The Italian festival dedicated to Irish cinema returns with a special online edition
As the second wave of Covid-19 spreads all over the world, cinema adjusts to the new scenario turning in-presence festivals into online events. That’s the case with the Irish Film Festa, an Italian festival dedicated to Irish cinema that should have taken place in March 2020 at Casa del Cinema, in Rome.
The original programme included feature and short films, meeting and masterclasses that will now turn into a special online event that includes only short films selected for the competitive section.
Irish Film Festa In Short runs from November 27 to November 29, 2020: the films from the 13th edition will be available for free, for the italian audience, on the website irishfilmfesta.org . The festival is organized with the support of Culture Ireland, the Embassy of Ireland to Italy and in collaboration with Network Ireland Television.
This year’s competitive section features two categories: Live Action and Animation.
«Sadly, some valuable short films had to be cut out. Once again we are delighted to see how remarkable the short film industry has become in Ireland, as well as to recognize some familiar faces in the competitive line-up: from Moe Dunford to Kate O’Toole, Martin McCann, Ian McElhinney, Pat Shortt, Stuart Graham and Gary Lydon» said Artistic Director Susanna Pellis in a statement.
The Live Action programme includes short films like Cynthia by Jack Hickey, which tells the story of some old friends who participate in a dinner party which takes a shocking turn after some secrets are revealed; Ciúnas (Silence) by Tristan Heanue, the story od a family crisis and Break Us by Rioghhnach Ni Ghrioghair, the potrait of a young couple of robbers who face their “monsters” as things go awry.
Irish Film Festa also focuses on Northern Ireland’s film industry which participates in the competition with short films like The Appointment by David Moody and Father Father by Michael McDowell.
The Live Action category also features two documentaries, The Vasectomy Doctor by Paul Webster and The Grass Ceiling by Iseult Howlett, while the Animation section includes titles like Abe’s Story by Adam H. Stewart (Best Animated Sequence in a Short Film at Galway Film Fleadh 2019) and The Wiremen by Jessica Patterson.
Last but not least, David Tynan’s A Concrete Song will partecipate as an Out of Competition work: the short film was inspired by Hard to Be Soft, a performance series by choreographer Oona Doherty, and it’s the result of a collaboration with the Belfast Arts Festival, the Dublin Dance Festival and Abbey Theatre.
