A film festival is a unique opportunity to hear directly from directors, producers and actors about their work, process and their experiences of making films. The 67th Cork International Film Festival is delighted to welcome a host of Irish and international filmmakers to Cork this November – these special events are not to be missed!
Also, check out our Industry Days where emerging and established filmmakers connect, network and participate in workshops on Thursday 17th and Friday 18th November in Cork City (and online Doc Day is available also, from 18th to 30th November). Keynote speakers will be director Frank Berry (Aisha, Michael Inside, I Used to Live Here) and Abigail Disney (The American Dream and Other Fairy Tales).
SPECIAL GUEST Q&As
NOCEBO
Sat 12 | Everyman | 17:30
A hard working mother and children’s fashion designer is suffering from a mysterious illness. Her condition improves significantly with the arrival of her new Filipino caretaker. Are her healing powers real and why is she really here? This intense and dark psychological thriller is shot beautifully by the cinematographer Radek Ladcyuk. It is the third feature by Irish director Lorcan Finnegan. Nocebo features Eva Green, Chai Fonacier and Mark Strong and screens in Cork after its premieres in Los Angeles and Sitges. AK
Nocebo director Lorcan Finnegan will participate in a post-screening Q&A with CIFF Senior Programmer Don O’Mahony
“With “Nocebo,” Finnegan and his collaborators have put their finger on something dark and disturbing.” – Simon Abrams, Rogerebert.com
Nominated for Best Motion Picture at the Catalonian International Film Festival
THE GHOST OF RICHARD HARRIS
Sun 13 | Everyman | 16:30
A fascinating exploration of the life of Richard Harris, perhaps the most remarkable actor Ireland has ever produced. Drawing on previously unheard tapes and unseen family footage, this is an emotionally engaging celebration of a multi-faceted artist and man, and includes contributions from his three sons, Jared, Damian, and Jamie. FC
““The Ghost of Richard Harris” approaches Harris’ life and career with humility, frankness and good humor.” – William Bibbiani, Yahoo
Audience Award for Best Documentary Feature at the Newport Beach Film Festival, Nominee for Best Documentary on Cinema at the Venice Film Festival
Director Adrian Sibley will participate in a post-screening Q&A.
UCC FILM ARTIST IN RESIDENCE: YVONNE McDEVITT
Sun 13 | Triskel | 20:00
Yvonne McDevitt discusses her inspirations, working process and current projects with Maximilian Le Cain, moderated by UCC’s Laura Rascaroli.
With excerpts from her own and others’ work, the conversation will engage with ideas and practices of Experimental Filmmaking.
CONCRETE KEYS
Mon 14 | Gate | 19:30
A strange and familiar parallel universe that evokes the tragically poignant comic structures and absurd rituals of institution, in an ever-changing world. This is the first feature screening as part of this year’s Parallax strand, Concrete Keys is the first feature from artist and director Natasha Bourke. Shot over several years in the former FÁS building on Sullivan’s Quay, including during the building’s demolition, the film points a darkly comedic finger at the corporate institutions overtaking our world, and how this changing landscape affects art itself. SE
Filmmaker Natasha Bourke will be in attendance and participate in a post-screening Q&A with Maximilian Le Cain.
GAME OF TRUTH (AR LORG NA FIRÍNNE)
Tue 15 | Triskel | 20:15
In the more-than 20 years since the Good Friday Agreement brought peace to Northern Ireland, the festering sores caused by state collusion still cause rancour in both communities. The recent successful civil action by the family of Loughlin Maginn, who was shot dead in 1989 by the UDA, was a reminder as to how thorny these cases can be.
Game of Truth (Ar Lorg na Fírinne) identifies the architect of this policy and examines five such cases, some well known, others less so. [DOM]
Activist Ciarán MacAirt will participate in a post-screening discussion.
ENYS MEN
Tue 15 | Gate | 20:30
Following the success of his first feature, the hand-processed 16mm, ‘fishermen-vs-blow-ins’ drama Bait, director Mark Jenkin returns to the screen with a tale that switches the social commentary for the supernatural. It is 1973, and a wildlife volunteer (Mary Woodvine) is studying a particular flower unique to a small island off the Cornish coast, daily noting its condition with ritualistic detail, until a series of occurrences cause her to question her surroundings and her sanity. It’s Jeanne Dielman meets Nigel Kneale, and a thoroughly cerebral folk horror. SE
Director Mark Jenkin will be in attendance at this screening.
BALLYWALTER
Wed 16 | Gate | 20:00
Fri 18 | Gate | 17:15
Ballywalter is a bittersweet comedy drama about an unlikely friendship and the power of humour in difficult times. Featuring strong central performances from Seána Kerslake and Patrick Kielty, this film follows Eileen, a lost soul living with her mother and sister in a backwater Northern Irish town, who earns her living as an unlicensed taxi driver. Her discontent with life is palpable but when she picks up a budding stand-up comedian, an unexpected relationship develops that changes both of their lives. RG
“Ballywalter is an ode to the gifts of listening, reaching out and finding friendships among the minutiae of everyday life and how challenges can be faced with a healthy dollop of self-belief and encouragement; even tough love” – Maureen Coleman, Belfast Telegraph
Director Prasanna Puwanarajah and Patrick Kielty will be in attendance and will participate in a post-screening Q&A.
