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The protagonist of “Joyride” is named Joy. Joy is seeking a ride out of town. How charmed or irked you are by this rather rudimentary wordplay may also determine your receptiveness to this soft-hearted, high-spirited Irish road movie, which takes a chipper, sometimes openly cheesy approach to fraught emotional terrain. Charting the unlikely camaraderie between a self-sufficient 12-year-old boy and a spiraling middle-aged lawyer with a newborn baby — both seeking an escape of sorts from loveless lives in a drab County Kerry town — Emer Reynolds’ film weaves pretty freely between tonal lanes, as dictated by the blend of character-rooted intimacy and sitcom-like contrivance in Ailbhe Keogan’s script. “Joyride” needs some deft actors driving it, and it has lucked out: An up-for-anything Olivia Colman and scrappy newcomer Charlie Reid make for an unlikely but appealing buddy duo.

Colman, in particular, grants “Joyride” an outsize dramatic presence that a jaunty little...

Filming to begin in Ireland from July 2021.

Vertigo Releasing has acquired UK and Ireland rights to Irish comedy Joyride, starring Olivia Colman, from UK sales outfit Embankment Films.

Directed by Emer Reynolds, filming is set to begin in County Kerry, Ireland next week and Vertigo is planning a theatrical release in 2022.

Sony Pictures Worldwide Entertainment previously secured rights for the rest of the world, excluding the UK and North America.

Colman, who won an Academy Award in 2019 for her leading role in The Favourite and was more recently Oscar-nominated for her performance in Florian Zeller’s The Father, will star opposite newcomer Charlie Reid.

Animated Roddy Doyle adaptation and a feelgood-feature starring Olivia Colman also secure backing.

Frank Berry’s Provision, starring Letitia Wright and Josh O’Connor, has received a boost of €700,000 in the latest round of funding from Screen Ireland.

Dublin-based Subotica Entertainment is producing the drama, in which Wright plays an African woman fleeing persecution who ends up spending more than two years in Ireland’s asylum system, where she befriends a security guard, played by O’Connor.

Irish writer-director Berry’s previous feature was teenage prison drama Michael Inside, which won best film at the 2018 Irish Film and Television Awards and...

Paul Mescal emerged as one of the breakout stars of 2020 thanks to his performance in BBC and Hulu drama “Normal People.”

Ireland has seen a slew of such acting talent establish themselves in recent years, like Jessie Buckley with her star turn as the pregnant wife of a doomed Russian fireman in “Chernobyl” and Barry Keoghan, who won attention with lead roles in two 2017 films, “Killing of a Sacred Deer” and “Dunkirk.” Keoghan is now BAFTA-nominated for “Calm with Horses,” as is Niamh Algar, whose credits include “The Virtues” and “Raised by Wolves.” Elsewhere Domhnall Gleeson has made a name for himself as General Dux in recent “Star Wars” films, and also in “The Revenant” and “Ex Machina.”

Among the new generation of actors to watch are Fionn O’Shea, chosen as one of the Berlin Film Festival’s Shooting Stars of 2021. A “Normal People” alumnus, O’Shea will next be...

Oscar winner Olivia Colman will take the lead role in Joyride, a feel-good Irish drama marking Emmy-winning doc maker Emer Reynolds’ (The Farthest) first foray into film features.

Pic will see Colman play Joy, a train-wreck on an adventure who is ready to give away her new-born baby. Joined by a cheeky street urchin, they are two diamonds in the rough on the run.

Producers are Aoife O’Sullivan and Tristan Orpen Lynch for Dublin-based Subotica (Michael Inside). Film will shoot next year along the Wild Atlantic Way in West Ireland.

Embankment are on board as Executive Producers and will be selling the film worldwide at AFM. The script was written by Ailbhe Keoghan. The screenplay was developed in partnership with Screen Ireland.

“We’re thrilled to have the wonderful Olivia Colman, an artist of such incredible talent, intelligence and depth – not to mention comedic brilliance. It’s going to be...

Embankment to introduce feature at AFM.

Olivia Colman is to star in upcoming Irish feature Joyride, which Embankment will introduce to buyers at the AFM this week.

Shooting is set to begin along Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way in 2021, produced by Dublin-based Subotica. UK-based Embankment is also on board as executive producer.

