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Film Board Launch 'Review 2002' Document
12 Dec 2002 :
At a packed reception last night (Wednesday), industry heavy hitters, crews, writers and actors listened attentively to Arts Minister John O'Donoghue's speech, launching the Film Board Review 2002 book. Of special interest was O'Donoghue's reference to S481 and ongoing support of the Film Board in light of Finance Minister McCreevey's budget last week.

Copies of the Review book are available from the Film Board.

Below is a full copy of the Minister's speech:

Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am delighted to be here this evening to launch the Irish Film Board's review of 2002.

While I know I have met some of you since I took over the Arts portfolio, I am glad to be able to meet this larger group of those who are part of the Irish film industry, and I wish to thank the Chairman of the Board, Ossie Kilkenny and Chief Executive, Rod Stoneman for providing me with an opportunity to join you here this evening.

Film is clearly big business today, and we rightly applaud when Irish films achieve commercial success. Film is, however, much more than that. It is an art form, in that it allows artists to interpret the world around them and to express this interpretation in a way that is not possible with other formats. It provides us with a distinctive window on ourselves, sometimes allowing us to laugh at ourselves, at other times dealing with more serious aspects of our life or psyche. Film also allows others a window onto us as a people - our culture, our distinctive character, and our unique spin on life. In addition, the film industry provides a valuable training ground in technical skills that have wide application in other areas.

All of these ends are best and most effectively served by promoting a viable indigenous Irish film industry, and it is for that reason that the Government has decided to centre our efforts on this sector for the long term.

The recent Budget had to make hard choices, and of course we all wish that it had been possible to give a more open-ended commitment to the section 481 Scheme. However, I am a pragmatist, and I hope, a realist, and we must now make the very best of where we find ourselves. This means positioning the Irish Film Board as main driver of our efforts to build a viable local film industry in Ireland, and I am confident that the Board will do this, and do it well.

This evening we are marking a productive and eventful year in the life of the Irish Film Board. I wish at the outset to congratulate the Board for the strategic approach it has adopted to meet the varying needs in the industry. For example, the results of the Board's support for the animation sector is particularly well attested to the success of Brown Bag and Zanita companies, our Oscar nominees earlier this year.

The launch this year of the Board's low-budget funding initiatives, particularly in the increasingly important digital media context, is a further concrete example of the Board's commitment to the development of fledging talent.

Nor has the Board neglected more established film-makers. The Company Development Initiative, which recognises maturity of companies but acknowledges their need for planned development, takes a structured and organic approach to project development, and it is an important part of the mix of measures developed by the Board.

The status and calibre of Irish Film continues to be recognised in a variety of prestigious international festivals and markets. I am, of course, aware of the record of "Bloody Sunday" and the 'Magdalene Sisters', both of which have achieved critical acclaim as well as commercial success. The selection of 2 Irish films, including 'Song for a Raggy Boy', for the important Sundance Festival from 2000 submissions is a further cause for celebration.

I have tremendous confidence in the Irish Film Board and its staff, and to their commitment to the indigenous Irish film industry.

I look forward to the Film Board's 10th anniversary next year, which I know will see the consolidation of its past achievements. We can, I hope, all look forward to a productive future.





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