N E W S

There’s an incredible groundswell in ecological thinking emerging here in Ireland, and globally right across the spectrum of human endeavour, and I’m inspired to make my own small contribution to it.

I’ll be on the road a lot over the summer at these upcoming events which are all deeply connected by this common ecological theme.

Please join me if you can.

June 19 – Dublin – Is The Ecological Crisis also a Spiritual/Philosophical Crisis?
An event that I am co-organising in Dublin bringing David Loy – author of ‘Ecodharma – Buddhist Teachings for the Ecological Crisis‘ – to Ireland. A Green Foundation Ireland event in association with Ecodharma Ireland & Mindfulness Ireland’s Earth Holder Community.
UPDATE: A video recording of this talk is now available here.

June 21 – 23 – Kerry – The Inaugural John Moriarty Festival
I’ll be onstage with Tommy Tiernan and fellow filmmakers Alan Gilsenan and Lorna Hill during the Saturday night event entitled: The Blackbird and the Bell Revisited . As many of you will know the incredible John Moriarty – our greatest ecophilosopher, even if he is not fully recognised as that yet – is the focus of my 2012 award-winning documentary DREAMTIME REVISISTED.

June 24 – Dublin – Pilgrimage by Land or Sea : Portals to Spiritual Awakening and Eco Awareness
An event I’ll be presenting at alongside André Brouillette SJ, Boston College, author of The Pilgrim Paradigm.
Organised by The Spirituality Institute for Research and Education (SpIRE).

June 25 – 26 – Trinity College, Dublin – Rethinking Growth Conference: Towards a Wellbeing Economy for Ireland
I’ll be presenting SEEDING THE FUTURE at this conference being organised by my colleagues at the WEALL (Wellbeing Economy Alliance) and hosting an Ecological Storytelling Workshop

Sept 20-22 – IMMA (Irish Museum of Modern Art), Dublin – Earth Rising Festival
I’ll be presenting an Ecological Storytelling Workshop at this festival aimed at inspiring collective action towards a sustainable future with my colleagues of the WEALL (Wellbeing Economy Alliance).

Tabhair aire daoibh / Mind Yourselves !

#anupictures

We are so happy to share the news that CONTINUING TRADITIONS has won a second Best International Non-Fiction Feature Film award in India at the Samskara International Film Festival in Uttarakhand in Northern India.

This award comes after winning Best International Documentary at the Vindhya International Film Festival in North Eastern India earlier in February.

‘A traditional film festival in the form of an overwhelmingly guided meditative tour, Samskara International Film Festival is organised to explore the wonders of film making from the mundane to the miraculous, looking into the unfathomable reaches of the human experience through the world of films.’

So it is wonderful to have our work appreciated on the big screen across the length of India and especially at festivals with aspirations that align so closely with our own creative values.

View more info. on the film and a trailer on: https://www.anupictures.com/project/continuingtraditions/

& thanks as always to BAI and CCTV and all of the creative and production team for your incredible support.

And of course to maestros Ustad Wajahat Khan and Peadar Ó Riada for your magical music.

@BAItweets @Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI)

This year marks the 20th anniversary of this JOURNEY INTO BUDDHISM series of films that I had the privilege to collaborate with the director John Bush on. The second title in the series, PRAJNA EARTH was narrated by Sharon Stone.

The third film in the series, VAJRA SKY OVER TIBET, was released in cinemas and was the first film to receive the blessing of HH The Dalai Lama.

The series was broadcast internationally and now PBS in the U.S. have launched the series on Youtube where it can be streamed for FREE!

It has already received over 500,000 streams!

If you click on the link below you’ll find the blue ‘VIEW NOW ON YOUTUBE’ link and you’ll have it.
https://www.journeyintobuddhism.com/

Safe Journey!

We are thrilled to share the news that CONTINUING TRADITIONS has won the Best International Feature Documentary award at the Vindhya International Film Festival in Madhya Pradesh, India.

The film will continue on with its international film festival run with an upcoming screening at the Samskara International Film Festival in India in March!

It is so inspiring to think of the airs of Peadar Ó Riada’s Irish traditional music fusing with the ragas of Ustad Wajahat Khan’s Indian classical music now on the big screen right across India!

View more info. on the film and a trailer on: https://www.anupictures.com/project/continuingtraditions/

An invite from the First Cut Film Festival this year led to the design of an exciting new Ecological Storytelling Workshop format.

It evolved out of my developing focus on ecological inquiry through the ECOLOGICAL STORYTELLING project.
This interactive & experiential practice-based workshop facilitates engagement with the ecological and climate crisis through story.

The format draws upon ecophilosopher Joanna Macy’s Active Hope work through my ongoing involvement with the Active Hope Community Resilience Programme.

