Cork International Film Festival (CIFF) will host a programme of industry events on 17th and 18th November 2022, comprising First Take, Doc Day Live and Doc Day Online.
CIFF will host panel discussions with special guests from the international film industry, who will share their invaluable insight into current trends in the sector. CIFF Industry Days are presented in partnership with Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland, and supported by the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland.
FIRST TAKE (Thursday 17th November)
Irish Screen Guilds | Crew Members in Focus
The screen industry in Ireland is booming, experiencing exponential growth in the past number of years. With this upsurge in both inward and indigenous production, the need for skilled and competent crews has never been greater.
This session will use Screen Ireland’s new learning resource – ‘ The Competency Framework for Crew’ – as a foundation to explore the wide range of career opportunities available in the sector, across the spectrum of the film production process.
Speakers:
- Jessica Drumm – CEO, Screen Guilds of Ireland
- Tara Knol – Costume Designer
- Dave Moran – Script Supervisor
- Carol Tormey – Focus Puller
Hosted by: Elaine Geraghty – Managing Director, Ardmore & Troy Studios
Presented in partnership with the Screen Guild of Ireland
Cultivating Film Careers | Ireland’s National Talent Academies
With the increased expansion of the Irish film industry, development supports for emerging Irish filmmakers have propagated around the country. First Take will provide a platform to our new National Talent Academies, disseminating information on these training and mentoring opportunities for the next generation of Irish filmmakers.
Speakers:
- Rachael Power – Film & TV Crew Academy Manager (South), Film in Limerick
- Eibh Collins – Development Executive, Árdan
- Fran Keaveney – Skills Development Executive, Screen Skills Ireland
Hosted by: Elaine Geraghty – Managing Director, Ardmore & Troy Studios
Feature Film Case Study | Ballywalter
Screening at Cork International Film Festival this year, Ballywalter is a bittersweet comedic drama set in Northern Ireland, and the debut feature film from multi-hyphenate artist Prasanna Puwanarajah.
In this in-depth discussion, Prasanna will delve into the development, production and post-production process behind the making of the film, as well as his own career trajectory as a writer, director and actor for film and television, and discuss how he found his way to his first feature film.
Speaker: Prasanna Puwanarajah – Director, Ballywalter
Ballywalter screens at CIFF on Wednesday 16th and Friday 18th November at the Gate Cinema Cork. Book here.
Filmmaker Career Interview – Frank Berry
From his beginnings as a community filmmaker and educator, Frank Berry has moved to become one of Ireland’s leading directors, and makers of socially engaged film.
The director of three successful features, as well as work in documentary and short films, Frank will reflect on his journey as a filmmaker, from his early work on I Used to Live Here, to the IFTA Award Winning Michael Inside and Aisha, his acclaimed third feature, which premiered at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival, and will open this year’s Cork International Film Festival at Cork Opera House on Thursday, 10th November.
Speaker: Frank Berry – Director, Aisha
In conversation with: Donald Clarke – Chief Film Correspondent, The Irish Times
Screening of Hyphen (Thursday 17th November):
First Take will be followed by a special screening of the Puttnam Scholars’ short film Hyphen with a Q&A hosted by Festival Patron, Lord David Puttnam. The screening will take place at the Triskel at 16:30.
If you are interested in attending both First Take and the screening of Hyphen, we are delighted to offer a special discount for both events for €20. You can avail of this special discount here.
Following this event will be the announcement of CIFF2022 Short Award winners.
DOC DAY LIVE (Friday 18th November)
Cork International Film Festival continues to develop its focus on high-quality Irish and international documentary cinema with Doc Day Live on Friday 18th November at The Metropole Hotel. Doc Day will include sessions on dissecting current trends and shifts in the non-fiction film industry, as well as a focus on impact distribution with Sarah Mosses, CEO of Together Films, one of the most prominent impact strategists and distributors working in the documentary industry today. A networking reception will conclude the event and precede the Irish premiere of Abigail Disney’s new feature documentary The American Dream and Other Fairy Tales at 5:30pm at the Gate Cinema.
Abigail Disney
The Changing Face of Non-Fiction Film
Whilst the documentary film industry has always been mercurial and ever-changing, in recent years various factors have caused monumental shifts in the industry; from the rise of VOD, TVOD and SVOD services, to the move towards serialised content, as well as the inevitable effects of the Covid-19 Pandemic.
But what does today’s documentary landscape look like? Though these can be considered challenging times, they also present opportunities for creatives. In this extensive panel discussion, speakers will dissect and focus on the current trends in non-fiction film, their own experiences, and best practice for this ever-changing industry.
Speakers:
- Trevor Birney – Producer, Fine Point Films
- Andrew Byrne – Project Manager, Screen Ireland
- Aideen Kane – Director, The 8th, Producer, The American Dream & Other Fairytales
- Vanessa Tovell – Chief Operating Officer, Lightbox Entertainment
- Daan Vermeulen – Head of Acquisitions, Cinema Delicatessen
Making an Impact | The Work of Together Films
One of the most prominent impact strategists and distributors working in the documentary industry today, Together Films supports filmmakers to ensure that their projects get to the right audiences, at the right time.
Their most recent strategy campaign is for the recent feature documentary Battleground (showing at CIFF on Saturday 19th November at Gate Cinema Cork and available to watch online from Friday 18th November), which looks at the US anti-abortion campaigns attempt (and eventual success) at overturning Roe v. Wade, and screens at Cork International Film Festival this year. Other films that the company has worked on include Unrest (CIFF 2017) and The 8th (CIFF 2020).
