October 2024 at the IFI

September 27th, 2024: This October, the Irish Film Institute returns with a jam-packed programme of carefully curated, thought-provoking and all-round entertaining film experiences. From European and Irish film premieres, the legendary Horrorthon Festival and a host of hard-hitting documentaries, to guest interviews with filmmakers, engaging film discourse, and a series of brand-new international music documentaries.

October sees Ireland’s national arthouse cinema present rarely seen gems from the IFI Irish Film Archive, a great selection of special interest films, member and film club events, cult classics, and of course, the very best of this month’s new Irish and international film releases, from the biggest blockbusters to the best of arthouse cinema, handpicked from across the world. All killer, no filler!

Visit the IFI, Eustace Street, Dublin for a fantastic in-cinema experience. While here, why not enjoy a bite to eat and a favourite tipple at the IFI Café Bar, and browse a huge selection of books, films and gifts at the IFI Book Shop. And remember, film buffs nationwide can explore a host of incredible Irish and world cinema from the comfort of the couch on IFI@Home.

Tickets for new releases and special events are on sale from the IFI Box Office on (01) 6793477 and from www.ifi.ie, as per the IFI’s Weekly Schedule. Online rentals from IFI@Home are available at www.ifihome.ie.

ENDS.

For further information and high-res images, please contact Casey Hynes (chynes@irishfilm.ie) at the IFI Media Office.

October Programme Highlights

IFI Special Events

Tuesday 8^th
Our thought-provoking film discourse series IFI Talks welcomes author, journalist and broadcaster Dorian Lynskey to discuss his latest work, Everything Must Go: The Stories We Tell About the End Of The World. Lynskey’s most recent book is a colourful, witty and stirring cultural history of the modern world, which weaves in politics, history and science. Lynskey explores the endings that we have read, listened to, or watched with morbid fascination, from the sci-fi terrors of H. G. Wells and John Wyndham to the apocalyptic ballads of Bob Dylan and planet-shattering movie blockbusters. Deeply illuminating about our past and our present, and surprisingly hopeful about our future, Everything Must Go will grip you from beginning to, well, end. Lynskey will also introduce a screening of Don McKellar’s Last Night following the IFI Talks event. 

Saturday 12^th
The IFI is delighted to present a special screening of 7 Chapels, a gorgeous non-narrative documentary contemplating architecture, through a visual study of seven chapels in the Swabian Danube Valley, commissioned by The Siegfried & Elfriede Denzel Foundation and built by seven architects: John Pawson, Hans Engel, Wilhelm Huber, Frank Lattke, Alen Jasarevic, Staab Architects, and Christoph Mäckler. The screening will be followed by a Q&A with co-directors Orla Connolly and Jens Weber, and composer Wolfram Oettl, moderated by Dr Carole Pollard.

IFI Regulars
Weekly, Monday, Wednesday & Saturday
This month’s Archive at Lunchtime programme, The Importance of Being Dublin, presents a two-part film, in tribute to Oscar Wilde, made by Irish Jewish filmmaker Norman Cohen, which screens for free at lunchtime every Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday throughout October.

Every Saturday Morning in October
There’s nothing like classic flix on the big screen! Join us every Saturday morning in October at 11am as we continue The Saturday Serial, where we resurrect those classic cinema serials that made us fall in love with film, with weekly franchise screenings. We’re working our way through The Skywalker Saga at the moment, the perfect opportunity to see all nine Star Wars episodes, every Saturday at 11am. Pyjamas are optional, bring the pick’n’mix, grab your popcorn and fizzy from our concession counter, and no messin’ up the back!

Monday 14^th
Continuing the IFI Irish Focus strand, we are delighted to screen the new feature film, John Behan: Odyssey, from director Donald Taylor Black, which captures the life and work of the extraordinary Irish sculptor John Behan RHA. The screening will be followed by a Q&A with the director and John Behan, hosted by Peter Sheridan.

Sunday 20^th
The Mystery Matinee is back! Let us take the hassle out of choosing the movie. Grab a ticket, sink into your comfy cinema seat and prepare to enjoy a surprise film. Will it be a brand-new release hot off the presses, or a forgotten cult classic that you missed on the big screen? One thing’s for sure, it will always be a brilliant and unexpected piece of quality cinema, with tickets costing just €6.50 for IFI Members, and €7.00 for non-members.

Monday 21^st 
We’re thrilled with the October film choice of the IFI Youth Panel! Frank Oz’s cult classic Little Shop of Horrors sets us up nicely as we head into Halloween. The IFI Youth Panel is an open, welcoming and accessible gathering of film fans, formed from our IFI 22 & Under cardholders, and all are welcome to join these dynamic monthly screening parties.

