Irish Voices
From intimate reflections to geopolitical analysis, these filmmakers come to us both very much as Irish people fully aware of a common heritage, and as responsible citizens of the world.
2024 Programme
THE ART OF LOSS + Q&A
Documentary
The Art of Loss is a rich and textured personal essay, which reflects on aging and bereavement, and gives an intriguing insight into a creative mind’s process of mourning. Utilizing her natural environment as key visual for the piece, Cork filmmaker Carmel Winters meditates on the universal theme of loss in an original and deeply personal way, as she grieves the passing of both her mother and beloved canine companion Habibi. Despite the difficult subject at play, the piece asserts a playful tone, joyfully performed through narration from Winters herself, in a loving experimentation which is both thoughtful and touching throughout.
Director Carmel Winters will participate in a post-screening discussion about the themes of The Art of Loss with filmmaker Ken Wardrop.
SAT 16 | TRISKEL | 15:30
IF I FALL DON’T PICK ME UP + Q&A
Documentary
Berlin, 1974. 32-year-old stage director Walter Asmus assists 68-year-old Samuel Beckett on his first personal production of Waiting for Godot. The two men develop a bond that would last until the death of the celebrated writer. To assist Declan Clarke in telling the story of this loyal friendship, Asmus provides all the elements in his possession, material or remembered, allowing for a precise articulation of facts. As we follow Beckett’s path through the places he liked best in Berlin and Stuttgart, we gradually realise that we have entered the playwright’s world. Emotion, the occasional and rather miraculous child of sobriety and rigour, swells up.
Filmmaker in attendance.
FRI 8 | ARC CINEMA | 17:15
WED 13 | ARC CINEMA | 15:30
THE IRISH LUMIÈRES - THE HORGAN BROTHERS + Q&A
Documentary
An affectionate and lovingly-made tribute to pioneers of Irish film and cinema, The Irish Lumières – The Horgan Brothers brings to life the extraordinary achievements and innovations of brothers James, Thomas and Philip Horgan. That this was happening in Ireland mere years after the advent of cinema is remarkable. That it emerged from Youghal feels all the more extraordinary. But these were extraordinary people living in remarkable times, which they captured in their photography and films. Darina Clancy brings their story to life and captures the brothers as both technical innovators and entrepreneurs, as well as real characters.
Screening with King of Spades – Looking Back Granville Squires and his British film crew arrived at an old water powered shovel mill in rural Cork in 1939 to make a documentary. We returned in 2023 to retrace their steps. Colm Scully / Ireland / 2024 / 37 mins
Filmmaker in attendance.
TUE 12 | TRISKEL | 17:30
THE KEEPERS + Q&A
Documentary
A beautiful portrait of bees, beekeeping and beekeepers, told largely from the perspective of the De Ruiter family, who left the Netherlands for West Cork 25 years ago, making their home on the Beara Peninsula where they practise the art and science of apiary. A debut documentary full of sweetness from director Eoin McGowan.
Filmmaker in attendance.
With support from IFCO.
SAT 16 | TRISKEL | 17:30
M/S + Q&A
Documentary
M/S explores the representation of illness and the radical possibilities of love, care and dying on your own terms. The film draws on the filmmaker’s seventeen years of experience as primary carer for his mother, Susan Heaney, who suffers from multiple sclerosis. The project is co-authored with Susan. Seventeen years of care, in fifty minutes of pure love. Fifty minutes of honesty, precision, inventiveness, tenderness, beauty, poetry and true connection. Fifty minutes of your time, well spent.
Filmmaker in attendance.
SAT 9 | ARC CINEMA | 21:00
NEIL MARTIN: BÓTHAR AN CHEOIL + Q&A
Subtitled, Documentary
The work of Belfast composer Neil Martin has been performed across the globe, from Ground Zero to Mostar Bridge from the Royal Albert Hall to the International Space Station. Producer, arranger and musician, Neil is an artist, who thrives on collaboration with performers, writers, and thinkers from all walks of life. This feature doc follows Neil through grief, celebration and new ambitions to ask whether the work of being an artist ever feels finished.
Filmmaker in attendance.
TUE 12 | ARC CINEMA | 18:30
TRUMPETS + Q&A
Fiction
After travelling to Italy on the anniversary of her son’s death, Magda – a Polish immigrant to Ireland – returns to Donegal, where she has a life changing encounter with a refugee, newly arrived from Rwanda. With Malgosia Bela (Luca Guadagnino’s Suspiria). Shot on location in Bagno Vignoni, Italy, and Donegal, Ireland.
Yvonne McDevitt is the recipient of the Authored Works Award from the Arts Council of Ireland.
Director Yvonne McDevitt returns to Cork International Film Festival to present her new feature film, Trumpets, following her ‘In Conversation’ event from CIFF 2022 during her tenure as UCC Film Artist in Residence, and her short film Myrrh from CIFF 2023.
The screening will be followed by a discussion between Yvonne McDevitt and filmmaker Maximilian Le Cain focusing on the flagship Arts Council / IFI ‘Authored Works Award’, of which Yvonne is the first woman to win the award, and the landscape of Experimental Filmmaking in Ireland.
A bespoke preview screening of Yvonne McDevitt’s latest feature film in advance of its Dublin Premiere at the IFI. An Arts Council of Ireland ‘Authored Works’ feature film by special permission of its exhibition partner, the Irish Film Institute.
SUN 10 | ARC CINEMA | 16:00