This workshop – which can be adapted for all ages – introduces participants to new story possibilities for engaging with the central themes of the pivotal times we live in.

And finally, this is the first time (that I know of) that Joanna Macy’s Active Hope work has been delivered in the Irish language. Here is an image of the Active Hope/WTR Spiral as Gaeilge ! Special thanks to Anna Swisher, Simon Ó Faoláin and all the team at the First Cut Film Festival .

2023 is already becoming both a challenging and nurturing year.

I’m working on two documentaries exploring Zen this year:
– in post-production on ARE WE ONE?
– and in production on THREE ZEN GIFTS .

In parallel I’m continuing to develop my focus on ‘All Things Ecological’ through the ECOLOGICAL STORYTELLING project.

This work is manifesting in many organic ways including the first Ecological Storytelling film workshop (that I am aware of) .

And through my ongoing involvement with three key Communities of Practice in:
Ecodharma with David Loy
Active Hope & the work of Joanna Macy
and The Wellbeing Economy Alliance

Three parallel paths to help navigate, and bring insight to, the challenges of the historical times we live in!

Stay Safe.

For Immediate Release: The upcoming world premiere of our new music documentary CONTINUING TRADITIONS – Indian Classical Music meets Irish Traditional Music – will take place at the 2022 Dublin International Film Festival.

Acclaimed Indian classical musician and composer Ustad Wajahat Khan and much-loved and renowned Irish musician and composer Peadar Ó Riada come together in a unique exploration of the shared musical heritage of their beloved native traditions.

Compiled from over 40 hours of footage, filmed over a two-year period, Continuing Traditions intimately captures the creative process, charting the birth and evolution of two new compositions, from their initial conception through meticulous arrangement and rehearsal, right through to their first public performance.

Upcoming Premiere at the 2022 Dublin Film Festival, Ireland – March 5th.

Ustad Wajahat Khan, Peadar Ó Riada and Director Dónal Ó Céilleachair will be in attendance for a post-screening audience Q&A.

We are excited to announce our first in-person screening & talk since the beginning of the Covid Pandemic at this upcoming event in the National Concert Hall (NCH), Dublin on October 21st, 2021.

DREAMTIME REVISITED will screen as part of NCH’S UTOPIA: REPUBLIC OF BIRDS; John Moriarty’s Vision of Ireland, curated by The Irish Times’ Una Mullaly with Conor Habib.

It will be preceded by a talk by:
Conner Habib, Human Rights Lawyer and Activist Simone George and Author Mary McGillicuddy & Director Dónal Ó Céilleachair.

NOTE: The talk is now available to listen to online via:
https://connerhabib.com/tag/donal-o-ceilleachair/
Dónal Ó Céilleachair begins at 1:03:00*
Mary McGillicuddy at 43:00
Simone George at 25:10
& Conner Habib at 14.30

It is – as Conner has described – a comprehensive introduction and exploration of John’s work and we highly recommend it. Enjoy!

* In Dónal’s talk he begins to draw the link between Moriarty and the evolving Our Story – A Call to Ecological Consciousness project.

Something potentially transformative had to emerge from the “anthropause” in human affairs that came with the time of pandemic in 2020 and 2021!

So I’m excited to announce the launch of a timely new project!

‘Our Story’ will explore the central stories and metaphors that underpin the ecological crisis and how we might begin to transform them in a call to ecological consciousness.

It is evolving from over a decade of inter-disciplinary research.

And it is bringing together the various strands of my own work over the years exploring the connections between culture, spirituality and ecology that are so central to the major challenges facing us in the pivotal times we live in.

View further information on: http://www.anupictures.com/project/ourstory/

Five titles from Anú Pictures are featured in the newly launched IFI International Collection now streaming worldwide.

This Irish Film Institute (IFI) initiative for exhibiting Irish cinema worldwide represents the best of Irish independent filmmaking talent.

The IFI International Collection is a treasure trove of new and recent Irish films, which depict Irish cultural life, from the historical to the contemporary and features

Current Anú Pictures’ titles include:
An Irish Music Trilogy
Dreamtime Revisited
& The Camino Voyage

We are thrilled to announce the launch of the ANÚ ONLINE CINEMA.

This new online portal features key works from 30 years of filmmaking; digitally re-mastered for the age of online streaming.

Many of these films are now available online for the first time.

It has been an emotional – and labour intensive* – project over the past 12-months delving into the archive to assemble this legacy project.

My life’s work has taken me on so many adventures; from the heights of the Ancient Capital of the Incas in Peru, to the heart of the Experimental and Independent filmmaking world in NYC, over the Atlantic Sea all the way to Santiago de Compostela and on explorations across the breadth of Irish Mythology, Music and Culture with Shamen, Sailors, Boatbuilders, Poets, Philosophers, Painters, Artists & Musicians.

