FESTIVAL WILL OPEN WITH LISA MULCAHY'S AWARD-WINNING LIES WE TELL, FEATURING AGNES O'CASEY AND DAVID WILMOT AND PATRICIA KELLY'S VERDIGRIS, FEATURING GERALDINE MCALINDEN AND MAYA O'SHEA WILL CLOSE CIFF 2024
A special In Memoriam screening of CROCK OF GOLD the revelatory documentary on the life of The Pogues lead singer Shane MacGowan will also screen
Screen Ireland Increases Support, and Festival will Present A Third Curated Program of New Irish Shorts to Lineup
Guest Artists and Special Events confirmed for opening and closing night ceremonies
WASHINGTON, DC (January 18, 2023) - Solas Nua, Washington, DC’s premiere contemporary Irish arts organization, announces increased support from Screen Ireland - the Irish national body for film, television and animation - for Solas Nua’s 18th annual Capital Irish Film Festival (CIFF) with the AFI Silver Theatre and Culture Center, February 29 - March 3 2024. The festival will present a third additional curated shorts program of seven titles which have been funded by Screen Ireland to be announced with the full CIFF festival lineup on February 1st. CIFF 2024 will open with the East Coast premiere of award-winning Irish director Lisa Mulcahy’s LIES WE TELL (Best Cinematography in an Irish Feature, Galway Fleadh 2023 - Eleanor Bowman), fresh from its American Premiere at the Palm Springs International Film Festival. The film is a sharp, taut, suspenseful and gritty gothic drama with a feminist twist, adapted by Elisabeth Gooch from the revered Sheridan Le Fanu novel, Uncle Silas. The cast includes the great granddaughter of Seán O’Casey, Agnes O’Casey (Bingham Ray New Talent Award Winner at the Galway Fleadh; Ridley Road), David Wilmot (The Wonder), Holly Sturton (Smother) and Chris Walley (Young Offenders). The film is slated for Thursday, February 29, 7:00 p.m. The festival closing film by Patricia Kelly, an exciting voice in Irish cinema, is a second East Coast premiere. VERDIGRIS (Best Independent Film, Galway Fleadh 2023; Best Narrative Feature, Kerry Film Festival 2023; Best Feature Film, Irish Film Festival London 2023; Audience Award–Best Irish Film, Newport Beach Film Festival 2023), an edgy debut feature depicts an unlikely friendship and the diverse social realities of two women from opposite ends of Dublin. Using incredible humor and charm, the film tells a powerful story about class, female friendship, and empowerment. The cast includes Geraldine McAlinden (The Last Rifleman), Maya O'Shea (Normal People) and Michael Ford (Harry Wild). VERDIGRIS is slated for Sunday, March 3, 6:45 p.m.
A gala will be held for pass-holders and opening night ticket holders after the opening film LIES WE TELL on February 29 in the theatre lobby with LIES WE TELL film director Lisa Mulcahy and more featured guests to be announced. An exclusive closing night toast will take place for all pass holders and closing night film ticket holders after the showing of VERDIGRIS on March 3. VERDIGRIS director Patricia Kelly and producer Paul Fitzsimons will be present as closing night featured guests.
In addition to the earlier announced titles - the East Coast premiere of award-winning Irish director, Sarah Share’s THE GRACELESS AGE – THE BALLAD OF JOHN MURRY (Best New Irish Documentary, Galway Fleadh 2023; Audience Award for Best Feature, Irish Film Institute Documentary Festival 2023), a haunting look at musician and artist’s Murry's life as he leaves Ireland and retraces his steps back to his childhood home of Mississippi in this story about the redemptive power of music. There is the North American premiere of two-time Irish Film and Television Academy Best Sports Documentary winner, Andrew Gallimore’s ONE NIGHT IN MILLSTREET (Best Documentary, Irish Film Festival London 2023; Audience Award for Best Feature, Cork International Film Festival 2023), a snapshot of pre-Celtic Tiger Ireland in 1995, told through a prize WBO World Super-Middleweight fight between then unknown Cabra underdog Steve ‘The Celtic Warrior’ Collins and the larger-than-life champion Chris ‘Simply the Best’ Eubank. Director Andrew Gallimore will attend the screening and participate in a Q&A afterwards.