LOVE AROUND THE WORLD
Wed 16 | Gate | 18:00
Co-directors of the movie and married couple Andela and Davor travelled around the world to learn about the various ways that people meet and to explore their rituals and traditions. They portray the diversity of marriage and love in every possible way. Told through interviews with happy couples of all genders, nationalities and religions in multiple locations, whether in their homes or in the middle of a rainforest, this heartwarming documentary reveals the multifaceted, yet universal face of love. AK
Directors Davor Rostuhar & Anđela Rostuhar will be in attendance and participate in a Q&A.
WAR OF THE BUTTONS
Thu 17 | Triskel | 19:00
War of the Buttons is a timeless tale of two rival gangs of kids that warmly captures the treasures and trials of childhood. Connected only by a single, narrow bridge, the gangs from fictional towns Ballydowse and Carrickdowse, have been locked in an endless war of one-upmanship, with the victors of each battle cutting off the buttons from their enemies’ clothes as trophies. Produced by Lord David Puttnam and filmed across West Cork, this iconic Irish classic holds a special place in the hearts of Corkonians!
CIFF Patron and producer of War of the Buttons Lord David Puttnam will be in attendance to introduce this screening.
THE GATES
Fri 18 | Gate | 20:00
Sun 20 | Gate |14:00
London, 1892. William Colcott has been sentenced to death by Electric Chair. Upon his day of death, he curses the prison he resides in along with all that dwell within the gates.
Two post mortem photographers, turned paranormal investigators, Frederick Ladbroke and Emma Wickes, become embroiled in an investigation with a mysterious medium, Lucian Abberton. They must work together to stop William’s spirit from escaping Bishops Gate Jail and unleashing the gates of hell on Victorian London.
Director Stephen Hall and the film’s cast will be in attendance and will participate in a post-screening Q&A on Friday 18th (Stephen Hall (Dir) , Paul Thompstone (Producer), and actors Michael Yare, Elena Delia, and John Rhys Davies.
Documentary Gala: All the Beauty and the Bloodshed
Fri 18 | Everyman | 20:30
Academy Award®-winning documentarist Laura Poitras’ portrait of American photographer Nan Goldin won the Golden Lion Award at this year’s Venice Film Festival. This multi-layered documentary includes rare footage and intimate interviews with Goldin, and covers not just her own life journey, her famous friends and iconic photographic work, but also her fight against the Sackler family and their company, Purdue Pharma, maker of OxyContin.
There will be a post-screening discussion with CIFF Director of Programming Anna Kopecká and film artist Vivienne Dick.
PAUL MULDOON: LAOITHE’S LIRICÍ
Sat 19 | Gate | 17:00
A portrait of Pulitzer Prize-winning Irish writer Paul Muldoon. The film creatively composes the story of his life through poetic interludes and special performances. Directed by renowned Irish documentarian Alan Gilsenan, Muldoon himself narrates this unique Irish language film, which is an expression of his deep love of song lyrics and poetry. Featuring Liam Neeson, Paul Simon and PJ Harvey, amongst others, and using Muldoon’s own words to explore key moments in his creative life, the film is an imaginative and innovative tribute to a great literary mind. RG.
Director Alan Gilsenan and Paul Muldoon will be in attendance and participate in a post-screening Q&A hosted by CIFF Senior Programmer Don O’Mahony.
“For fans of music, poetry and literature alike, this event will be unmissable.” Irish Film London
ARVED (ARVÉD)
Sat 12 | Gate | 17:30
Sat 19 | Gate | 13:30
This mysterious first feature of Czech scriptwriter and winner of several comic awards Vojtech Masek is based on the real controversial figure of the early 20th century, Jiri Arvéd Smichovsky. He was not only a doctor of law and philosophy but was also a Nazi collaborator and informer that dedicated his life to the search for mysterious occult Jewish books that would help him to summon Satan. This mystical period drama is a psychological game of deception, repetition and confusion. Will you be able to decipher what is real and what is not?
On Saturday 19th November, director Vojtech Masek will be in attendance and participate in a post-screening Q&A.
FAMILY GALA: ROALD DAHL’S MATILDA THE MUSICAL
Sun 20 | Everyman | 13:30
Matilda Wormwood (impressive newcomer Alisha Weir) is a little girl with big curiosity, a sharp mind and a vivid imagination – and the worst parents in the world. While her parents (played by Andrea Riseborough and Stephen Graham) content themselves with trashy TV and dodgy money-making schemes, she loves to lose herself in the pages of her beloved books, and think up cheeky acts of rebellion and revenge.
