Croi Trodach (A Fighting Heart) is the epic story of Johnny Kilbane (1889 – 1957), poet, politician and the longest reigning World Featherweight Champion of all time. It’s a rags-to-riches story which begins on Achill Island, from where his ancestors originated, and ends in Cleveland, Ohio where Kilbane entertained and served his community until his untimely death in 1957. Directed by Des Kilbane, himself a distant relation of Johnny, and co-authored by Andrew Gallimore, the film tells this remarkable life story using salvaged nitrate film of Kilbane’s World Title Fight in 1912.

Notes by Sunniva O’Flynn