theatre

Franklin Leonard Producer & Founder –The Black List

Lesley McKimm Producer / Project Manager

– Screen Ireland

2021 Aer Lingus Discovery Award Nominees

Ev

Cinematographer: 4x4

Other Credits: Love is a Sting; The Trap

Rachel Carey

Writer & Director: Deadly Cuts

Other Credits: Nice Night

For It; The Girl and the Cloud

(Writer); Adland Gal (Writer)

Actor: The Invisible Boy

Other Credits: Viking; Red Rock

Tony Cantwell

Actor: The Fear

Other Credits: Something Doesn’t Feel Right, Russian Holiday

Fionn Condren

Stunt: Boys From County Hell

Other Credits: Fate: The Winx Club Saga; Finding You

Leo Crowley

Director: The Dead Hands of Dublin

Other Credits: The Big Christmas Song

(Co-Director & Co-Writer)

2021 Aer Lingus Discovery Award Nominees

Robyn Dempsey

Actress: Tina Times Two

Other Credits: The Dublin Murders; Little Roy

Tony Doyle

Actor: Dublin Oldschool

Other Credits: 11th Hour; Michael Inside

Miriam Devitt

Writer & Producer: Barry

Other Credits: The Space In Between; Running Commentary

Hazel Doupe

Actress: Kathleen Was Here

Other Credits: Float Like a Butterfy; Calm with Horses; Ciunas

Saileóg O’Halloran

Costume Designer: Bainne

Other Credits: Procession; Cynthia

Lauren Kelly

Production Designer: A Hero’s Death

Other Credits: Rapture; The Trap

D

a

wn Mac Alister

Producer: The Fear

Other Credits: Waiting and Bertie for the Rubberbandits, Extra Ordinary (Production Coordinator)

Burschi Wojnar

Cinematographer: Kathleen Was Here

Other Credits: Redemption of a Rogue; Wave; Halo

Short Film Awards

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The short flm format has always been a crucial part of the festival, acting as both a showcase for future talent and as an art form in its own right. For 2021, the Virgin Media Dublin International Film Festival is proud to present a diverse programme of short flms.

ICCL Human Rights Film Award

This award celebrates flms which help audiences to connect with the human stories behind rights violations and to learn about the many forms activism can take.

The Short Film Awards recognise the best Irish and International shorts in the programme, as chosen by our jury.

Short Film Jury:

Cara Holmes Editor – Father of the Cyborgs, Director – Welcome to a Bright White Limbo

Paddy Slattery Director – Broken Law

Farah Abushwesha Producer – The ABC Murders, The Singapore Grip

The flms nominated for the 2021 ICCL Human Rights Film Award are:

– Acasa My Home

– A Worm in the Heart

– Limbo

– The Dissident

– Father

– The Reason I Jump

ICCL Jury:

Brian Gleeson Actor – Peaky Blinders

Andrea Horan Campaigner and changemaker Bulelani Mfaco Spokesperson for the Movement of Asylum Seekers in Ireland

Aoife Kelleher Director – One Million Dubliners

Sinéad Burke Writer, academic and activist

Virgin Media Audience Award

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Each year, you, the audience gets to vote on the flms that bring a smile to your face; a tear to your eye; inspire you or clean knock your socks of!

This year, you can vote for your favourite through our online streaming platform.

Previous Winners of the Audience Award

2020: Endless Sunshine on a Cloudy Day

2019: Maiden

2018: The Breadwinner

2017: The Farthest

2016: Viva

2015: The Salt of the Earth

Previous Winners of the Audience Award for Short Film

2020: Iarscoláire

2019: 99 Problems

2018: Time Traveller

2017: The Nation Holds its Breath

2016: Little Bear

2015: Boogaloo & Graham

Documentary Competition

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The Virgin Media Dublin International Film Festival Documentary Competition will recognise excellence in the feld of documentary making.

The following flms will compete in our Documentary Competition:

– Aalto

– Acasa My Home

– A Worm in the Heart

– To the Moon

– Underplayed

– The Reason I Jump

– Father of the Cyborgs

– Kubrick by Kubrick

– The Dissident

– BIG vs SMALL

Documentary Competition Jury:

Josh Siegel Curator, Department of Film – Museum of Modern Art

Ross Whitaker Director – Katie, Between Land and Sea, Unbreakable

Kim Longinotto Director – Divorce

Iranian Style, The Day I Will Never Forget

Dublin Film Critics’ Circle Awards

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Supported by Limelight Communications

Ireland’s professional flm critics will announce their awards for Best Film, Best Director, Best Irish Film, Best Documentary and Best Performances from the 2021 festival line-up.

supporting our friends in the Dublin Film Critics Circle at VMDIFF 2021

Proudly

Limelight Communications continue to be at the forefront of film and entertainment PR and promotion, with unrivalled expertise in devising innovative, award-winning campaigns that are tailored to each project.

Our team wish all involved with VMDIFF every success

We can't wait to get back to the cinema.

Contact Glenn Hogarty

E: glenn.hogarty@limelight.ie

www.limelight.ie

In Conversation with Steve McQueen —

Info: Available from Fri 5 March / 7pm

Iconic flmmaker Steve McQueen joins the festival for an in-conversation event hosted by Mark O’Halloran (Adam & Paul, Rialto). The conversation ofers a fantastic insight into McQueen’s artistic process.