On meeting inspirational teacher, Miss Honey (Lashana Lynch), Matilda begins conjuring her own fantastical tales. She dares to take a stand against her parents and head teacher Miss Trunchbull (Emma Thompson), to fight for what’s right and change her story, with miraculous results. Adapted from the Tony and Olivier award-winning musical. FC
Courtesy of Sony Pictures Releasing
Actor Alisha Weir, who plays Matilda, will be in attendance to introduce the screening.
aemi Experimental Shorts 1: Súitú
Thu 17 | Gate | 18:00
Súitú’ – an Irish language term – is the sucking in-and-out sound of stones on the shoreline at night. Evoking the elemental, the programme’s pacing picks up on not just the familiar ebb and flow of the sea, but also the rhythmic actions that form contemporary culture and living contexts. From inner psychological journeys to the phenomenological, the seven films that form this programme together present a deeply original, sensory experience.
Curated by aemi, ‘Súitú’ spotlights some truly exciting moving image works by Irish and international artists.
Post-screening Q&A with filmmakers Sofia Theodore-Pierce, Lisa Freeman, and Holly Márie Parnell
aemi Experimental Shorts 2: Figure Ground Perception
Sat 19 | Gate | 15:00
‘Figure Ground Perception’ is a new programme curated by aemi of recent films by artist filmmakers. The programme includes two works by Portuguese-American filmmaker Fern Silva, aemi’s Artist-in-Focus at CIFF, and the premiere of a newly commissioned film by Irish artist Frank Sweeney (aemi/ Sirius Film Commission 2022). In addition, the programme features recent works by international filmmakers Sky Hopinka, Morgan Quaintance, and Christiana Perschon. Collectively these films consider the role of the artist in relation to communities of place.
Followed by a post-screening Q&A with filmmakers Fern Silva and Frank Sweeney
A free masterclass with celebrated filmmaker Fern Silva, aemi’s ‘international artist in focus’ for CIFF 2022.
Fri 18 | Sirius Arts Centre
Designed for participants interested in social and environmental issues, reportage, travelogue, and other forms of non-fiction art making. This practical workshop will consider key questions around the definition of self in relation to subject, subculture, subversion, as well as issues concerning intercultural encounter. Participants will be invited to consider their own practice, and the tools of media production and historical research, to make work that can be defined as documentary while also pushing the limitations of this mode.
This free, day-long event takes place at Sirius Arts Centre in Cobh. Numbers limited, please contact info@aemi.ie to book.
AEMI: ARTIST IN FOCUS – ROCK BOTTOM RISER + Q&A WITH THE FILMMAKER
Sat 19 | Triskel | 20:00
aemi and CIFF are proud to present the Irish premiere of Rock Bottom Riser by Fern Silva, aemi’s Artist-in-Focus at CIFF 2022. A dynamic feature debut that examines myriad encounters with an island world at sea, this essay film exploring Hawaii weaves a tapestry of post-colonialism and pop culture with cinematic brio and a wry wit.
Rock Bottom Riser is an essential document and an exhilarating tour-de-force, a palimpsest that traverses geology, ethnography and astronomy, described by The New York Times as “[A] psychedelic mixtape of a movie…”
Followed by a Q&A with filmmaker Fern Silva
National Sculpture Factory
Wed 16 | Triskel | 20:00
The National Sculpture Factory presents three films by artists Bárbara Wagner and Benjamin de Burca.
One Hundred Steps, 2020
Swinguerra, 2019
Terremoto Santo / Holy Tremor, 2017
There will be Q+A between an invited chair and the artists between the screenings.
PANEL DISCUSSIONS
FASHION REIMAGINED
Thu 17 | Gate | 19:30
Follow fashion designer Amy Powney on her journey from outsider to industry leader as she sets out to create a transparent, ethical and sustainable collection, from the field to the finished garment. Exposing the complexity of the fashion industry’s supply chain, and addressing the urgent issue of global waste, this documentary highlights how the actions of one can influence an entire sector.
The event will be followed by a panel discussion with special guests, presented in partnership with Future Planet.
Moderator: Donal Daly (Future Planet)
Speakers:
- Becky Hutner (Film Director)
- Dr. Maria Kirrane (UCC)
- Laragh McCann (Climate Love Ireland)
DAUGHTERS (DÖTTRAR)
Sat 12 | Triskel | 16:30
Intimate, empathetic and highly affecting, Daughters sensitively depicts the experiences of three siblings grieving their mother’s tragic death by suicide. Told through observations into their individual lives and profound conversations between the two, they share memories of their mother and give moving insights into their trauma. Filmed by director Jennifer Malmqvist over a ten-year period, this fierce commitment to story and subject is evidenced on-screen in a truly special, and ultimately uplifting, film about familial love and the ties that bind. RG
Official Selection, CPH:Dox, 2022
Official Selection, Visions du Réel, 2022
Following the screening, there will be a panel discussion with special guests:
- Stephanie Allen – Lecturer in Mental Health Nursing, University College Cork
- Dr. Eve Griffin – Researcher, National Suicide Research Foundation
- Dr. Maria O’Malley – Lecturer in Mental Health, Clinical Practice Module Lead, University College Cork
Showing as part of our Illuminate Film & Mental Health strand
HYPHEN
When Akin arrives in Ireland he embarks on a difficult journey to cultivate a new sense of identity in this strange country.
Followed by a Q&A with the Scholars and Lord David Puttnam
