24/02/2006

The 4th Jameson Dublin International Film Festival (DIFF), which runs February 17-26, is now the biggest film event in Ireland: 30,000 film lovers attended the festival last year and 2006 should exceed this total with its eclectic programme of 100 films from 34 countries carefully chosen by artistic director Michael Dwyer.

So far, the highlights of the festival have included: the opening film and world premiere of Paul Mercier’s comedy Studs, attended by the film’s star, Brendan Gleeson; and the gala screening and world premiere of the Irish/UK/Danish co-production Johnny Was by Mark Hammond, glamorised by the presence of Patrick Bergin and Vinnie Jones.

Today, Michael Caton-Jones and his Rwanda drama Shooting Dogs will be inaugurating the new Cineworld Gala section with the actor John Hurt; Billy O’Brien will present – as part of the Irish Cinema Showcase – his thriller Isolation, featuring Ireland’s 2006 Shooting Star Ruth Negga; and, on Sunday, the biggest star of the event, Daniel Day-Lewis, will present the closing night film, The Ballad of Jack and Rose with the film’s director, his wife Rebecca Miller.

On the business side, DIFF 2006 will be remembered as the first edition of the Film Industry Conference addressing the changing landscape of European film finance. Organised in association with PricewaterhouseCoopers, the conference held Thursday welcomed a panel of 14 European film professionals, including Paul Trijbits (head of the UK Film Council’s New Cinema Fund), Simon Perry (new Head of the Irish Film Board) and Andrew Reid (head of production for the Northern Ireland Film & TV Commission). Following an introductory speech by the Irish Minister for Arts, Sports and Tourism, John O’Donoghue, the panellists discussed Irish/UK co-productions (in light of the new tax credit system in the UK), European co-productions, low budget filmmaking and new financing opportunities (in light of changing distribution models).