The 53rd Taormina Film Festival has announced the Irish feature film ‘Kings’, directed by Tom Collins, is to receive its world premiere at the Italian festival. The bi-lingual feature will compete against five other international titles for the Beyond Mediterranean Audience Award.
The Taormina festival is held on the Italian island of Sicily and is considered among the foremost festivals in Europe. Running from the 16 – 22 June the festival will present four world premieres in the Beyond Mediterranean strand from Ireland, Russia (Kremen), Bulgaria (Pazachut na murtvite) and Japan (Akanezora). ‘Good Time Max’ from US actor turned director James Franco (Spiderman) and Lucia Puenzo’s ‘XXY’ round out the Beyond Mediterranean selection.
Producer Jackie Larkin from Newgrange Pictures and director Tom Collins will travel to Italy for the festival screening. Earlier today Larkin commented to IFTN: “We're delighted that ‘Kings’ has been accepted into this prestigious festival and it really came about after our market screenings in Cannes which were very well attended. It's great that an Irish language feature is getting out there to an international film festival audience.”
‘Kings’ is directed by Tom Collins (Dead Long Enough) and was adapted for the screen from the award winning play ‘Kings of the Kilburn High Road’ by Jimmy Murphy. The film stars Colm Meaney (Intermission, Layer Cake) with a strong supporting cast that includes Donal O’Kelly (Spin the Bottle), Brendan Conroy (A Man of No Importance), Donncha Crowley (King Arthur), Barry Barnes (Veronica Guerin) and Seán Ó Tarpaigh.
Principal photography for ‘Kings’ commenced in September 2006, with director Collins recently completing post-production at Screen Scene in Dublin. Set in contemporary London, ‘Kings’ tells the story of a group of Irish emigrants reunited for one day at the funeral of one of their close friends. It is the first bi-lingual feature to be shot in Ireland and scenes for the film were filmed on locations in Belfast, Dublin and London over a five week period.
'Kings' is a Newgrange Pictures/Greenpark Films co-production in association with De Facto Films. Supported by the Irish Film Board, Broadcast Commission of Ireland, TG4, Northern Ireland Screen and the Irish Language Broadcast Fund.
'Kings' will receive its offical Irish premiere during the Galway Film Fleadh in July 2007.