It will mark the feature directorial debut of Emer Reynolds, who won an Emmy in 2018 with space documentary The Farthest. The script was written by Ailbhe Keogan and developed in partnership with Screen Ireland.

Producers are Aoife O’Sullivan and Tristan Orpen Lynch.

Colman, who will next be seen...

Embankment to introduce feature at AFM.

Olivia Colman is to star in upcoming Irish feature Joyride, which Embankment will introduce to buyers at the AFM this week.

Shooting is set to begin along Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way in 2021, produced by Dublin-based Subotica. UK-based Embankment is also on board as executive producer.

It will mark the feature directorial debut of Emer Reynolds, who won an Emmy in 2018 with space documentary The Farthest. The script was written by Ailbhe Keoghan and developed in partnership with Screen Ireland.

Producers are Aoife O’Sullivan and Tristan Orpen Lynch.

Colman, who will next be seen...

“The Crown” star Olivia Colman, Oscar-winner for “The Favourite,” will play the lead in “Joyride,” the first dramatic feature film from Emmy-wining documentary filmmaker Emer Reynolds (“The Farthest”).

Colman will play Joy, a train-wreck who is on an adventure but ready to give away her new-born baby to her best friend. What she can’t anticipate is that a cheeky street urchin is also along for the ride. Both are on the run; two diamonds in the rough forming a riotous pair.

Dublin-based Subotica (“Michael Inside”), led by Aoife O’Sullivan and Tristan Orpen Lynch, is producing. The film is set to shoot in 2021 along the Wild Atlantic Way in West Ireland.

The U.K.’s Embankment is on board as executive producers and will be selling the film worldwide at AFM. The script was written by Ailbhe Keoghan. The screenplay was developed in partnership with Screen Ireland.

Producer Aoife O...

Oscar-winner Olivia Colman is set to play the lead role in Irish feel-good film Joyride, marking the first dramatic feature from Emmy winner Emer Reynolds (The Farthest, Shameless) and heading to the American Film Market.

The film follows train-wreck Joy (Colman) on an adventure, but ready to give away her newborn baby to her best friend. What she can’t anticipate is that a cheeky street urchin is also along for the ride. Both are on the run; two diamonds in the rough, forming a riotous pair.

“Once I met her, I couldn’t get her out of my head,” said Colman ...

Oscar-winner Olivia Colman is set to play the lead role in Irish feel-good film Joyride, marking the first dramatic feature from Emmy winner Emer Reynolds (The Farthest, Shameless) and heading to the American Film Market.

The film follows train-wreck Joy (Colman) on an adventure, but ready to give away her newborn baby to her best friend. What she can’t anticipate is that a cheeky street urchin is also along for the ride. Both are on the run; two diamonds in the rough, forming a riotous pair.

“Once I met her, I couldn’t get her out of my head,” said Colman ...

The film will open in Ireland’s cinemas later this year.

Ireland’s Break Out Pictures has acquired the rights to Phil Lynott documentary Songs For While I’m Away and will release it in Irish cinemas this autumn.

Directed by Emer Reynolds, whose credits include The Farthest, the film will tell the story of how a young black boy from 1950s working-class Dublin became one of the world’s most iconic rock stars. London-based Eagle Rock Entertainment, which specialises in music documentaries and concert films, is handling international sales.

As lead singer of Thin Lizzy, Lynott and his group...

The project recieved development finance from Screen Ireland in its latest funding round.

Six-time Oscar-nominated Irish director Jim Sheridan is writing and will direct Murphy And The Indian, the true story of Standing Bear, a Native American and civil rights leader who won a landmark 1879 legal case.

Standing Bear argued in the historic case that Native Americans are “persons within the meaning of the law”. The Ponca Chief was recently honoured with a statue in the Us Capitol.

The project has received development financing of €22,500 from Screen Ireland in its latest round of funding decisions.

Sheridan’s Hell’s Kitchen...

The documentary is backed by Screen Ireland and Eagle Rock Pictures.

The life and music of rock icon Phil Lynott is to be documented in Phil Lynott: Songs For While I’m Away, to be directed by the award-winning Irish filmmaker Emer Reynolds.

