Irish Film Industry @ Tribeca 2012
A delegation of Irish producers, directors, acting talent and crew will be in New York City this week to attend Robert De Niro's renowned Tribeca Film Festival.
The festival, which kicks off tomorrow April 18th, features a strong Irish line-up including the world premiere of the new Irish feature BABYGIRL written and directed by Macdara Vallely, the US premiere of Ian Fitzgibbon's DEATH OF A SUPERHERO and the North American premieres of Safinez Bousbia's documentary EL GUSTO and Lorcan Finnegan's short film FOXES.
Other Irish interests in the shorts section include the short film SCREENSHOT written and directed by Cathal Burke and ALL THAT WAY FOR LOVE written by Irish writer Thomas Martin.
Along with the screenings, the Irish delegation which includes directors Matthew Vallely and Ian Fitzgibbon along with producers, cast and crew will be using the opportunity to network and make valuable contacts with the international industry.
Acclaimed Irish director Jim Sheridan (In America, My Left Foot) will attend the festival as a juror and will help judge the festival's World Narrative Competition. He will also take part in the Tribeca Talks Directors Series on April 28th when he will be interviewed by his daughter, the Oscar-nominated Naomi Sheridan.
The Tribeca Film Festival will take place in New York City from April 18th - 29th.
MORE ABOUT BABYGIRL
BABYGIRL tells the story of Bronx teenager Lena who for as long as she can remember has watched her mom Lucy squander her life on a series of deadbeat men. When Victor, her mom's latest boy toy, starts hitting on Lena, she sets up a trap to expose Victor for the creep he is... but the plan backfires.
Produced by David Collins, Paul Miller and Gigi Dement for Samson Films and Escape Pictures, BABYGIRL was funded by Bord Scannán na hÉireann/the Irish Film Board and Werner Films.
MORE ABOUT DEATH OF A SUPERHERO
With its innovative mix of live action and animation, Ian Fitzgibbon's DEATH OF A SUPERHERO is based on the novel ‘Death of a Superhero' by internationally acclaimed author Anthony McCarten, who also wrote the screenplay. It stars Andy Serkis (The Lord of the Rings, Ink Heart), Thomas Brodie Sangster (Love Actually, Nowhere Boy), Michael McElhatton (Intermission, Adam & Paul, I Went Down), Jessica Schwarz (Perfume, The Door) and Aisling Loftus.
The film had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival last year where it garnered much critical acclaim and was also the closing film of the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival earlier this year.
DEATH OF A SUPERHERO was produced by Grand Pictures and Bavaria Pictures and funded by Bord Scannán na hÉireann/the Irish Film Board, FilmFernsehFonds Bayern, German Federal Film Board, Bayerischer Bankenfonds, German Federal Film Fund, the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media.
MORE ABOUT EL GUSTO
Irish documentary EL GUSTO, directed by Safinez Bousbia follows 73 year old Algerian guitarist Mustafa Tahmi as he heads to a reunion with his old classmates. As he and his friends share their extraordinary memories, their personal tragedies and their never abandoned musical dreams, we learn that their love of Chaabi music has forged a bond that can never be torn apart.
Produced by Bousbia and Heidi Egger for Quidam Productions, the film was funded by Bord Scannán na hÉireann/the Irish Film Board, ENTV, ONDA and CCF.
MORE ABOUT FOXES
Lorcan Finnegan's FOXES tells the tale of a young couple trapped in a remote estate of empty houses and shrieking foxes are beckoned from their isolation into a twilight world, a world of the paranormal or perhaps insanity. It was written by Garret Shanley and produced by Brunella Cocchiglia for Lovely Productions as part of Bord Scannán na hÉireann/the Irish Film Board's Signatures scheme. Lorcan previously directed the Virtual Cinema short Invention of the Lightbulb and the Short Short Changes.FOXES is one of 60 short films to screen in the Fallout - Narrative section.