MEDIA Film News June 2022

MEDIA supported films screening this month across Ireland in cinemas and online. We also highlight films showing in independent cinemas and cinema clubs that are part of the Europa Cinemas network. The Irish members of Europa Cinemas include:

• IFI, Dublin
• Triskel, Cork
• Lighthouse Cinema, Dublin
• Palás, Galway
• Access Cinema Network of regional cinema clubs
• Volta VOD online

BERGMAN ISLAND | Showing now in IFI, Lighthouse Dublin & Palás Galway

Directed by Mia Hansen-Løve and starring: Vicky Krieps, Tim Roth, and Mia Wasikowska. Two American filmmakers, Chris (Vicky Krieps) and Tony (Tim Roth) retreat to Fårö island for the summer to work on their screenplays. Meanwhile Amy (Mia Wasikowska) and Joseph (Anders Danielsen Lie), who were once lovers, are staying on Fårö to celebrate the wedding of their friend. As the summer passes by, the lines between reality and fiction become increasingly blurred as reminders of Bergman’s legacy playfully influence both stories. Supported in distribution by MEDIA. Read the Cineuropa review of BERGMAN ISLAND.

OLGA | Showing now in Irish Film Institute

OLGA, a French Swiss co-production, directed by Elie Grappe. Exiled in Switzerland, Olga, a talented and passionate 15-year-old Ukrainian gymnast, is trying to make her place at the National Sports Centre. But the revolt of Euromaïdan breaks out in Kiev, suddenly involving her relatives. While the young girl has to adapt to her new country and prepares the European Championships, the Ukrainian revolution enters her life and will shake everything up.

WOLFWALKERS | Sat 11 June in Triskel Arts Centre, Cork

This special screening of WOLFWALKERS is part of Cruinniú na nÓg 2022. Entry is free and tickets will be released at 10am on Thursday 9 June. Please note that all tickets must be booked online in advance of attending at Triskel.

In a time of superstition and magic, when wolves are seen as demonic and nature an evil to be tamed, a young apprentice hunter comes to Ireland with her father to wipe out the last pack. But when she saves a wild native girl, their friendship leads her to discover the world of the Wolfwalkers and transform her into the very thing her father is tasked to destroy. WOLFWALKERS from Irish company Cartoon Saloon was supported in development by MEDIA.

THE SQUARE | Rent from Volta VOD now

Ruben Östlund (Force Majeure) directs The Square, a satire on art, culture and communication in the digital age. Winner of the Palme d’Or at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, it stars Claes Bang, Elisabeth Moss (The Handmaid's Tale) and Dominic West (The Wire). Christian, the curator of a contemporary art museum in Stockholm is gearing up to launch ‘The Square’, a daring installation examining altruism. Christian's views on social responsibility are put to the test when he becomes the victim of a scam, forcing him to question the world around him and his place within it.

LEAVE NO TRACES | 10th June in Gate Cinemas, Cork; Palás Galway; Lighthouse Dublin

access>CINEMA will release Polish political thriller Leave No Traces in Irish cinemas from June 10th. Directed by Jan P. Matuszynski, the film begins in May 1983. High school student Grzegorz Przemyk and his older friend Jurek are arrested without cause by the local militia. At the police station, the pair are brutally beaten. Soon after, Grzegorz dies from his injuries. LEAVE NO TRACES, which was Poland’s submission for Best International Feature for this year’s Oscars, recounts a notorious chapter in modern Polish history.

YOUNG PLATO | Irish premiere of this documentary on RTE 1, Thursday 9th June, 10.15pm

YOUNG PLATO is an observational documentary set in post conflict Belfast’s Ardoyne where a marginalised working class community has been plagued by poverty, drugs and guns. A portrait of headmaster, Kevin McArevey, and his visionary team who empower primary school children to see beyond the boundaries and limitations of their own community.

Made by Declan McGrath and Neasa Ní Chianáin, the documentary was proudly supported in development by MEDIA Slate Funding awarded to Soilsiú Films. RTE 1 will screen a shortened version of the documentary.

YOUNG PLATO is also available to stream through Vimeo On Demand for viewers in the UK and Ireland.