26/01/2005

Northern Ireland writer director Terry George will be running in three major categories for his film Hotel Rwanda at the upcoming Academy Awards ceremony on February 27th and his fellow countryman Gary McKendry will also be competing in the Best Live Action Short category for Everything In This Country Must.

The Belfast-born Terry George who was previously Oscar nominated for the script of In The Name Of The Father in 1993, will compete this year at the Academy Awards for the Best original screenplay co-written with Keir Pearson. Based on a true story, Hotel Rwanda portrays the heroic actions of Paul Rusesabagina who risked his life to save more than a thousand Tutsis and Hutus marked for death during the Rwandan massacre. Don Cheadle who plays the hero will run for Best actor and his co-star in the film, British actress Sophie Okonedo will compete in the Best actress, supporting role category. The film which will also be shown out of competition at the next Berlin Film Festival, has already won several major awards including the People’s Choice Award at the last Toronto Film Festival.

Gary McKendry, a well-known international commercials director will try to win the prestigious statuette for his short film Everything In This Country Must an adaptation of Colum McCann’s novel by. The short film depicts a young British soldier in Northern Ireland who is involved in an accident that kills a mother and her child. But the same soldier also helps a farmer and his daughter save their drowning horse.