It has been quite a life-journey thus far and one to be truly grateful for.

And during the coming Winter months I hope that you too will get a chance to share in this journey.
http://www.anupictures.com/online-cinema/

Join our mailing list now and get 50% off our Online Cinema pass!

*Special thanks goes to Benjamin Walsh for his technical wizardry in spearheading this project.

We are so happy to announce that we are emerging somewhat from pandemic restrictions to screen:
DO CHUALA CEOL (I Heard Music): A Musical and Visual Odyssey Through the Mythical Dreamscape of Múscraí
both online and at the festival open-screen this coming weekend at
The Cashel Arts Festival.

We hope you can join either virtually or in person!

From the first weeks of lockdown – and this “anthropause” in human affairs –  we’ve been contributing to the #StayatHomeCinema online initiative by sharing a FREE film to watch weekly from the safety of your own home.

We also included a specific story, article or essay that seemed to be capturing the spirit of these transformative times.

We’ve gotten so many requests again for links to these Insights that we’ve collated them all here in one place.

Be Brave, Be Inspired !

WEEK 1 – INVOKING THE WISDOM OF THE SALMON OF KNOWLEDGE FOR THIS TIME

I was up at the pond in the upper field on my brother-in-laws’ farm on Monday with my 3-year old Oisín.

There we planted 9 Hazel trees (a gift from the ever-generous Michael Walsh) in honour of the 9 Hazel trees around Connla’s well from Irish Mythology; the well that produced the Salmon of Knowledge that imparted the wisdom of the world to Fionn, father of Oisín (a belated ritual to mark the Spring Equinox.)

A small gesture to invoke that wisdom now, for a world that greatly needs it.

When we returned I received a link to the following article below from a Spanish friend.

What timing !

What gratitude I have to writers like Paul Kingsnorth – and of course John Moriarty – for their dedication to nurturing this type of wisdom into the world.

It becomes more and more pressing with the passing of each and every day.

WEEK 2 – THIS PANDEMIC AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO TRANSFORM

In the midst of this crisis there is a tremendous amount of hope out there that this time will inspire us towards exploring new ways to live more in harmony on this incredible planet of ours.

Of the many insightful articles I’ve come across over the past 3-weeks I want to share this interview from the ever inspiring Emergence Magazine that really manages to simultaneously contextualise the science behind the Covid-19 Virus and its place in the overall order of things.

WEEK 3 – ‘What Coronavirus Can Teach Us About Hope’

The flip side of the uncertainty and challenges that we face in these unprecedented times is that there is a tremendous amount of hope out there that this time will inspire us towards exploring new ways to live more in harmony on this incredible planet of ours.

Of the many insightful articles I’ve come across over the past 4-weeks I want to share this essay by the ever thought-provoking Rebecca Solnit, who writes:
“When a caterpillar enters its chrysalis, it dissolves itself, quite literally, into liquid. In this state, what was a caterpillar and will be a butterfly is neither one nor the other, it’s a sort of living soup. Within this living soup are the imaginal cells that will catalyse its transformation into winged maturity. May the best among us, the most visionary, the most inclusive, be the imaginal cells (for) a state of profound change.”
Click on the butterfly below for the full article.

WEEK 4 – Alchemy, Active Imagination and a New Era of Significant Transformation

Again and again – beyond the tragedies of this pandemic – I continue to be inspired by the possibilities of these times.

This week I want to share this interview with leading Jungian Scholar Murray Stein who succinctly puts this period into perspective on a universally human scale and urges us to use our active imaginations to explore what is now possible in this new era of significant transformation.

(Thanks to LIT’s Jungian Scholar Mathew Mather for sharing this article)

WEEK 5 – Wisdom for Our Times

I am fortunate to be currently participating in an online Hedgeschool being organised by our friends over at The Trailblazery: a virtual forum for people to share and generate ideas, resources, creative practices, meaning making and community building for the challenging times we live in.

There is so much wisdom for our times being shared on this inspiring forum and excerpts from these sessions are now available to view online on: https://vimeo.com/trailblazery

Although the first semester has ended it will continue and please visit  https://www.thetrailblazery.com/ for further info.

WEEK 6 – A Time of Tiny Miracles

Over on the Wisdom 2.0 platform there is something revolutionary taking place.

For 5 weeks now world-renowned Mindfulness teacher Jon Kabat-Zinn has been leading an ever-expanding worldwide audience in daily weekday guided meditations and periods of self-inquiry and the reverberations of this worldwide coming together in a time of separation has been extraordinary.

It is as if half the planet has gone on a large collective retreat in this time of cocooning – it is inevitable that something transformative will emerge out of this time of tiny miracles.

From the first weeks of lockdown we’ve been contributing to the #StayatHomeCinema online initiative by sharing a FREE film to watch weekly from the safety of your own home together with Weekly Insights into these transformative times.

