Celebrating its 24th edition, Kerry International Film Festival will take place October 19th - 22nd, 2023. This year’s opening film is Michael Holly and Mieke Vanmechelen’s Hungry Hill.
Tomorrow, October 19th, marks the opening night of the Kerry International Film Festival. The festival kicks off with a reception hosted by Randles Hotel Killarney, followed by a screening of KIFF’s opening film for 2023, Michael Holly and Mieke Vanmechelen’s Hungry Hill in the IMC Killarney.
This Irish documentary explores the lives of sheep farmers in West Cork. Co-directors Mieke Vanmechelen and Michael Holly present a remote and proud community, and explore the difficult issues around sustainable farming. Mieke Vanmechelen has been Kerry’s Filmmaker in residence for the past three years, and KIFF will be welcoming the cast and crew for a special opening night Gala in celebration of the film.
Other Irish highlights across KIFF 2023 include Dubliner Patricia Kelly’s debut drama Verdigris starring Geraldine McAlinden who stars as Marian, a middle-class retired woman who forms an unexpected bond with a challenging inner-city teen played by Maya O'Shea. Adapted from Roddy Doyle’s book of the same title, A Greyhound of a Girl is the latest feature from Italian animator Enzo d’Alo (How the Toys Saved Christmas, 2012’s Pinocchio). KIFF is presenting a double bill featuring John Farrelly’s The Sleep Experiment and Ian Hunt-Duffy's Double Blind. IFTN spoke with The Sleep Experiment director John Farrelly ahead of KIFF 2023.
This year also boasts a strong line-up of documentaries both Irish and international, including Nina Menkes’s Brainwashed: Sex-Camera-Power, which explores the politics of gender in Hollywood. Friday’s programme includes two music documentaries in Sarah Share’s The Graceless Age: The Ballad of John Murry and Michael McGlynn's M'ANAM: Between Two Worlds. On Saturday KIFF are showcasing Aurélio Michiles’s feature Secrets from Putumayo, a tale of the investigations of Roger Casement in South America.
One of the yearly highlights of KIFF is the Maureen O’Hara Award. In 2008 KIFF established the Maureen O’Hara Award in celebration of women who have excelled in film, TV and/or media. his year, KIFF has announced that the KIFF 2023 Maureen O’ Hara Award recipient is actress Eileen Walsh. Walsh’s notable roles include The Van, The Last Bus Home, When Brendan met Trudy, The Magdalene Sisters, Pure Mule, Eden, and Catastrophe.
KIFF will present Eileen Walsh with the KIFF 2023 Maureen O’ Hara Award on Friday, 20th October at Randles Hotel Killarney, via their In Conversation with Eileen Walsh event.
For more information or to book tickets, click here.
