Love horror? The Irish Film Institute has you more than covered for terror this Halloween with the IFI Horrorthon 2017, the full programme of which we’ve got right here for you. From frightening favourites to creepy cult hits to some petrifying premieres, the varied series has something for everything looking for a scare from October 26 – 30.
One of the flagship festivals and highlights in the calendar of the Irish Film Institute, the IFI Documentary Festival begins tomorrow, running over the weekend into the beginning of October. The festival will showcase fine documentary filmmaking from directors, Irish directors alongside international ones, for a programme of 16 feature length documentaries, 7 Irish premieres, as well as a world premiere.
It’s time to get cultured film fans. Culture Night 2017 takes place this Friday 22 September, with venues and public spaces across the Ireland opening their doors to free evenings of entertainment. Culture Night has been running for 13 years now and 2017 promises to be its biggest programme to date, with live music, poetry, workshops of all kinds and more taking place all over the country. What this means of course is that this Friday, the fair city of film is going to be even busier than ever, with dozens of events taking place that will appeal to cinephiles of all ages. From kid-friendly workshops with the geniuses at Cartoon Saloon to short film screenings and more, there’s loads to do and not all in places you might expect (ever been to a movie screening at the co-op?). With the help of Culture Night we’ve compiled everything film-related taking place all across Dublin on Culture Night 2017 for you to check out, along with what’s on, when, where and the websites.
Saturday, September the 16th sees the Irish Film Institute open their doors for one of the most anticipated events of the year in Dublin for cinema fans: The IFI Open Day. With the chance to see some fantastic films for free and the opportunity to see firsthand the work the IFI puts into their mission to ‘Exhibit, Preserve and Educate’ with tours of Paul Markey’s Projection Booth and the Digital Restoration Suite, it’s always something to look forward to and with 2017 being the 25th anniversary of the IFI’s landmark premises in Temple Bar, they’re celebrating with a lineup of films, announced yesterday, that has some real standout cinema.
70mm showings of Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk have proven to be very popular at the Irish Film Institute, just one factor in making the historical epic a major hit at the Irish box office. As part of the IFI’s commitment to exhibit, preserve and educate, they’re no strangers to showing films in a variety of formats, with authentic prints of films like The Right Stuff being regular features of IFI programming. The most recently announced example is upcoming screenings of a new 70mm print of David Lean’s classic Lawrence of Arabia, which will be showing at the cinema from Oct 20 – 22. But what exactly is the difference between 70mm and the more modern digital? How do great films go from the booth behind you to the screen in front of you? It’s hardly just a matter of pushing play on a DVD, as the IFI’s projectionist Paul Markey explains. Film In Dublin spoke to Paul about the work that he does, different film formats and more.
Science fiction doesn’t always have to be about laser beams and Ewoks. For those who like the science in their films to be a little harder in nature, the Irish Film Institute is offering a series of films, both fact and fiction, that explore and incorporate plausible scientific methods and practices into their stories. These are the thinking person’s films about science and they’re on offer next week at the IFI.
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This Friday, the Irish documentary Revolutions opens in cinemas. Engaging and accessible, Revolutions offers a look into the rough and tumble world of the unconventional sport of roller derby, as well as a look into the lives of the women who play it. Beginning in 2011, the film follows the players and coaches of Dublin Roller Derby and the Cork City Firebirds, both competing separately and coming together to make up most of the Irish national team that travels to their first roller derby World Cup in Canada, competing against the likes of England and Argentina. Director Laura McGann has been promoting the film – her debut feature after numerous credits on TV shows and documentary shorts – ahead of a special Q&A to launch the film at the IFI on Friday. Film In Dublin spoke to Laura about the allure of roller derby, tension in the teams and the importance of keeping your distance when drinking coffee around athletes racing at high speed on skates.
The intense, aggressive and expressive sport of roller derby is one that’s seen increasing popularity in recent years, with a burgeoning scene in Ireland among young women looking for an outlet. Irish roller derby is the subject of Revolutions, a documentary by Irish director Laura McGann, which was shown last year at the Galway Film Fleadh. This June, the film will have a wider release across Ireland, and the Irish Film Institute will be hosting a special opening night screening to mark the occasion.
With a body of work in American cinema spanning over fifty years, a pair of Oscars, numerous nominations and widespread praise the world over, few actors have had a career as successful as Dustin Hoffman and this summer, the IFI offers the chance to see some of his greatest roles on the big screen once again.
If you know where and when to look in Dublin you can find a film festival showing the finest cinema of almost any region or culture in the world. Frequently the where is the Irish Film Institute and coming soon for the when is this May, as this year the IFI will be hosting the inaugural Chinese-language Film Festival Ireland. Titled ‘Made in Taiwan‘, the festival will be showing some a range of acclaimed Chinese-language films, including the martial arts classic A Touch of Zen and what’s more, the festival will be highlighting the work of master filmmaker Hou Hsiao-Hsien, as well as his longtime collaborator, screenwriter Chu Tien-Wen.
