Cinemobile's new film initiative, ‘North by Northwest - Films on the Fringe’, will be bringing free film screenings to Athenry and Indreabhán over the coming weeks.
Commissioned by Creative Europe and the MEDIA Audience Development programme, the ethos of Films on the Fringe involves Cinemobile partnering with cinemas in rural parts of Iceland, Finland, Scotland and Norway. Collaboratively the five countries involved have curated a selection of films which will bring European Independent cinema to some of the remotest regions in North Western Europe.
Manager of Cinemobile, Noreen Collins, elaborates: ‘Each partnering country has chosen a selection of its best indigenous films that will be screened free to audiences in the more rural regions of these five countries; you could call it a 'film swap' of sorts. The aim of our Films on the Fringe project is to build new audiences specifically for European independent cinema titles in these regions. We want to encourage people who would never dream of going to see a subtitled film to come out and try these films.’
‘So for this reason it was agreed that the screenings in all five countries would be delivered free to the public, to encourage people to come out and sample the quality of films that are being produced in Europe right now. Ultimately, audiences will be open to watching European titles alongside more mainstream titles, and not necessarily instead of.’
Cinemobile will be in Athenry, in association with Athenry Film Club, on Friday 20th and Saturday 21st February parked at the Swangate car park, screening two documentaries; from Finland ‘The Punk Syndrome’ and the Scottish documentary ‘Kiss the Water’.
Indreabhán Film Club will play host to Films on the Fringe on the Saturday with a double bill, ‘Pioneer’, a feature film based on the Norwegian oil industry, followed by the Icelandic film ‘Of Horses and Men’. Screenings are free and open to all.
Noreen Collins concluded: ‘The project has already toured to Clones, Kilkenny and Kells and will travel to Dingle in March. So this is a great opportunity for audiences in Galway to see some distinctive and unique films from these countries.’
