Ahead of the Irish premiere of Kneecap at the Galway Film Fleadh, the director and producer behind the Sundance Audience Award winning film have launched Coup D’Etat Films.
The Belfast-based production company, led by Rich Peppiatt and Trevor Birney, will primarily focus on original scripted content.
Peppiatt (Kneecap; One Rogue Reporter) and Birney (No Stone Unturned; The Go-Go’s; Cyndi Lauper: Let the Canary Sing; Quinn Country) are already in development on a number of domestic and international projects under the COUP D’ETAT banner, exploring both solo and co-production arrangements.
The award-winning feature film Kneecap, written & directed by Peppiatt and produced by Birney, will open the 2024 Galway Film Fleadh this week ahead of its general release in US cinemas on August 2nd, and Irish and UK cinemas the following weeks.
The film, acquired by Sony Pictures Classics, has received critical acclaim picking up the NEXT Audience Award at the prestigious Sundance Film Festival in Utah earlier this year.
Rich Peppiatt, Co-Founder of Coup D’Etat Films said: “Trevor and I are kindred spirits when it comes to anarchic, provocative filmmaking.
“We believe there’s an irreplaceable power in the collective experience of cinema. We believe in the North of Ireland - and its talent and crew - as a world class production base. We see what friends like Element Pictures have done in the South of Ireland and see no reason that success can’t be emulated here.”
Trevor Birney, Co-Founder of Coup D’Etat Films added: “Rich is a creative powerhouse, and our collective production experience offers something special – the setting up of Coup d’état was a natural evolution of that partnership.
“Marrying together creative talent with the commercial realities of a film like Kneecap requires a level of ingenuity, never mind sheer hard work. I think we’ve been able to prove that we can do it. The potential as we move forward with the new venture is a really exciting proposition.”