Tuesday 22^nd
Each month, we invite an IFI member or special guest to choose a film to screen. In this month’s The Bigger Picture we welcome comedian, author, and broadcaster Colm O’ Regan who has chosen Werner Herzog’s Aguirre, Wrath of God.

Friday 25^th & Wednesday 30^th
Wild Strawberries, our monthly film club for over 55s, presents the powerful period biopic Firebrand, starring Jude Law as Henry VIII and Alicia Vikander as his sixth and final wife Katherine Parr. All are welcome to join us for this friendly and inclusive gathering, with complimentary tea and coffee served pre-screening.

IFI@Home
A world of incredible Irish and international cinema awaits in the IFI@Home library, huge collections of classic and new films to rent and stream from the comfort of your couch. New releases this October:

October 4^th
In Holy Island, Rosa and David, two lost souls, try to escape a desolate purgatory town. They must find a rare ticket, and overcome their own personal struggles, before becoming stuck in this limbo forever.

October 30^th
Eternal You is a new documentary from co-directors Hans Block and Moritz Riesewieck which explores how start-ups around the world are using artificial intelligence to allow users to virtually connect with their deceased loved ones as avatars.

IFI Archive Player 
Have you checked out our IFI Archive Player recently? This immense online resource is available to view worldwide and is a fascinating collection of archival footage, protected and preserved by the IFI Irish Film Archive, for generations to come. From short films to advertisements, found footage to TV programmes, news reels and homemade recordings, the IFI Archive Player is the world’s largest collection of filmed material from Ireland and of the Irish.

October 27^th
We are excited to release a collection of the short films of Benjamin Gault, the American naturalist, in celebration of UNESCO World Day for Audiovisual Heritage. More details coming very soon.

IFI Film Shop
The IFI Film Shop also has some highlights, including the new 2K restoration of Robert Wynne-Simmons’s The Outcasts (1982). Billed on release as the first Irish feature film in half a century, it was restored by the Irish Film Institute and marks the first time it has been available on Blu‑ray. You can prepare for our Dublin Book Festival events in November with Mark Cousins, which will include a conversation with Grainne Humphreys surrounding his book Dear Orson Welles (and other essays). Also available to purchase is the 50th anniversary novelisation of John Boorman’s Zardoz. To prepare for IFI Horrorthon at the end of the month, the IFI Film Shop will also have a number of highly-anticipated Horror re-issues/restorations. Highlights include J-Horror Rising, a remastered collection of the genre’s most distinctive titles (Release Date: October 28th, 2024), a 2K restoration of Häxan on Blu-ray (Release Date: October 28th, 2024), and a special edition Blu-ray of The Oblong Box starring the iconic pairing of two horror legends Vincent Price and Christopher Lee (Released October 21st, 2024).

IFI Education
Wednesday 23^rd
Our half-day education event this month is dedicated to animation. Careers in Animation will welcome students aged 15-18 to IFI, where they will meet award-winning animators and explore the creative process of animation, inspiring a greater understanding of the animation industry in Ireland and the wealth of opportunities to forge a career in animation.

Festivals
Wednesday 9^th
In partnership with the Dublin Festival of History, the IFI will present a talk focusing on the work of non-professional women filmmakers, Women & Amateur Film in Focus in the Tiernan MacBride Library. As part of a project funded by the Irish Research Council, Kasandra O’Connell (IFI Irish Film Archive) and Sarah Arnold (Department of Media Studies at Maynooth University) will discuss the creative practice of amateur women filmmakers through the collections of the Irish Film Institute. This event is free but ticketed, with booking available by emailing library@irishfilm.ie.

Wednesday 16th
In partnership with Oscariana, the Dublin festival celebrating the life and times of Oscar Wilde, the IFI From the Vaults screening this month will be the classic A Man of No Importance, marking the film’s 30th anniversary and Oscar Wilde’s 175th birthday. This special screening will be introduced by legendary writer and performer Barry Devlin.

Thursday 24th to Monday 28^th (October Bank Holiday)
IFI Horrorthon returns with a monstrous horror takeover of the IFI across the Bank Holiday Weekend, which will include European and Irish premiere screenings, spine-tingling live events, a stellar programme of horror movies and a special themed menu at the IFI Café-Bar. Get into the Halloween vibes with the ultimate J-Horror binge featuring four classics of the genre Pulse, Ringu, Noroi: The Curse, and Cure. For the perfect fright night date, we’ve got the exclusive Irish screening of the extended TV cut of Halloween. Scream out loud at the 40th anniversary screening of Body Double, and a 25th-anniversary screening of Ravenous, alongside a massive evening of movies and fun happenings with our frenemies at Slaughterhouse, as part of the Dublin City Council Bram Stoker Festival. We’ll be announcing the full Horrorthon programme this Monday, so stay tuned and ‘stake’ your claim on tickets before they sell out!

