Latest Irish Film Festival Launched

The latest Irish film festival on the calendar - in early May - will include an opportunity to 'pitch' ideas for film and TV production.

The innovative section of the Mid Ulster Film Festival will be made up of two sections, a master class and an actual 'pitching session' where a panel of judges from the film industry will give advice, encouragement and support to anyone who has had previous film production experience and has previoulsy registered for the event. Entrants will pitch an idea for a fiction feature/or pilot series.

The sixth annual Mid Ulster Film Festival is at a new venue - the Ulster History Park, Gortin Road, Omagh and is taking place from 1st-3rd May.

The location has its own 100-seater cinema where the Opening Night Gala will have a Latino theme.

According to a spokesman, the festival prides itself on bridging the gap between the studio and independent filmmaking communities and since its inception has aimed to reflect the cultural, visual and narrative diversity of both international and Irish independent filmmakers through its range of programming.

Throughout the festival weekend, over 80 films will be screened in the Ulster History Park's three studios as well as in Cinemobile, a large custom-built truck which converts to a 100-seater cinema.

This year highlights include features such as the highly acclaimed Cinema Paradiso; Nobody's Fool starring Paul Newman; the award-winning Jean de Florette; late night film 8.5 Hours and a Saturday matinée Cats and Dogs, as well as documentaries such as ¿La Verdad? (The Truth?); Tea on the Axis of Evil and Alaska Far Away.

Details on the full line-up can be found on the Mid Ulster Film Festival website on

www.midulsterfilmfestival.com

(BMcC/JM)