In the early 1800s Sarah Island in Maquarie Harbour, Tasmania, was considered the most notorious and brutal penal colony in the British Empire. In 1822, seven convicts made an escape attempt through terrain that to this day remains unexplored; the men resorted to killing and eating their companions in order to survive. After forty-nine days only one man emerged from the wilderness – an Alexander Pearce, native of Monaghan. In this film, through the use of a series of dramatic reconstructions, director Barrie Dowdall (who brought us The Ned Kelly: The True Story) explores both the humanity and the depravity of this character, and in doing so brings this dark story to Irish screens for the first time. This documentary is a re-enactment of a gruesome tale: it contains scene some viewers may not find to their taste.
Director Barrie Dowdall will attend the screening.
If you can’t see this, try: Flight of the Earls (Friday 9pm) or Our Daily Bread (Sunday 5.45pm)

Festival ticket bundles are available directly from the box office.
€40 for 5. €70 for 10.
Please phone 01 679 3477.