Cork Film Festival launches packed programme for November event

Cork International Film Festival features an eclectic mix of Irish and international movies, writes Esther McCarthy

Thu, 12 Oct, 2023 - 08:40

Featuring the Irish premieres of All of Us Strangers and Poor Things - two of the most-anticipated films of the year - the Cork International Film Festival has unveiled a packed programme for its 68th edition.

This year’s festival was officially launched at St Peter’s in North Main Street, where full details of the programme, featuring over 200 films, were released.

With the Gate Cinema currently undergoing a major refurbishment and out of use for the festival, organisers took the decision to extended the event to 18 days, making more use of venues such as the Everyman and Triskel Christchurch. There will be screenings in 14 venues across Cork city, suburbs and county. The festival will also have an online programme.

This year the Irish Examiner will support an awards category for Best New Irish Feature. Featuring a jury that includes film producer and CIFF patron David Puttnam, filmmaker Carmel Winters, and filmmaker and Head of Doc Station Berlinale Zeynep Güzel, the winner will be announced on Sunday, November 19.

Steve Collins, Barry Hearn and Chris Eubank in the documentary, One Night In Millstreet.

The New Irish Feature nominees category comprises a strong line-up which includes Paul Duane’s All You Need is Death, Alan Gilsenan’s The Days of Trees, Paul Mercier’s Prospect House, Ken Wardrop’s So This Is Christmas and Andrew Gallimore’s One Night in Millstreet. The latter tells the story of the memorable world championship boxing match that took place in Millstreet’s Green Glens Arena in 1995 between Steve Collins and Chris Eubank.

The Irish Film Institute will also feature Cork on Camera: A Focus on Flora Kerrigan, which will take place at Triskel. Made in 1960s Cork and preserved by the IFI, the amateur films by Flora Kerrigan tackle existential subjects from death to desire, through animation and live-action filmmaking.

CIFF has teamed up with six Cork city- and county-wide venues for ‘Super Cine Saturday’ on November 25th. The Reel Picture Ballincollig and Blackpool, Cinemax Bantry, Gate Cinemas Midleton and Mallow, and Regal Cinema Youghal will all show a ‘Taste of CIFF’ with three specially selected feature films from the 68th Festival programme, including Fallen Leaves, One Night In Millstreet, and family film Robot Dreams.

CIFF will open with the Irish premiere of Poor Things, the latest feature from critically acclaimed filmmaker Yorgos Lanthimos, whose previous films include The Lobster, shot in Co Kerry.

Lathimos’s latest collaboration with Irish production company Element Pictures stars Emma Stone as a young woman brought back to life by an unorthodox scientist. Poor Things has already been generating lots of early awards-season buzz.

Other anticipated features at this year’s festival include All of Us Strangers, the highly praised drama from Andrew Haigh, starring Andrew Scott and Paul Mescal. Scott plays a screenwriter living in London who strikes up a relationship with his neighbour (Mescal).

This year’s documentary gala, Is There Anybody Out There? Tells the remarkable story of Ella Glendining. The British woman - who will attend the screening - was born without hip joints and with shortened femurs.

Other highlights include the Irish premiere of Eileen, starring Anne Hathaway and Thomasin McKenzie, and the Irish premiere of Fallen Leaves, the Jury Prize Winner at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.

Jared Harris is among the stars of Brave The Dark.

“Cinema can transport us to other worlds, spark new conversations, and inspire action and change, and film festivals are uniquely special places that bring us together to experience the extraordinary and the ordinary, collectively,” said CIFF Patron and West Cork resident David Puttnam, whose many film credits include The Mission and Chariots of Fire.

“The 68th edition is bursting with films that encourage us to reimagine the world, to discover and share new experiences.”

CIFF Director and CEO Fiona Clark said about this year’s expanded festival: “I’m hugely proud of the whole CIFF team for their dedication in bringing together this world-class programme, which I believe cements our reputation as one of the most prestigious and dynamic film festivals internationally.”