The documentary will trace how a young black boy from working class 1950’s Dublin became one of Ireland’s greatest rock stars as the lead singer of Thin Lizzy. Born in Birmingham to a father from British Guiana and an Irish mother, he moved to Dublin as a young child where he lived with his grandparents. He...

It is also investing €750,000 in Lorcan Finnegan’s sci-fi thriller Vivarium.

New projects from award-winning Irish filmmakers Emer Reynolds and Aisling Walsh have secured backing from Screen Ireland, formerly the Irish Film Board, in its latest round of funding decisions.

They are among close to 60 productions being backed by Screen Ireland in its second quarter of funding.

Reynolds, whose Voyager documentary The Farthest won numerous awards, will direct the documentary Songs For While I’m Away for leading Irish production outfit Marcie Films. The feature documentary about an as-yet-unrevealed iconic 1970s rock star received €175,000 in documentary production funding from Screen Ireland.

It is also investing €750,000 in Lorcan Finnegan’s sci-fi thriller Vivarium.

New projects from award-winning Irish filmmakers Emer Reynolds and Aisling Walsh have secured backing from Screen Ireland, formerly the Irish Film Board, in its latest round of funding decisions.

They are among close to 60 productions being backed by Screen Ireland in its second quarter of funding.

Reynolds, whose Voyager documentary The Farthest won numerous awards, will direct the documentary Songs For While I’m Away for leading Irish production outfit Marcie Films. The feature documentary about an as-yet-unrevealed iconic 1970s rock star received €175,000 in documentary production funding from Screen Ireland.

Documentary is an intimate account of how the boxer attempts to rebuild her career following a year of turmoil.

Dublin-based Wildcard Distribution has acquired the UK and Irish rights to a new documentary about world champion boxer Katie Taylor.

Katie Taylor: The Comeback is an intimate account of how the boxer attempts to rebuild her career following a year of turmoil. The film is set to be released in UK and Irish cinemas by Wildcard this summer.

This weekend, Taylor added the International Boxing Federation (Ibf) World Title to her World Boxing Association (Wba) crown as she continues her quest...

Full list of nominations revealed for 15th edition of awards.

The Irish Film and Television Academy (Ifta) has unveiled the nominations for its 2018 film and drama awards.

Source: Sony Pictures Classics

Maudie

Now in its 15th year, the event celebrates the best in Irish film and TV from the past 12 months.

In the film categories, Aisling Walsh’s Maudie, starring Sally Hawkins, leads the way with six nominations including best feature film and director.

Cardboard Gangsters, Handsome Devil, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri and The Farthest follow with five nominations, while The Drummer And The Keeper, The Killing Of A Sacred Deer, Maze and Michael Inside received four apiece.

The Lodgers, Pilgrimage, Song Of Granite all received three nods, while Lady Bird received two.

In the drama categories, Vikings leads the way on six nominations including best drama, while Game Of Thrones and Peaky Blinders received five each. Paula received four, Acceptable Risk and [link=tt...

by Glenn Dunks

There is a reason that filmmakers keep going back to space. The very concept of an ever-expansive mass of significant nothingness can inspire the mind in infinite ways. But whereas for many, the immediate idea is to resort to fireballs, aliens and standard hero versus villain storylines, I find myself far more attracted to those who turn towards the stars with a sense of wonder and awe. It is perhaps why I respond so well to documentaries like Roman Kroitor and Colin Low’s Universe (the short that inspired Kubrick’s 2001), Al Reinert’s For All Mankind, and now Emer Reynolds’ The Farthest, one of the year's finest.

Celebrating the 40-year anniversary of Nasa’s 1977 mission to send two Voyager satellites into space, this Irish documentary is a work of stunning beauty. A film that grapples with the concept of not just what this giant science experiment is,...

You don’t have to be a science geek to love Emer Reynolds’ fascinating documentary about Nasa’s landmark Voyager mission that launched two unmanned spacecraft to explore the outer reaches of the solar system. Being given a limited theatrical release in conjunction with the 40th anniversary of the 1977 launch, The Farthest should garner greater appreciative audiences when it airs later this month on PBS.

“This may be, in the long run, the only evidence that we ever existed,” comments one of the many Nasa scientists who worked on the project about the spacecraft that might outlive the human race. Indeed,...

