15 November 2017
By Bryan Smyth
bryan@TheCork.ie
The 62nd Cork Film Festival will hold its flagship Documentary Industry Day on Friday (November 17) at The Metropole Hotel, to be presented in partnership with Bord Scannán na hÉireann/the Irish Film Board and supported by Broadcasting Authority of Ireland and Screen Training Ireland.
Doc Day brings both Irish and international industry leaders together to discuss the landscape in which projects are conceived, developed and distributed. It will include panel discussions, case studies and talks addressing the needs and interests of the documentary community and wider industry.
The event runs from 11am and tickets, priced at €30, can be booked at corkfilmfest.org.
Double Academy Award®-winner Simon Chinn, producer of hugely successful feature documentaries Man on Wire and Searching for Sugar Man, will be in conversation with producer, Trevor Birney, Fine Point Films (No Stone Unturned, 66 Days). The interview will cover highlights from Simon Chinn’s current projects and key collaborators such as Louis Theroux and Kevin McDonald.
Other speakers include directors Grant McPhee (Teenage Superstars), Pascale Lamche (Winnie), Neasa Ní Chianáin (School Life) and Alexandru Solomon (Tarzan’s Testicles), who will discuss their individual career trajectories and how to sustain a career as a documentary filmmaker.
Dissecting the importance of festivals in developing projects, nurturing talent, and providing a platform for launching non-fiction film will be Vice President of Filmmaker Relations & Shorts Programmer for Tribeca Film Festival, Sharon Badal; along with Cork Film Festival’s Guest Programme Director, Michael Hayden; AVA Programme Coordinator for La Guarimba, Marta Miquel Iriarte; and International Programmer of Hot Docs, Gabor Pertic.
Focusing on the hybrid distribution model of the documentary film Unrest, screening at Cork Film Festival this Sunday (November 19), will be Impact Producer with Together Films, Rebecca Ashdown.
On the panel discussing documentary filmmaking in the US market is Head of International Sales, Cinetic Media, Jason Ishikawa; and Director of Development, Impact Partners, Kelsey Koenig.
Speaking ahead of Doc Day, Cork Film Festival Producer and CEO Fiona Clark said: “The Cork Film Festival is firmly committed to showcasing the best Irish and international documentary cinema. We are delighted to welcome such eminent international guests to discuss and explore the documentary filmmaking landscape and further cement Cork Film Festival as the destination festival for documentary in Ireland.
“In partnership with Bord Scannán na hÉireann/the Irish Film Board, Doc Day is all about informing, inspiring and connecting established and emerging directors, producers and writers, with international producers, directors, programmers, sales agents, distributors, and industry leaders, to further understand and ultimately develop opportunities in the documentary landscape.”
Doc Day will be followed by the Documentary Gala screening of Eugene Jurecki’s Promised Land at 6.30pm, at The Everyman. Promised Land is a fascinating road-movie documentary that presents a portrait of contemporary America using the metaphor of Elvis Presley to expose the decline of the American Dream.
Cork Film Festival is proudly supported by principal funder the Arts Council, along with Cork City Council and Arts Office, Bord Scannán na hÉireann/the Irish Film Board, Fáilte Ireland, the Broadcasting Authority Ireland, Screen Training Ireland, Culture Ireland and Creative Europe Media. Principal media partner is RTÉ Supporting the Arts and media partners are the Irish Examiner and Red FM.
For full details of all films and bookings see corkfilmfest.org, call 021 4271711, or visit the Cork Film Festival box office at 119 Patrick Street, Cork.
