With another successful IFI Documentary Festival over, the Irish Film Institute in Temple Bar remains a hive of cinematic activity. As we head into October, the IFI is gearing up for its next two festivals and a number of special events.
Curated by Jim Sheridan, the Dublin Arabic Film Festival returns to the IFI from October 6th-8th. A key theme of this year’s festival is the place of women in Arabic society, which coincides with the IFI’s recent implementation of the F-Rating. The festival opens on Friday 6th at 20.00 with a screening of Sophie Boutros’s comedy of manners, Solitaire.
Always a highlight of the IFI calendar, Horrorthon returns from October 26th-30th. The festival is programmed by award-winning writer, and self-professed disco aficionado, Ed King, who will also present this month’s Bigger Picture screening of Saturday Night Fever on Monday, October 16th. Far more complex and dark than might be realised by those who know the film only for its Bee Gees soundtrack and Travolta’s white suit, it remains an engaging watch.
Audiences will have the rare opportunity to see David Lean’s Lawrence of Arabia as it was meant to be seen, on a brand-new 70mm print. Lean’s timeless epic, breathtaking in its scale and visual mastery, stars Peter O’Toole as British soldier T.E. Lawrence, who found his loyalties divided between his own army and the Arabic tribes with whom he becomes involved. The film opens on Friday 20th, exclusively at IFI.
This month’s IFI collaboration with aemi Projections on Tuesday, October 10th will be presented by Vivienne Dick, to coincide with her current exhibition at IMMA, 93% Stardust. Delirious Rhythm, 1936-2017 is a personal selection of films about anarchic moments, about being alive to music, to rhythm and the value of staring into space, all of which have influenced her work.
On Wednesday, October 4th, the IFI teams up with Dublin Festival of History for a special From the Vaults screening to celebrate the centenary of The Irish Events Newsreel in 1917. Dr Denis Condon (NUIM) and Dr Ciara Chambers (UCC) present an illustrated lecture about the series that included social and political stories from the time, and that ran until 1920. This event is free but ticketed with tickets available from IFI Box Office on the night.
Sally Potter’s new film The Party is given the gastronomic treatment for this month’s Feast Your Eyes screening, where viewers can enjoy a new release followed by a specially devised meal in the IFI Café Bar on Monday, October 16th. With a cast led by Kristin Scott Thomas and Timothy Spall, The Party keeps the tension high and the one-liners flowing as the ensemble becomes increasingly unhinged.
In celebration of World Day for Audiovisual Heritage on Friday, October 27th, the IFI presents a screening of Turlough Kelly’s 4th Act. This powerful documentary tells the story of the displacement of the Dublin working-class community of Ballymun through the film and video archives of the community itself. The screening will be followed by a Q&A with Kelly and producer Andrew Keogh.
A United Kingdom will screen on Wednesday, October 25th and Friday, October 27th as part of the IFI’s bi-monthly film club for the over 55s, Wild Strawberries. The film is the story of King Seretse Khama of Botswana and how his loving but controversial marriage to a white British woman, Ruth Williams (Rosamund Pike), threatened to plunge his kingdom into political and diplomatic turmoil.
Tickets for all events are on sale now from the IFI Box Office on (01) 6793477 and from www.ifi.ie.