Strong new pillars to Richard Harris International Film Festival

COMMITTED to promoting the Irish/ Limerick film industry at home and abroad since the inception of Richard Harris International Film Festival (RHIFF) in 2013, this year’s festival October 26 to 30 is bolder, bigger and monied.

Much has consolidated in an urgent year of work at home and overseas: Limerick/ USA movie projects are nigh; the joining with April’s Limerick Film Festival (LFF) at board and strategy level; a €30,000 funding first from Limerick Council; the creation of a video on demand (VOD) platform for the RHIFF TV channel with new partner Shift72.com, the New Zealand based tech company; first year of affiliation with IFTA; a doubling of features and shorts to screen.

The 2017 programme richardharrisfilmfestival.com was launched in upbeat mood on Monday in George Boutique Hotel by founding members Zeb and Sylvia Moore, and new partner, LFF’s Simon McGuire.

RHIFF will run five days over October 26 to 30.

Previewing with Limerick Post, co-founder and chairperson Rob Gill – himself a film maker/ actor with the short ‘A Very Irish Family’ to screen on Sunday 29 in Belltable – highlighted another festival USP.

“Almost 50 per cent of selected features and shorts will be by female directors or writers, selected on merit, not gender, which is reflective of the standards entered. Last year we had just short of 60 sceenings and this year we wave 108 in all, 99 shorts and 8 features. Back in 2013 we started with less than 10 screenings in total.

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“Now with joining with Limerick Film Festival we will be showing in Belltable and LIT Millennium Theatre where Simon operated LFF. Most of the international features will have their cast and crew in attendance”.

Exciting stuff for upcoming makers of film here.

UL campus is embraced also with the concert hall staging the RHIFF annual concert, this year’s being  Goldenhair. It spins the poetry of James Joyce through Golden Globe-winning Brian Byrne’s composition, with Stephen Rea and Patrick Bergin mastering the spoken word, with singers Kathleen Turner, Wiliam Byrne and more plus 16 musicians playing funk, jazz, chamber, bluegrass.

As chairman, Rob Gill himself is excited at two challenges ahead, “the live script reading again with a film by American Marina Donahue going into production in 2018.” Anticipate Zeb Moore on stage for dialogue and narrative along with Rea, Bergin and invited names who will confirm pending how their contracted filming/ PR schedule is.

A note to sports fans – there will be a Sports Documentary day. Dominant feature is the LA made documentary by Mike Tollin 25 years ago, ‘Morningside 5‘ (LA Times, ‘Can’t miss’). It explores how basketball players coped with life have been sports superstars in school. The director is the man behind ‘One Tree Hill’ and  of course, the original film of said players in their youth, ‘Hardwood Dreams’. 

Three films from South Africa will be add another dimension RHIFF 2017 and its international profile with Venice-winning director Darrell Roodt in attendance.

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