WELCOME
Jason O’Mahony, Artistic Director
Greetings to the 9th annual Samhlaiocht Kerry Film Festival – we’ve a jam packed calendar of wonderful events, a mix of popular old favourites and new screenings that offer something for everyone!
The Samhlaiocht Kerry Film Festival promises, as ever, a wealth of the best Irish and International Short Films. We’re offering a €500 prize to the Best Irish Short film, the award is kindly sponsored by Cork Film Centre. We’re also offering €1,000 to the Best Film as judged by you, our audience. The Audience Award is sponsored by John Moore. We’re also offering a top cash prize of €5,000 for the Best Film! Awards are also awarded for Best Animated Short, Best International Short and Best Documentary Short.
And to adjudicate the shorts we’ve lined up a stellar panel of Judges – Liam Neeson, the Irish Oscar and Multiple Golden Globe nominated Actor will judge the Best Director prize; Kirsten Sheridan, the wonderful Irish director and Oscar nominated writer, will judge International Shorts; Vanessa Roth, will adjudicate the Doc prize; John Carney, Director of last year’s ONCE, will judge the Irish Shorts; while Suzie Templeton, Oscar Winner for Animated Short, PETER & THE WOLF will pick the best Animated Short.
In addition to our Short Screenings we’ve absolutely delighted to present a special screening of John Ford’s legendary classic, THE QUIET MAN, with actress Maureen O’ Hara, the film will screen in Siamsa Tíre on Saturday, November 1st. Oscar winning Actress, Brenda Fricker, will be on hand at the Kerry Film Festival Awards Ceremony to pick up the inaugural Maureen O’ Hara tribute. The Award acknowledges women that have demonstrated outstanding leadership in their respective fields and Brenda is a most worthy recipient.
The ever popular Gortbrack Farm musical documentary returns with a screening of selected short films. One such short, SATSANG, by local Kerry Filmmaker, Kevin Herlihy, focuses on local musician James Kennedy, the charismatic bass guitarist of Avatar, who will be on hand to play a concert after the screenings. DAMBÉ: THE MALI PROJECT, Dearbhla Glynn’s documentary detailing Liam O Maonlai’s recent trip to Mali will play in both Dingle and Listowel with concerts to follow! Add to that a special screening of Charlie Chaplin’s CITY LIGHTS, with live piano accompaniment giving film fans a chance to see the classic film as it was meant to be seen! Truly a veritable feast for music lovers!
Because of the huge success of last year’s screening of THE GREEN AND GOLD, we’ve decided to invite back filmmaker Maurice Healy to screen his documentary, WAITING FOR HOULIHAN, a documentary about one of the Kingdom’s favourite sons, Con Houlihan, the legendary “teacher, fisherman, turf cutter and rugby player.”
A huge thank you to The Arts Council, Kerry County Council, and FÁS for their generous grant aid, especially warm thanks must also go to our adjudicators, who give so selflessly of their time, and a Kerry welcome to all our Film Makers and of course to our patrons, sponsors and to you! I hope you have a brilliantly enjoyable festival, see some wonderful films and enjoy yourselves thoroughly. Because we will!
Cheers,
Jason
Louis Mulcahy, Cathaiorleach, Samhlaíocht Board of DirectorsChuireann sé an-áthas orm, ar son Bhord Samhlaíocht Chiarraí, Féile Scannánaíochta Chiarraí 2008 a fhógairt. Is féile ar leith í an Fhéile Scannánaíocht seo atá eagraíthe ag Samhlaíocht agus tá sí imithe i bhfeidhm go mór ar phobal Chiarraí agus is mór an onóir domsa a bheith páirteach ann.
It gives me great pleasure, on behalf of the Board of Samhlaíocht Chiarraí, to announce the programme of activities for our ninth annual Kerry Film Festival.
This year the programme is delivering an enormous increase in entries which is testament to the wonderful prizes on offer and the growing importance of the Kerry Film Festival within the festival circuit.
While still firmly based in the community of Kerry, with many films from the Kingdom, the festival has become a truly global event, showing short films from all over the world. The shorts will be judged by a panel of internationally respected adjudicators.
Besides our traditional core programme of short films we are delighted to open the festival with a screening of John Ford’s classic, THE QUIET MAN, with the legendary Maureen O’ Hara.
We expect to significantly increase audiences this year as we will screen films all over the county and we expand the local screening venues to five towns – Dingle, Killarney, Kenmare, Listowel, Waterville and, of course, Tralee. The educational programme has also been extended with ten screenings and workshops for schools around the County.
This has all come about due to the generosity of our sponsors and funding partners to whom we are greatly indebted and to whom the Board would like to express heartfelt appreciation. We must thank our major corporate sponsor Kerry Group and our funding partners: the Arts Council, Kerry County Council, FÁS, Údarás na Gaeltachta and Cork Film Centre as well as all the local businesses and private individuals throughout the county.
The Board and Staff of Samhlaíocht Chiarraí would like nothing more than for you to sit back and enjoy this wonderful programme of films in Kerry.
Tá súil ag an mBord go mbainfheadh gach éinne an-taithneamh as na himeachtaí ar fad i rith na Féile.
Louis Mulcahy
Cathoirleach.
T. Curran/T. Ó Curráin, County Manager/Bainisteoir Contae
The Kerry Film Festival, which is now in its ninth year, is an annual highlight in the cultural life of Kerry and plays an integral role in Kerry’s film development, both as a platform for local artists and as an event that develops audiences.
From a small beginning the Kerry Film Festival has grown substantially and now has screenings all over Kerry with screenings taking place in Tralee, Listowel, Killarney, Dingle, Waterville and Kenmare making it a film festival for all of Kerry. It’s a wonderful opportunity for Kerry people to be inspired by the very best in local, national and international film and an equally wonderful opportunity for Kerry to inspire the Filmmakers!
The Festival provides a wealth of quality films: documentaries, comedy, art house, action and animation. The standard of the Festival has already made its mark within the film community and the opportunity created by this festival for up and coming Directors and Producers cannot be understated.
I would like to welcome all visitors to this year’s festival and to congratulate Jason O’Mahony, Artistic Director and all the staff in Samhlaíocht on the promotion of the film industry in the County and to wish it continued success for the future.