Due to popular demand we are extending the STAYSAFE2020 free promo code until June 15th, 2020.

Scroll down to the bottom of this post for step-by-step instructions on how to use the code and take the very best care of yourselves in these transformative times.

Week 1 – STAY SAFE

For the strange times we live in here’s a FREE promo code to watch one of our inspiring music docs from the comfort of your own home.

The recently digitally re-mastered 3/TRIÚR (In Search of Musical Form) is a film that will take you “on a journey to the heart of Irish Traditional Music”.

The Patricks’ Day parades may have been cancelled but you can still enjoy Irish culture at home – wherever you are.

Stay safe, take care of yourselves – and each other – in these challenging times.
Dónal & The Team at Anú Pictures

Week 2 – KEEP THE FAITH

As the Lockdown continues we’re continuing our Initiative to spotlight a movie from our new ANÚ ONLINE CINEMA portal to watch for FREE from the comfort of your own home

The recently digitally re-mastered PRELUDE (2008) is a day in the life film on a young girl growing up in Rocinha, South America’s largest favela in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil.

Stay safe, take care of yourselves – and each other – in these challenging times.
Dónal & The Team at Anú Pictures

Week 3 – A VISION FOR OUR TIMES

As the Lockdown continues we’re continuing our weekly spotlight of a movie from our new ANU ONLINE CINEMA portal to watch for FREE from the comfort of your own home

This week it’s our award-winning creative doc DREAMTIME REVISITED – inspired by the life and works of the legendary Irish Writer, Poet & Philosopher John Moriarty.

Moriarty’s vision of a way of living more in harmony with the natural rhythms of this incredible planet we live on becomes more and more pressing with the passing of each and every day and if there is one thing that this pandemic might teach us might it be this?

I’m also sharing a personal story below from a beautiful synchronicity that happened to me this week, that reminded me of the importance of Moriarty’s vision (see Insights post http://www.anupictures.com/insights/).

Stay safe, take care of yourselves – and each other – in these challenging times.
Dónal & The Team at Anú Pictures

Week 4 – CYCLES OF TIME 

During this Cocooning time we’re continuing our weekly spotlight of a movie from our new ANU ONLINE CINEMA portal to watch for FREE from the comfort of your own home

This week it’s the digitally re-mastered CUZCO 1999 (Chronicle of a City at the End of the Century).  This doc chronicles the final days leading up to New Year’s Eve, 1999 in the Ancient Capital of the Incas, in Peru.

It was in Peru during my 20’s, that I came to fully appreciate the clash of world-views that was taking place in modern times; between the predominant western world-view and indigenous world-views that have managed to preserve much of the wisdom that we have now forgotten.

In times like these we would do well to seek more of that type of wisdom, to help us navigate a way forward.

Stay safe, take care of yourselves – and each other – in these challenging times.
Dónal & The Team at Anú Pictures

Week 5 – HOPE

During this Cocooning time we’re continuing our weekly spotlight of a doc from our new ANU ONLINE CINEMA portal to watch for FREE from the comfort of your own home

This week it’s the third film from our IRISH MUSIC TRILOGY: FROM COOLEA TO IONA a journey into the heart of the Men’s singing tradition with the legendary Coolea Men’s choir under the watchful direction of Peadar Ó Riada.

Matt Micucci of Cinecola described it as a ‘A work of great creative synergy and intimacy (with) a meditative aura’ .

Stay safe, take care of yourselves – and each other – in these challenging times.
Dónal & The Team at Anú Pictures

Week 6 – IMAGINATION, REIMAGINED, IMAGINE*!

As worldwide Cocooning continues we continue sharing a weekly FREE film to watch from our new ANU ONLINE CINEMA portal.

Over the past 5 weeks we’ve brought you to South America’s largest favela, to the heights of the Andes and to the heart of Irish Mythology, Music & Culture.

This week we’re offering to take you somewhere completely different.

For many years I lived at the very epicentre of the independent and experimental film community in NYC as a filmmaker and as Founder/Director of Ocularis ‘One of the most innovative film venues in New York’ (ARTFORUM Magazine).

This period produced a number of early experimental works that have been digitally re-mastered and are now available online for the first time.

Re-watching this work reminds me of how the avant-garde anticipates imminent cultural transformations and how in these charged times we will need to draw upon all of the powers of our collective imaginations to forge a harmonious way forward.

Stay home, watch good cinema & take care of your imaginations; we are going to need them!
Dónal & The Team at Anú Pictures
(* With a nod to Samuel Beckett’s Imagination, Dead, Imagine!)

Week 7 – FINDING NEW MEANING IN THE OLD STORIES

As worldwide Cocooning continues we continue sharing a weekly FREE film to watch from our new ANU ONLINE CINEMA portal.

