‘Patrick’s Day’ Star Moe Dunford is Honoured with Shooting Stars Award at Berlinale
Only days after the release of the acclaimed Irish film Patrick’s Day, the film’s star Moe Dunford was honoured with the European Film Promotion (EFP) Shooting Stars award at the Berlinale Film Festival last night (February 9).
Dunford was presented with the award by Natalie Portman. The EFP Jury had described Dunford as having “the ingredients of a modern-day Hollywood hero”, noted his “physicality and sly charm” and in particular praised his performance in Patrick’s Day, saying that “he shows compassion and subtlety always putting the character first, never letting Patrick’s issues overwhelm the performance.”
Patrick’s Day is the first leading role for Dunford, who previously appeared in The Tudors, Raw and in the recurring role as Aethelwulf in the TV series Vikings, produced in Ireland by World 2000 for History Channel. He will also be seen in the upcoming IFB-funded film Traders.
Dunford joins a long list of Irish recipients of the Shooting Stars award, including Domhnall Gleeson (Star Wars: The Force Awakens), Andrew Scott (Sherlock) and Sarah Bolger (Once Upon a Time). A-list European stars to have received the award in the past include Daniel Craig (the James Bond series), Carey Mulligan (Inside Llewyn Davis) and Daniel Brühl (Rush).
Dunford joined nine other European actors in receiving the award. They were: Natalia de Molina (Spain), Aisté DiržiÅ«té (Lithuania), Joachim Fjelstrup (Denmark), Hera Hilmar (Iceland), Abbey Hoes (The Netherlands), Jannis Niewöhner (Germany), Emmi Parviainen (Finland), Sven Schelker (Switzerland) and Maisie Williams (UK), who in 2014 starred in the IFB-funded feature film Gold.
Directed by Terry McMahon, Patrick’s Day is in cinemas now having received positive reviews from The Hollywood Reporter and The Irish Times amongst many others.