The visceral and thrilling coming-of-age drama Kissing Candice written and directed by Aoife McArdle will be released in Irish and UK cinemas on Friday 22nd June via Wildcard Distribution.
Kissing Candice stars Ann Skelly (Rebellion) as Candice, a 17-year-old who longs to escape the boredom of her seaside town, only finding solace in her vivid imagination. When a boy she dreams about (played by Ryan Lincoln, Cardboard Gangsters) turns up in real life, she becomes increasingly entangled with a dangerous local gang.
Other cast members include Ryan McParland (Skunky Dog), Conall Keating (Robbie the Rabbit), Tony Doyle (Sing Street), Maghnús Foy (Red Rock), James Greene (Mammal), John Lynch (The Fall), Lydia McGuinness (Sing Street), Lalor Roddy (Lost in the Living), Caitriona Ennis, and Kwaku Fortune.
Kissing Candice shot on location in Dublin, Louth and Wicklow and had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival last September. Since then it has been selected for numerous film festivals including the prestigious Generation strand of the Berlin Film Festival.
It’s the feature film debut from award-winning music video director Aoife McArdle and was produced by Andrew Freedman of Venom Films (His & Hers, Kelly & Victor, Making The Grade) and Sally Campbell of Somesuch with funding through the Irish Film Board’s Catalyst Scheme.
Kissing CandiceMcArdle’s commercials are amongst the boldest in the industry, most recently her work for Audi and Absolut voiced their dedication to gender equality and LGBT rights respectively. McArdle was the only female director with a spot in the coveted Super Bowl ad break in 2017 and has won at leading industry awards shows including Cannes Lions, The British Arrows and D&AD.
McArdle ’s short film Every Breaking Wave is a 13-minute short film based on the U2 song of the same name was nominated for Best International Video, Best Cinematography, Best Art Direction and Best Editing at the UKMVAs and was praised by industry heavyweights including Spike Jonze and Alejandro González Iñárritu.
Kissing Candice will be released in Irish and UK cinemas from Friday June 22nd.