Marian Quinn’s award winning ‘32A’, Shane Meadows ‘Somers Town’, Garth Jenning’s ‘Son of Rambow’ and ‘Ben X’ are just some of the films set to screen at this year’s Lights Out! Film Festival for Young People, taking place from 12th – 19th July 2008.
Dublin screenings take place at the Irish Film Institute with the festival later touring to Clare, Cork, Kilkenny, Leitrim, Louth and Westmeath.
The festival opens at 6pm on Saturday July 12th in the IFI with Luc Jacquet’s ‘The Fox and the Child’, aimed at an audience aged 6+, which tells the story of a magical but unusual friendship.
Finish film ‘Mystery of the Wolf’ (10+) screens at 10am on July 12th and follows the bravery of one child, Salla, in the snowy wilderness of Lapland.
For older children, Iranian filmmaker Hana Makhmalbaf will present her film ‘Buddha Collapsed out of Shame’(12+) at 2pm on July 13th. The film explores a young girl desperate to educate herself despite Taliban oppression.
The Midweek Gala Screening for teenagers is Marian Quinn’s ‘32A’ (15A), a coming of age story that follows a young teenager growing up in 1970’s Dublin. ‘32A’ screens at 6.40pm on July 16th.
Animations set to screen include Serge Elissalde and Gregoir Solotareff’s animated French fairytale ‘U’ and Hayao Miyazaki’s ‘My Neighbour Totoro’. Irish animator David O’Reilly will present Garth Jenning’s ‘Son of Rambow’ (12A) at 2pm on July 19th.
Other films include Nic Balthazar’s ‘Ben X’ (15+), which follows a young man living with Asperger’s Syndrome and Shane Meadows’ ‘Somers Town’ (15+) which tells the tale of a mismatched friendship between two teenagers, a Polish immigrant and an English renegade.
The festival will come to close on at 6.45pm on July 19th with Elissa Down’s ‘The Black Balloon’ (14+), a family portrait of a teenager struggling to come to terms with his autistic brother.
“For Lights Out!, we've combined our experience working with young people with that of our regional partners, to create a truly varied and exciting festival in venues around the country,” said Alicia McGivern, Head of Education at the IFI. “We hope our audiences everywhere will enjoy some great cinema when the Lights go Out!’”
The Lights Out! Film Screenings are accompanied by workshops and panel discussions covering everything from short film making to TV presenting, animation and special effects movie make-up.
For more info and a full festival line-up go to www.lightsout.ie.