In this in-depth presentation, Sarah Mosses, founder & CEO of Together Films, will break down how the organisation works with filmmakers – devising individual concepts, developing singular distribution plans, and the critical importance of considering audiences through the entire production process.
Speaker: Sarah Mosses – Founder & CEO, Together Films
Documentary Programming | Curating in the Wake of Covid
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a substantial impact on film festivals, drastically altering the way in which they function, as well as their programming methods.
Representatives from a number of prestigious European film festivals join Doc Day to confer on these recent changes; delving into their festivals’ individual processes, creative collaborations and partnership building, and how their festivals and curatorial practices have changed since Covid.
Speakers:
- Inka Achté – Head of Programming, Docpoint -The Helsinki Documentary Film Festival
- Rohan Berry Crickmar – Freelance Documentary Programmer
- Anna Kopecka – Programme Director, Cork International Film Festival
- Joana Sousa – Head of Programme, Doclisboa
Personal Documentary Filmmaking | A Conversation with Abigail Disney
Focusing on the making of her recent documentary feature film The American Dream and Other Fairytales, which screens at Cork International Film Festival this year (Friday 18th November at Gate Cinema Cork), filmmaker Abigail Disney will join Doc Day for an in-depth conversation on the making of this very personal film.
Though a specialist in producing, directing and promoting non-fiction films with advocacy and impact at their heart, this film is a particularly vulnerable and brave endeavour, considering the subject matter, which explores her personal history and the legacy of the Disney organisation. In this conversation, Abigail will discuss the intimacies, and intricacies, of telling her own family’s story.
Speaker: Abigail Disney
In conversation with: Una Mullally – Columnist, The Irish Times
A drinks reception will conclude the event 16:00-17:00, followed by the screening of Abigail Disney’s new feature documentary The American Dream and Other Fairy Tales at 17:30 at the Gate Cinema.
If you are interested in attending both Doc Day and the screening of The American Dream and Other Fairy Tales, we are delighted to offer a special discount for both events for €20. You can avail of this special discount here.
Drinks reception sponsored by:
Doc Day Online (November 18th – 30th):
In addition to the in-person offering for Doc Day 2022, the Festival will host a series of free online sessions, complimenting this year’s non-fiction programme and encompassing in-depth filmmaker conversations and case studies.
Kash Kash: Without Feathers We Can’t Live | Engaging the Personal & Political on Film
Speakers:
- Lea Najjar – Director, Kash Kash: Without Feathers We Can’t Live
- Alia Haju – Co-writer, Kash Kash: Without Feathers We Can’t Live
In conversation with: Nadine Asmar – Filmmaker / FIlm Programme
Battleground | Chronicling a Movement
Cynthia Lowen is an Emmy-nominated filmmaker and award-winning writer whose work uses the power of story to catalyse meaningful change, confronting timely social issues and shining a light on contemporary concerns. Her most feature length documentary Battleground (showing at CIFF on Saturday 19th November at Gate Cinema Cork and available to watch online from Friday 18th November), continues in this mode, providing an powerful, timely and urgent look at the anti-abortion movement in the US.
In this comprehensive discussion about the film, Cynthia discusses the making of Battleground – crafting a fascinating and terrifying portrait of the quest to overturn Roe v Wade, and depicting the intersection of abortion and politics in America.
Speaker: Cynthia Lowen – Director, Battleground
In conversation with: Lucy Kennedy – Co-director, The 8th
The Ghost of Richard Harris | Profiling an Icon
The Ghost of Richard Harris, which profiles one of Ireland’s most remarkable acting talents, is a documentary film a long time in the making. It recently world premiered at the Venice Film Festival and has its Irish premiere at Cork International Film Festival (Sunday, 13th November at The Everyman).
In this in-depth case study of the film, director and producer Adrian Sibley gives a frank account of the lengthy development phase of the film, its creative collaborations, and the intricacies involved in chronicling the life of such a legendary figure.
Speaker: Adrian Sibley – Director/Producer, The Ghost of Richard Harris
In conversation with: Susan Kirby – CEO, Screen Producers Ireland
How to Save a Dead Friend | Personal Documentary Filmmaking
How to Save a Dead Friend is a harrowing portrait of disenfranchised youth in Putin’s Russia, which is both fascinating and devastating in its depiction of romance, codependency and letting go. A nominee for the Cinematic Documentary Award at Cork International Film Festival this year, it is a deeply personal documentary with rich archival elements and extraordinary candour, with the director weaving a highly authored and passionate tale of love and death. In this intimate conversation, she breaks down her motivations and inspiration, and the evolutions in the making of this very personal film. How to Save a Dead Friend screens at CIFF on Thursday, 17th November at Gate Cinema Cork.
Speaker: Marusya Syroechkovskaya – Director, How to Save a Dead Friend
In conversation with: Rohan Berry Crickmar – Documentary Programmer
IGNITE Documentary Talent Development Programme:
IGNITE is a bilingual talent development programme and a joint initiative led by Cork International Film Festival and Docs Ireland, Belfast, directed towards emerging Irish and Northern Irish documentary filmmakers embarking on their first or second non-fiction feature film. Supported by TG4, the Arts Council of Ireland, Screen Ireland, Screen Skillnet, Northern Ireland Screen, and Arts & Business NI.