This week here’s a short film bringing the legendary Song Of Amergin to life for contemporary audiences, inspired by John Moriarty’s ‘Invoking Ireland’ of which Michael Harding writes:

“Taking his cue from Amergin’s invocation John Moriarty wants us to share his exploration of Irish myth at this deep psychological level so that we can find new meaning in the old stories … so that the old stories can bring a new perception to the way we live out our lives.”

Some more deep wisdom from our cultural DNA for the times we live in.

Stay home, watch good cinema & take care of your imaginations; we are going to need them!
Dónal & The Team at Anú Pictures

Step-by-step directions to stream the films on Vimeo:
1. Click on the FILM IMAGE above select “RENT” on the Vimeo page.
2. Here you will have to log in/sign up (if you are not already a member of Vimeo you will need to join but this is free)
3. Once done you will see a section that says “Apply Promo Code”
4. Enter the Free Promo Code STAYSAFE2020 here and enjoy

50% OFF THE ANÚ ONLINE CINEMA ACCESS PASS

Each of these titles are included in our new ANÚ ONLINE CINEMA portal.

If you like our films why not consider gifting the ANÚ ONLINE CINEMA UNIMITED ACCESS PASS to someone special under lockdown in these challenging times and support us in the process.

Use the bewell2020 promo code for an additional 50% off !

Le míle buíochas (with a thousand thanks).

It has been a long journey since the film premiered in Dublin in March, 2018 !
Since then it has been released in Cinemas internationally and played at International Film Festivals from Moscow all the way to Hawaii and won 5 Awards along the way.

Now finally it is available worldwide via DVD and Streaming – full info. on the Purchase Tab on: http://www.anupictures.com/project/camino/ or click on the tabs below.

We are thrilled to share the news that THE CAMINO VOYAGE is coming to select cinemas internationally in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Canada & USA from June, 2019.

If you live in these countries you can request a screening in your area through DEMAND FILM – a new innovative form of distribution based on local demand.

And so the voyage continues . . .

We had an inspiring return to Galicia on Friday for the Spanish/Galician premiere of THE CAMINO VOYAGE, the launch of a stunning exhibition CAMINO BY SEA with the Irish Ambassador to Spain, Family, Crew and Friends and the beginning of the work of restoring the Naomhóg at the Museum of the Sea in Vigo.

Plus we had an emotional visit to A Guarda to commemorate Danny’s anniversary on June 9th.

The project to restore the Naomhóg has been 2 years in the making and is the manifestation of the efforts of many in Ireland and in Galicia.

And now with its restoration the healing comes, the healing comes . . .

You can view more about the restoration with daily updates on the Facebook Page  plus a lovely video of the exhibition here.

It has been an amazing run for the film; since its premiere at ADIFF in March of last year it is still playing in cinemas and regionally in Ireland and we are delighted to announce that – in addition to the other 4 awards the film has won – we have been nominated for a Celtic Media Festival Award.
The Award ceremony will take place in early June so fingers crossed.

CINEMA SCREENINGS:
Due to popular demand The Triskel in Cork have invited it back a third time for another run this week.
This also happened with the QFT in Belfast and understandably with the Phoenix in Dingle – something that happens very very rarely.
The film has played now in Cinemas for over the last 19 Smash Weeks! making it one of the most popular Irish films of this past year.

REGIONAL SCREENINGS:
We’ve had wonderful sold-out screenings at Cabragh Wetlands in Tipperary and an emotional homecoming screening at the Ionad Cultúrtha in Ballvourney this past week.
Plus I, and some of the crew, are still planning to attend Q&A screenings all the way up to August of this year so it has surpassed all of our expectations – screening in almost 50 venues across the country in the past year.

INTERNATIONAL SCREENINGS:
THE CAMINO has also been the most popular title with IFI International’s touring festival featuring at 16 of their 25 international screenings.
By now the film has screened all the way from Moscow to Hawaii.

Plus Eclipse Pictures (continuing their amazing work with the Cinema Release) are currently in discussion regarding potential Cinema Distribution in Galicia, Spain and North America.

For a full list of screenings please see the Screenings tab under http://www.anupictures.com/project/camino/

Plus for a full list or press please see the Reviews + Press tab under http://www.anupictures.com/project/camino/ plus:Facebook & Twitter

UPCOMING TG4 BROADCAST:
The TG4 broadcast is currently scheduled for Easter Monday, April 22nd – over a year since its premiere TG4 have been really supportive of allowing it the time needed to be exhibited as widely as possible.

VOD & DVD RELEASE:
And we are working with NITV  in Dublin who are looking at a VOD release also for April and a DVD release for later in the year – I will let you know as soon as we have confirmation.