“I’m thrilled to join Virgin Media Dublin International Film Festival for a conversation with Mark O’Halloran,” said the Academy Award-winning flmmaker. “Since my frst flm, Hunger, I have formed many special bonds with my Irish collaborators. I look forward to talking to Mark about storytelling and to a virtual visit with my friends in Ireland.”

Steve McQueen’s critically acclaimed frst feature Hunger, starring Michael Fassbender as an IRA hunger-striker, won the Camera D’Or at the Cannes Film Festival in 2008. He re-teamed with Fassbender for his follow up feature Shame. McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave dominated the 2013 awards season, and he co-wrote his third feature, Widows, with Gillian Flynn. His most recent project, Small Axe, is an anthology series comprised of fve original flms about resilience and triumph in London’s West Indian community from the 60s-80s. McQueen is also the recipient of many accolades for his work as a visual artist and his artwork are exhibited and held in major museums around the world. In 2020, McQueen was awarded a knighthood in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours List for his services to the Arts.

New Voices In Film

Black Women Filmmakers –A Student Seminar

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Info: Tue 9 March / 2–5pm Live Event

In partnership with the Film Department of Trinity College Dublin

Young Critics

@ DIFF

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Find the Young Critics’ Review across the VMDIFF website and social media channels during the Festival.

An afternoon of discussions and presentations focused on diversity and representation in flm, refecting on flms featured in the Black Women Filmmaker’s Festival Retrospective. The Festival is delighted to welcome flmmaker Amma Asante (Belle, Where Hands Touch) to the event for an in-conversation interview.

Critics from the Young Irish Filmmakers Nework will bring their critical eye to the 2021 Festival programme this year. A select group of up-and-coming flm writers and podcasters aged 18–25 will have the opportunity to view and produce content around flms in the 2021 festival programme.

The 22 Young Critics will also join Finnoula Halligan, Chief Critic & Editor with Screen International & Screen Daily, for a day long workshop, ofering valuable feedback and advice on their work.

Screenwriters Panel

Info: Available from Mon 8 March / 7pm

Panellists:

Rachel Carey, Cathal Nally, Les Martin, Robert Higgins, Patrick McGivney, Miriam Devitt

Careers in Screen

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Info: Wed 10 March / Irish Film Institute

Online Platform / 2–6pm

Careers in Screen is presented by Irish Film Institute and Virgin Media Dublin International Film Festival with the kind support of Screen Skills Ireland and BAI.

Learn more about contemporary Irish screenwriting – where the inspiration springs from, how the ideas develop and the process through drafts and redrafts to the fnal version. Whether you’re an aspiring screenwriter, a flm lover or passionate about storytelling, this is an opportunity to learn about the behind the scenes process of writing a great script.

For the fourth consecutive year, Virgin Media Dublin International Film Festival and Irish Film Institute are partnering on an inspiring and innovative event for young people interested in careers in the flm & TV industry. Aimed at senior cycle students aged 15–18, this year’s Careers in Screen will comprise an online programme of live and recorded events, hosted on the IFI@Schools platform (www.ifschools.ie), with special guests drawn from a diverse range of flm & TV disciplines. Students can access recorded talks leading up to the live event day.

Industry Events

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Virgin Media Dublin International Film Festival is pleased to ofer a variety of online special events for flm industry professionals.

Festival Programming

Panel

Key international flm festivals join this panel event: representatives from London Film Festival, Festival de Cannes and more will discuss their festival and programming policies, deadlines and submission criteria – vital information for anybody preparing their own international festival strategy.

In Conversation with

Editor Walter Fasano

Live Event

Editor Walter Fasano (Call Me by Your Name, Suspiria) joins the festival for an in-depth discussion on flm editing, hosted by fellow editor Eoin McDonagh. Fasano, who has made a name for himself as a collaborator of Luca Guadagnino, is also the writer and director of Pino, available on the festival platform.

For the full list of industry events and ticketing information, see dif.ie/industry

Casting By –In Conversation with DIFF

Live Event

Louise Kiely (The Green Knight, Herself, Normal People), Margery Simkin (Avatar, Beverly Hills Cop, Erin Brockovich) and other top Casting Directors join a live panel discussion on how they are navigating the current climate, the time of COVID and the predominantly virtual world.

Working with

International Archives

Live Event

Producer Clare Stronge discusses her experience working with international archives from nearly 30 countries to fnd material for the Irish documentary To the Moon. Participants are also introduced to a panel of international archives and ways of collaborating to get the best footage.

Board & Festival Team

Board Of Directors

Aidan Greene – Chairperson

Ruth Hunter – Company Secretary

Elaine Gill

Neasa Hardiman

Ronan Murphy

Suzanne Noble

Paula Woods

Louise Kiely

John Butler

Festival Team

Festival Director Gráinne Humphreys

Managing Director Helen Hutton

Head of Development & Marketing

Kate Cunningham

Accounts Ofcer Carole Lakes

Shorts Programmer Maeve McGrath

Shorts Programmer Celine Roustan

Production Manager Orla Basquille

Digital Festival Manager

David Taylor-Matthews

Print Transport Manager Paloma Dema

Programme Events Coordinator

Laura Scott

Marketing Executive Alex Ayvazova

Digital Marketing Executive Noemi Milani

Sales & Audience Engagement Executive & Box Ofce Manager Vlatka Jeh

Box Ofce Assistant Lauren Colhoun

Festival Administrator Karen English

Festival Graphic Designer Sarah Moloney

Festival Video Editor Tom Lee

PR Bowe Communications

Press Assistants

Emma Collins & Sarah Murphy

Trailer Producer Colin Campbell & Outer Limits Post Production