Solas Nua also confirms a special screening of the groundbreaking 2020 documentary, CROCK OF GOLD: A FEW ROUNDS WITH SHANE MACGOWAN (Special Jury Prize, San Sebastian International Film Festival 2020), to the festival lineup. Director Julien Temple’s in-depth and revealing portrait gets to the heart of the boldness and brilliance of the late great Irish poet, artist, writer and punk-folk legend Shane MacGowan, lead singer of The Pogues. The documentary is slated for Thursday, February 29, 9:35 p.m.
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CIFF is one of the largest programs of Irish cinema in North America, showcasing the latest Irish dramatic and documentary features, shorts, art films, and animation releases by Irish and Ireland-based filmmakers. The 18th edition of the festival takes place February 29 - March 3, 2024 in partnership with the American Film Institute's Silver Theatre & Cultural Center (Silver Spring, MD). The four-day festival showcases the latest Irish dramatic and documentary features, shorts, and animation releases, and provides a platform that not only highlights the rich cultural heritage of Ireland but also fosters an inclusive and diverse community of filmmakers.
The Capital Irish Film Festival is supported by the Government of Ireland Emigrant Support Programme, Culture Ireland, Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland, Embassy of Ireland, Northern Ireland Bureau, Northern Ireland Screen, and the Irish Film Institute’s IFI International Programme supported by Culture Ireland.
Capital Irish Film Festival passes are on sale now at SolasNua.org/CIFF with individual tickets on sale February 2, 2024.
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ABOUT SOLAS NUA
Solas Nua - ‘new light’ in Irish, is dedicated exclusively to contemporary Irish arts. Founded in 2005, Solas Nua acts as an ambassador and advocate for Irish arts in the U.S., promoting contemporary Irish culture, multi-disciplinary arts and creativity. Solas Nua commissions, produces and presents thought-provoking and groundbreaking work across genres, work that is cross-cultural, representing today’s Ireland – a contemporary, globally diverse society – and reflecting how Irish culture is shared across borders, ethnicity, and economic lines.
ABOUT SCREEN IRELAND
As the national agency for the Irish film, television drama, animation and documentary industry, Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland is the creative partner to the sector, investing in talent, creativity and enterprise. We are inspired by original storytelling that will emotionally move audiences at home and abroad. Through a wide range of practical funding support across development, production, distribution, promotion and skills development, Screen Ireland supports the sector at every stage. We support filmmakers in their creative pursuit to share valuable artistic, cultural and commercial stories on screen.
ABOUT THE AFI SILVER THEATRE AND CULTURAL CENTER
The AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center is one of the nation’s premier film theatres, building an appreciation of the art and artists through exploring and celebrating new and classic films and filmmakers from around the globe. AFI Silver offers a year-round program of the best in American and international cinema, featuring a dynamic mix of retrospectives, special events, tributes, on-stage guest appearances, specialty first-run movies, festivals, premieres and education and community-based programs in a theatrical setting of the highest standards. Anchored by the stunningly restored 1938 Silver Theatre, the three-screen AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center is a state-of-the-art film and digital media exhibition venue that serves as a national model for preserving and honoring our shared film and film-going heritage. Read about all of these programs and more at AFI.com/Silver, and follow us on social media at Facebook.com/afisilvertheatre, youtube.com/AFISilverTheatre, twitter.com/AFISilver and Instagram.com/afisilvertheatre/
Capital Irish Film Festival
February 29 - March 3, 2024
American Film Institute's Silver Theatre & Cultural Center, 8633 Colesville Rd, Silver Spring, MD 20910
