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Irish Cinema - Ourselves Alone?

Irish images, foreign fathers: asking why a nation's cinematic identity has been outsourced.

Documentary 1996 51 mins

Director: Donald Taylor Black

Rent for £2.50

Overview

Why have the most enduring celluloid images of Ireland been made by foreign filmmakers? That's the core of Donald Taylor Black's project showing the struggle of Irish people to create an Irish cinema. Features interviews with major figures including Neil Jordan, Bob Quinn, Jim Sheridan, Pat Murphy and Roddy Doyle.

In `Irish Cinema: Ourselves Alone?' (51 mins.), Donald Taylor Black looks at the historic reasons for the fact that the most familiar celluloid images of Ireland have been created by foreign filmmakers, notably those of Britain and Hollywood. He describes the struggle of Irish people to create an Irish cinema. Features interviews with directors, writers and producers, including Neil Jordan, Bob Quinn, Jim Sheridan, Pat Murphy and Roddy Doyle, together with numerous film clips and archive material, including footage of director John Ford on location in Ireland. The clips include extracts from `The Quiet Man' (1952); `The Rising of the Moon' (1957); `Odd Man Out' (1947); `The Gentle Gunman' (1952); `Poitín' (1977); `Anne Devlin' (1984); `Angel' (1982); `My Left Foot' (1989); and `The Commitments' (1991). The film was made by Centenary Productions in association with Poolbeg Productions for Radio Telefis Éireann with the assistance of The Irish Film Board.

Director

Donald Taylor Black

Genres

Documentary

Country

Ireland

Language

English

Rent for £4.50

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