The Fifth Annual Boston Irish Film Festival came to close on Tuesday, April 29th with the Northeast Premiere of Jim Sheridan’s In America. Sheridan was on hand to introduce the film and receive an Honorary Award for Representing Ireland and the Irish on Screen.
Other award-winners at the festival included Marion Comer (for Boxed, Best Feature), Ian Thuillier (for Darkroom, Best Documentary), Nora Twomey (for From Darkness, Best Short/Animation) and Deirdre Lynch (for Photos to Send, winner of the Director’s Choice Award).
In addition to the winning films, other titles screened at the festival included the comedy Puckoon, the Boston-based crime drama Irish Eyes, and Kirstin Sheridan’s Disco Pigs. Says Festival Director Peter Flynn: "The program this year was the strongest yet. A total of 32 films were screened over five days, more than 20 filmmakers attended, and audience figures were through the roof. It couldn’t have gone more smoothly."
"It was also the first year we offered awards," continues Flynn, "and that certainly raised the bar on the quality of works screened. But what really made the event were the filmmakers themselves who not only bonded immediately, and supported one another’s work, but made a great impression on Boston audiences. We couldn’t have hoped for better representatives of Irish cinema."
The Sixth Annual Boston Irish Film Festival is scheduled for April 2004. A call for entries will be issued in August/September of this year. Further details on the event can be found online at www.irishfilmfestival.com.