Other News:
Liam Holden & Pádraigh Ó Duinnín are currently visiting Galicia to look over the Naomh Gobnait for her planned restoration in June of this year.
The restoration is will take place as part of a an upcoming Exhibition entitled “Camino by Sea from Dublin to Compostela” which will take place in the Museum of the Sea of Galicia in Vigo, Spain from June 7th to October 31st, 2019 – see the poster attached.

And so the Voyage continues !

We are pleased to share the news that THE CAMINO VOYAGE will be released in Select Cinemas nationwide in Ireland this coming Friday, Nov. 23rd.

It will open in 7 Cinemas nationwide and then hopefully come to other cinemas from there.

Plus the film continues to receive great reviews.

Just in the week:
“Delightful” The Irish Times
“A Journey of Courage” RTÉ Guide
“A Remarkable Story of An Epic Voyage” Sunday World

In Selected Cinemas in Ireland from Friday, Nov. 23rd:
IFI, Dublin https://ifi.ie/camino-voyage
Lighthouse, Dublin https://lighthousecinema.ie//showing/showing-44283
Pálas, Galway https://palas.ie/showing/showing-44283
IMC, Dún Laoghaire https://www.imccinemas.ie/Event-Details/The-Camino-Voyage
Triskel, Cork https://triskelartscentre.ie/events/273/the-camino-voyage/
Cinema Killarney https://cinemakillarney.admit-one.eu/…
Phoenix Cinema, Dingle http://www.dinglecinema.com/

We are pleased to share the news that THE CAMINO VOYAGE has won the Documentary Award at the 2018 Irish Screen America Film Festival in New York.

The award was presented to Dónal Ó Céilleachair by Deputy Consul General of Ireland in New York, Eimear Friel (pictured above with Festival Director, Niall McKay) who described the film as “one of the mosts beautiful films I have ever seen”.

The Irish Screen America Film Festival is a bi-coastal event, taking place in New York and in Los Angeles.

The THE CAMINO VOYAGE opened the festival with yet another sold-out screening.

The festival also announced actor cum director Hugh O’Conor as the second ever recipient of the Jim Sheridan Award for Achievement in Irish Filmmaking.

Read the full ISA press release here: ISA Awards 2018

We are pleased to share the news that THE CAMINO has won the Documentary Award at the 2018 Oireachtas Media Awards

The award was presented by Máirín Nic Dhonnchadha and Brendan Begley from the crew was on hand to receive the award and dedicated it to the memory of our fellow adventurer in arms the Writer and Poet; Danny Sheehy who was one of the key figures of the Camino.

The Oireachtas is the annual gathering of Irish-speakers and features many cultural competitions alongside their Annual Media awards.

Here is a link to the announcement and acceptance speech by Brendan Begley on TG4 the national Irish Language Broadcaster (unfortunately without English subtitles for you non Gaelgeoirs !)

THE CAMINO VOYAGE has been invited to be the Opening Night Film of the 2018 IRISH SCREEN AMERICA FILM FESTIVAL in NYC.

The festival will be attended by the Director and members of the crew who are currently up in Cape Breton making two new Naomhógs as part of the Celtic Colours Festival.

It has been a hectic festival screening season with sold-out screenings in Dublin, Galway, Cork and Belfast and tickets for the NYC premiere are already almost sold out.

Plus we continue to receive wonderful praise for the film:

“An Absolutely Beautiful Film”  BBC Radio Ulster

“An Extraordinary Voyage”  CinÉireann

‘Bravo!  An unforgettable blend of music, muscle power and persistence on the long and gruelling sea road to Compostella’ Tim Severin, The Brendan Voyage”

Here’s a link to an excerpt from the Q&A The Camino Voyage Pull Focus Festival from Belfast Film Festival on Vimeo.

We are pleased to share the news that THE CAMINO VOYAGE has won the audience award at THE BRITISH AND IRISH FILM SEASON in Luxembourg.  The film had stiff competition from both British and Irish films with much higher budgets including the Ireland’s highest-grossing opening weekend film BLACK ’47.

It has been a hectic festival screening season with sold-out screenings in Dublin, Galway, Cork and Belfast and an upcoming premiere in NYC as the Opening Film of the 2018 IRISH SCREEN AMERICA FILM FESTIVAL.

And so the Odyssey continues !

THE CAMINO VOYAGE is the Winner of the Audience Award for Best Feature – at The Dingle International Film Festival in March 2018.

Speaking at the closing of the festival, the festival’s Director, Maurice Galway wrote that “The opening feature film;The Camino Voyage sold out weeks before it’s Dingle premiere. Due to demand, the festival screened the film again on Sunday 25th to another sold out audience.  The film was received by a spellbound audience on both occasions – enchanted, inspired and ultimately very deeply moved.”

The film will have its International Premiere this week at the THE NEWPORT BEACH INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL in Southern California. The festival features more than 350 films from 50 countries with record attendance of 54,000 attendees !