Irish & International Film Releases
From Friday 4^th
A Different Man, director Aaron Schimberg’s fourth feature, starring Sebastian Stan as an aspiring actor with neurofibromatosis, alongside Renate Reinsve (The Worst Person in the World), and Adam Pearson (Under The Skin); Todd Phillips’s highly-anticipated, deeply musical follow up to Joker, Joker: Folie á Deux, starring Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga; and a 50th anniversary re-release of Mel Brooks’s frighteningly funny Young Frankenstein, presented in a new 4K restoration.

From Friday 11^th
Dermot Malone’s Dublin-based parable King Frankie, starring Peter Coonan as a taxi driver who is forced to confront the ghosts of his past. The opening night screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Dermot Malone and actor Peter Coonan.

From Friday 18^th
Ali Abbasi’s The Apprentice, starring Sebastian Stan and showcasing the rise of New York real estate mogul Donald Trump in the ‘70s and ‘80s is a must see as we hit peak US election fever; and Kathleen is Here, a sensitive character study of a wounded young woman, written and directed by Eva Birthistle, and starring Hazel Doupe and Clare Dunne.

From Friday 25^th
Jacques Audiard’s Emilia Pérez, a Spanish-language, trans-themed, all-singing, all-dancing extravaganza starring Zoe Saldana and Selena Gomez; and Spanish master filmmaker Pedro Almodóvar’s lauded The Room Next Door, starring renowned actors Tilda Swinton and Julianne Moore.

Documentaries
Thursday 17^th
The IFI EAFFI Discoveries (East Asia Film Festival Ireland) strand returns with Republic, winner of the Mecenat Award for Best Documentary at the Busan International Film Festival, which highlights Republic, a nest of six-square metres, an anarchic space and hideaway down one of Beijing’s narrow alleyways.

From Friday 25^th
Dahomey is an illuminating and engaging documentary which explores conversations on the legacy of colonialism in Africa, premiered in Ireland at September’s IFI Documentary Festival.

Music Documentaries
We’re delighted to screen a selection of incredible new music documentaries this October, which go deep behind the scenes with some of the world’s most eclectic music artists including Paul Simon, Mogwai, The McKinleys, Placebo and Lush.

Sunday 13^th
In Restless Dreams: The Music of Paul Simon. The definitive musical biography of Paul Simon, one of the greatest songwriters in the history of rock’n’roll. Acclaimed director Alex Gibney, granted unprecedented access, juxtaposes the process of the making of Simon’s new album, against archival material and never before seen footage tracing the artists career and creative journey. A deep look into the miracle and wonder of songwriting.

Tuesday 15^th
Mogwai: If The Stars Had a Sound. Over 25 years, Mogwai have defined their own musical genre, an elegant blend of brute sonic force and cinematic expansiveness. Anthony Crook captures the band as they record their most recent album before the pandemic shuts down their sessions and they are forced to retreat to their hometown of Glasgow.

Saturday 19^th
Since Yesterday: The Untold Story of Scotland’s Girl Bands. This insightful film traces all-women Scottish bands who have received scant attention, redressing a wrong that brings to light the incredible depth of talent that lies in the music of groups such as The McKinleys and Strawberry Switchblade.

Wednesday 23^rd
This Search for Meaning. Oscar Sansom’s film looks at the enduring legacy and influence of Placebo, their huge critical and commercial success which was borne from an uncompromising approach to musicmaking. Placebo defied the prevailing Britpop trends of the time, their lyrics addressing fluid gender and sexual identities, mental health issues and the darker side to casual sex and recreational drug use. With interviews from band members Brian Molko and Stefan Olsdal, as well as Shirley Manson (Garbage), Joe Talbot (Idles) and David Bowie.

Thursday 31^st
Lush: A Far from Home Movie. Lush bassist Philip King’s film is an 8mm homage to his bandmates, shot during his time touring with the band, and serves as both document of the quotidian existence of a touring band and a warm tribute to much-missed friend and former drummer Chris Ackland, who died by suicide. Screening exclusively at the IFI, followed by a Q&A with Lush’s Emma Anderson, Phil King and Steve Rippon.

IFI is principally funded by the Arts Council.