A still from Tony Donoghue’s Irish Folk Furniture.
For the last five days I’ve been fortunate to be in Park City, Utah again for the Sundance Film Festival.
It’s been a crazy week…a fabulous week…an emotional week.
As I sit here and quickly write this post, I have already seen three films. I have tickets for another four. The subject matter includes the hardship and death of an illegal emigrant (Who is Dayani Cristal), pornography (Lovelace), police brutality (Fruitvale), nuclear energy (Pandora’s Promise), the power of activism (Occupy Wall Street), the crushing reality of hate (Valentine Road) and, finally, classism (American Promise). All-in-all, it’s pretty heavy stuff.
So you can imagine my great relief and joy when I was able to sit with my laptop and watch a light-hearted Irish “short” film on YouTube called Irish Folk Furniture. It is a charming eight-minute animated documentary following 16 pieces of traditional folk furniture as they are repaired and returned to their owners. It was made by director Tony Donoghue and producer Cathal Black after ten years of research and interviews conducted in Co. Tipperary.
Last night Tony and Cathal were rewarded for their efforts by winning the Short Film Special Jury Award in Animation. There were over 8,000 short-film submissions made to Sundance this year. 65 were chosen for the competition. 7 won.
If you have a few minutes, watch this superb little film. It is “full of life and told with beautiful simplicity.”
Related articles
- Irish short film picks up Best Animation prize at Sundance Film Festival (siliconrepublic.com)
- AnOther Magazine – Irish Folk Furniture (dianepernet.typepad.com)
In an Irish Home 