It screened to another sold-out audience – and received another standing ovation (after the premiere in Dublin) – at the inaugural CELTIC CAMINO FESTIVAL in Westport on April 13th and the film will continue its own odyssey with upcoming screenings at:

FÉILE NA BEALTAINE FESTIVAL – Saturday, May 5th, 5pm at The Phoenix Cinema – Dingle / An Daingean

THE MENDOCINO FILM FESTIVAL – Sunday, June 3rd – Mendocino, North California

THE CORK HARBOUR FESTIVAL – Thursday, June 7th @ 8pm @ the Cork Opera House – Programme to be Launched on May 2nd

THE GALWAY FILM FLEADH – Festival to take place July 10th to 15th – Screening time to be confirmed

(Here with the crew at the CELTIC CAMINO FESTIVAL including Brendan Begley, Liam Holden, Turlough O’Donnell, Glen Hansard & Breandán Moriarty.)

We have been receiving wonderful praise for the film:

“Remarkable”   The Irish Examiner

“Lyrical, Compelling”   Eye for Film



“An Extraordinary Voyage”  CinÉireann

“Reflects the Spiritual Power of The Experience”  The Times

“Hauntingly Beautiful”  Turlough O’Donnell, Camino Society Ireland

“One of the Most Beautiful Films I’ve Ever Seen” Actor, Paul McGann

“Possibly the most moving, emotional and beautiful film I’ve seen in the last few years”  Writer, Manchán Magan

“The Kon-Tiki Expedition for our Generation . . . an extraordinarily beautiful film”  Clare Cahill, Arts University Bournemouth

“A wonderful experience … Beautiful in its entirety . . . I found myself humbled by a display of such authentic cinematography that I was left speechless”  John Brierly, Author of ‘A Pilgrim’s Guide to the Camino de Santiago

4 years, 200 hours of footage and 2,500 km later we are glad to announce that THE CAMINO VOYAGE will premiere at the DUBLIN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL this coming Saturday, March 10th, 2018.

It will also be the opening film of the DINGLE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL and due to popular demand the festival has also added an additional screening of the film.

The film itself has had its own odyssey in finally coming to life and is just beginning its life on the film festival circuit. It received a standing ovation at the Dublin Film festival so it has been an emotional time.

It will also be screened at THE CELTIC CAMINO FESTIVAL on April 13th.

We are pleased to announce that we have received permission from The Foundation of the Works of C.J. Jung to proceed with the development of a new film inspired by Carl Jung’s enigmatic The Red Book.

This new international art-house style feature length film will bring the book to life for contemporary audiences in a labyrinthine odyssey through this, the central work of Jung’s life.

We have a great creative team that includes Sonu Shamdasani (Editor of The Red Book) as Project Adviser and Bettina Wilhelm (Granddaughter of Richard Wilhelm and director of ‘Wisdom of Changes – Richard Wilhelm and the I Ching’) as Creative Adviser.

The project is being developed in collaboration with Dr Mathew Mather of LIT.

FROM THE LAND OF MÚSCRAÍ (Ó Dhuthaigh Mhúscraí) – Upcoming Screening at the IFI, Dublin – Tuesday Next August 29th @ 6.30pm

The film was recently presented as an installation together with an exhibition of the artists works at the Clonmel Arts Festival.

The next screening will be at the Culturlann McAdam Ó Fiaich in Belfast on October 20th and from there please keep an eye out for further exhibitions and screenings around the country.

This creative documentary explores the works of contemporary artists living in the Múscraí Gaeltacht of West County Cork, tracing the links between their work and the landscape that inspires them in a colourful, multi-facteted exploration of the artistic process.

Le Chéile (Together)
We are please to announce that we have teamed up with one of Ireland’s leading feature film production companies Samson Films to develop a new feature-length fiction film inspired by the Aisling (vision-poem) tradition of the great Gaelic Poets and the Song of Amergin for a new lyrical mytho-poetic invocation of loss and possibility.

The film is currently in development – check back on our website for updates over the coming months !

We are sad to share the tragic news that our dear dear friend Danny Sheehy lost his life at sea after a tragic accident off the coast of Galicia on Friday, June 9th.

Further info. on Irish Times Link

We are currently working on the international feature-length version of The Camino Voyage (Iomramh an Chamino) for release early next year. If we manage to do some justice to the memory of this larger-than-life character from West Kerry we will have accomplished something.

Tá ár chara Danny imithe ar slí na fírinne.
Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.

In 2015 we landed in Albaola – the wonderful Sea Factory of the Basques located just outside Donostia / San Sebastian – and they gave us a incredible welcome, stored the Naomhóg over the winter of 2015 and gave us an inspiring send-off when we set off again in 2016.