Distributor set to release film in New York and Los Angeles in mid-August.

Abramorama has acquired North American theatrical distribution rights for the documentary The Farthest, which chronicles Nasa’s Voyager mission.

Emer Reynolds wrote and directed the film that tells the story of the Voyager space mission which defied all odds by visiting our solar system’s outer planets for the first time before achieving humankind’s first journey into interstellar space.

The film will be released theatrically in New York and Los Angeles on August 11, with additional one-night event screenings around the country to follow.

The Farthest has screened multiple film festivals including Edinburgh, Seattle, Sydney, Tribeca, and the Audi Dublin International Film Festival (Adiff) where it won the Audi-ence award as well as best Irish documentary and the George Byrne Maverick Award, which was presented to Reynolds.

John Murray and Clare Stronge produced for Crossing the Line, while [link=nm...

Abramorama has picked up the U.S. and Canadian theatrical distribution rights to The Farthest, the documentary on Nasa's Voyager space mission program, which defied all odds by visiting for the first time our solar system's outer planets. Written and directed by Emer Reynolds (Here Was Cuba), the film will have a limited release in Los Angles and New York, timed with the 40th anniversary of the 1977 mission launch, followed by its debut on PBS August 23. These…...

'Ali's Wedding'.

Sydney Film Festival.s audience awards were announced today, with Aussie films topping both categories.

Jeffery Walker.s feature debut Ali.s Wedding, a rom-com.based on the life of star and co-writer Osamah Sami, has taken out best narrative feature, while Kate Hickey.s Roller Dreams, which looks at the.the Venice Beach roller dancing scene from 1978 until now,.won best documentary.

Local films Rip Tide and That.s Not Me also made the audience.s top 10 features. Meanwhile Australian docos formed half the documentary category, including The Last Goldfish, The Opposition, Barbecue, and The Pink House.

Sascha Ettinger Epstein.s The Pink House also won the festival.s Documentary Australia Foundation Award for Australian Documentary, a $10,000 cash prize, on Sunday evening.

.The Foxtel Movies Audience Awards are the people's choice awards, and the winners reflect the most popular films at the Festival,. said Sff director Nashen Moodley.

.This year.Ali.s Wedding.and.Roller Dreams, two wonderful films that both take on remarkable true stories, have clearly made a strong impact on audiences..

.The Festival has premiered some fantastic Australian films this year. This result shows the popularity of Australian cinema at the Sydney Film Festival."

The awards were calculated from 20,000 votes.

The full list is below: The Foxtel Movies Audience Awards

Foxtel Movies Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature Top Ten: 1. Ali's Wedding, directed by Jeffrey Walker (Australia) 2. Call Me By Your Name, directed by Luca Guadagnino (Italy, France) 3. Rip Tide, directed by Rhiannon Bannenberg (Australia) 4. That.s Not Me, directed by Gregory Erdstein (Australia) 5. Brigsby Bear, directed by Dave McCary (USA) 6..On Body and Soul, directed by Ildikó Enyedi (Hungary) 7. God's Own Country, directed by Francis Lee (UK) 8. Sami Blood, directed by Amanda Kernell (Sweden, Denmark, Norway) 9. The Woman Who Left, directed by Lav Diaz (Philippines) 10. The Wound, directed by John Trengrove (South Africa, Germany, The Netherlands, France) Foxtel Movies Audience Award for Best Documentary Top Ten: 1. Roller Dreams, directed by Kate Hickey (Australia) 2. The Last Goldfish, directed by Su Goldfish (Australia) 3. Chauka Please Tell Us the Time, directed by Behrouz Boochani and Arash Kamali Sarvestani (The Netherlands, Papua New Guinea) 4. The Opposition, directed by Hollie Fifer (Australia) 5. Barbecue, directed by Matthew Salleh (Australia) 6. The Workers Cup, directed by Adam Sobel (UK) 7. Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World, directed by Catherine Bainbridge and Alfonso Maiorana (Canada) 8. The Farthest, directed by Emer Reynolds (Ireland) 9. The Pink House, directed by Sascha Ettinger Epstein (Australia) 10. It's Not Yet Dark, directed by Frankie Fenton (Ireland)...