They, like all of us, were deeply touched by Danny’s magnetic presence and have prepared this moving tribute to Danny:

Tribute to Danny Sheehy.  From Albaola the Sea Factory of the Basques. www.albaola.com

CAMINO BY SEA – An Epic 2500 km Modern Day Celtic Odyssey.

After 3 years of production, this 3-part series will be broadcast on TG4 over three Sundays at 8.30 pm in February and March (19/02, 26/02 & 05/03) with repeats on Monday evenings at 7.30pm plus on the TG4 player.

With music by Breanndán Beaglaoich, Peadar Ó Riada, Glen Hansard and many many more.

Enjoy !

I will be giving a talk at the upcoming Imbolc Festival at the Ionad Cultúrtha, in Baile Bhúirne, Co. Chorcaí on Saturday, 11 February, 2017; plus they will be screening ‘From the Land of Mhuscraí’ and the featured artists will be there for an after-screening Q&A.

Beidh Imbolc 2017, an chomhdháil Ghaeilge inspioráideach, ar siúl Satharn 11 Feabhra 2017, san Ionad Cultúrtha, Baile Bhuirne, Co. Chorcaí. Beidh scoth na nGaeilgeoirí, a bhfuil obair agus taighde ceannródaíoch ar bun acu, ag caint (agus ag díospóireacht) ann. Agus beidh Taispeáint Ó Dhúthaigh Mhúscraí – Scannán nua Dhónail Ó Chéilleachair, a dhéanann iniúchadh ar ealaíontóirí Mhúscraí, agus a scagann na naisc atá ann idir a gcuid saothar agus tírdhreach an cheantair, chomh maith le proiséas na healaíona féin.

A recent critical re-appreciation of one of my earlier films by curator and writer Herb Shellenberger on MExIndex;

http://www.mexindex.ie/text-and-audio/rapid-transit-with-wind-and-white-cloud-and-the-single-frame-travelogue/

MExIndex is a great new online database of experimental and visual arts-based moving image works by Irish artists on http://www.mexindex.ie.

Join us this coming Friday for the opening of an upcoming exhibition of works by local artists including our film on the painter TADHG MC SWEENEY.

CAMINO BY SEA odyssey featured in today’s Irish Times. View Irish Times article here.

After successful screenings in the IFI and at the Cork Film Festival here is the RTÉ promo for the upcoming national broadcast of our new documentary FROM COOLEA TO IONA (Ó Chúil Aodha go hOileán Í)

View trailer here.

‘Tadhg McSweeney. Painter – A Film Portrait’ wins the CORK SHORTS AWARD at this year’s CORK FILM FESTIVAL.
More information here.

VAJRA SKY OVER TIBET will screen at the Chester Beatty Library Museum in Dublin this coming Saturday, September 20th, 2014. This is the 3^rd title in the Journey Into Buddhism Series that I edited and associate produced in New York and the first film to receive blessing of the Dalai Lama.
More information here.

Join us at the Cork Film Festival this coming Saturday for the Festival premiere of the new film on the wonderful Cork-based artist Tadhg McSweeney. More info here.

Join us for the Premiere of FROM COOLEA TO IONA featuring President Michael D. Higgins, Peadar Ó Riada & the legendary Cór Chúil Aodha (The Coolea Men’s Choir) at the Cork Film Festival this coming Saturday. More info here.

The New York premiere of AISLING GHEAL at the Irish Arts Centre New York.

More information.

A preview of Tadhg McSweeney, Painter – A Film Portrait will feature in the HERE AND NOW Exhibition of works by Local Artists opening this coming Thursday, July 3^rd. Check out his work at www.tadhgmcsweeney.ie or come see it in person at the Exhibition, open until July 26th !

Four brave men (Danny Sheehy, Breandan Ó Beaglaoich, Liam Holden and Breandan Ó Muircheartaigh) doing the CAMINO by Sea – rowing all the way from Ireland to Spain – in a unique black curragh known in West Kerry as a Naomhóg in my new documentary CAMINO NA SÁILLE (CAMINO BY SEA).
View Irish Independent article.

AISLING GHEAL – chosen to represent Ireland in the 19th European Film Festival currently touring India & Nepal.

The sound of sean-nós drifting through the Spring and Summer air of cities like Delhi and Goa; somehow I do not think they will seem so out of place!

http://filmireland.net/2014/03/27/aisling-gheal-selected-for-european-film-festival-of-india/

Another day at the office with our amazing President Michael D. Higgins at the Áras for an interview for the new documentary ‘From Coolea to Iona’.

Join us in Dublin next week where my experimental work will be shown alongside the work of the Lumiére brothers, Samuel Beckett, Vivienne Dick, Clare Langan, & Maximillian Le Cain at the IFI in Dublin on Tuesday next, November 12th. Full information here.