Author: BIF

19 Feb

Posted at 20:06h in Belgrade Irish Festival 2025 by
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This year, during Irish Film Week (March 8-14), you will have the opportunity to watch 15 films – including classics by Neil Jordan, black comedies, love stories, and films about contemporary Ireland, as well as films tackling important social issues such as mental health and women’s empowerment. Neil Jordan, a star of Irish cinema and the most internationally acclaimed screenwriter and director from Ireland, will be the honorary guest of the 13th Belgrade Irish Festival (March 6-17, 2025) and will visit Belgrade for the first time in March. Irish Film Week will open with Jordan’s historical biographical drama Michael Collins (March 8, 19:00), about the legendary Irish revolutionary Michael Collins, celebrated for his role in the fight for Irish independence from Great Britain in the early 20th century. Liam Neeson, who plays Michael Collins, won the Best Actor award at the 53rd Venice Film Festival. Julia Roberts stars as Collins’ fiancée, Kitty...

17 Feb

Posted at 11:56h in Belgrade Irish Festival 2025 by
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The renowned Irish jazz diva, Mary Coughlan, will perform in Serbia for the first time this March as a special guest of the 13th Belgrade Irish Festival. Often called the "Irish Billie Holiday", Coughlan is known for her emotional and raw interpretations as well as provocative interaction with the audience. She will take the stage in Belgrade on March 13, performing at Dom omladine Beograda. Her music blends jazz, blues, folk, and rock, while music critics recognize influences of Billie Holiday, Bessie Smith, Édith Piaf, and Peggy Lee in her work. Last year, she released her latest album, "Repeat Rewind," celebrating 40 years on the international music scene. In Belgrade, she will perform with her four-piece band, presenting a carefully selected repertoire that showcases the best of her musical legacy. "I have 15 albums and 40 years of music behind me. I’m sure we’ll put together a great setlist so the Belgrade audience...

06 Feb

Posted at 11:56h in Belgrade Irish Festival 2025 by
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Renowned Irish film director Neil Jordan and exceptional jazz and blues singer Mary Coughlan will visit Serbia for the first time this March as guests of the 13th Belgrade Irish Festival (BIF), taking place from March 6 to 17. This year’s BIF lasts for 12 days and will feature over 40 events across the city. The festival will conclude, as always, with the St. Patrick’s Day celebration on March 17, a national holiday in Ireland. On that day, some of Belgrade’s most iconic buildings will be illuminated in green, following a tradition embraced by many world capitals. “This year, BIF opens with an exclusive exhibition, ‘Godard Bardot,’ inspired by Jean-Luc Godard’s film ‘Contempt’ starring Brigitte Bardot, created by Irish visual artist Jean Curran. For the first time, Bardot has allowed her nude scenes from the film to be reinterpreted using a special photographic technique and displayed in an exhibition,” said the festival’s...

01 Apr

Posted at 11:39h in Belgrade Irish Festival 2024 by
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With its 12th edition this year, the Belgrade Irish Festival once again confirmed its place as one of the key events in Belgrade’s cultural calendar in March. This year, a special contribution came from the legendary Irish filmmaker Jim Sheridan, whose work had Belgraders revisiting classic films and rediscovering his masterpieces. We also made a new leap forward – for two nights in a row, Bitef Theatre was sold out as the audience got to know Pat Kinevane, an extraordinary, somewhat extravagant theater actor, along with the renowned theater company Fishamble. Seven days of Irish cinema at the Yugoslav Film Archive, two photography exhibitions at Parobrod and Dorćol Platz, numerous conversations and gatherings with visiting Irish artists as well as those who have long lived and created in Belgrade – these are just some of the highlights of the 12th BIF! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3R8RLKNfPHw We extend our gratitude to this year’s partners, whose support helped us...

08 Mar

Posted at 22:46h in Belgrade Irish Festival 2024 by
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Irish director and screenwriter Jim Sheridan was awarded the Golden Seal of the Yugoslav Film Archive (Jugoslovenska Kinoteka) for his outstanding contribution to the film art at the opening of the 12th Belgrade Irish Festival (BIF). The award was presented to him by Ksenija Zelenović, the editor of the film program at this institution, on behalf of the Film Archive. Addressing the audience, Sheridan expressed his delight at being back in Serbia and hoped that Serbia would remain open to the world. Following the award ceremony, the audience attended a screening of the film "My Left Foot," which brought Sheridan and Irish cinema to worldwide acclaim. The film is a true story about the Irish poet and painter Christy Brown, who had cerebral palsy and could only use his left foot. According to Sheridan, this film symbolizes perseverance and significantly influenced the perception of people with developmental disabilities in Ireland. "That is...

05 Mar

Posted at 11:55h in Belgrade Irish Festival 2024 by
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As part of the 12th Belgrade Irish Festival (March 8th – 18th), we'll have the opportunity to see two exhibitions featuring striking photography: one from Ireland showcasing the life of Irish nomads, known as Minkers, and the other by an Irishman who has lived in the Balkans for over a decade, presenting this part of Europe through his own eyes. "Minkers" is the title of the exhibition by photographer Joseph-Philippe Bevillard, introducing us to the life of the ethnic minority in Ireland Minkers, commonly referred to in this country as Irish Travellers. For years, Joseph-Philippe has been documenting the lives of the Minkers, and much of his work focuses on this community. The photographs, being showcased for the first time in Belgrade, reveal the uniqueness, joy, and beauty of their lives, exclusively captured through his lens. Bevillard lost his hearing at the age of three and since then, he focused on...

28 Feb

Posted at 15:59h in Belgrade Irish Festival 2024 by
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Rob Doyle, an award-winning younger-generation Irish writer, and Theo Dorgan, one of the most renowned poets in the country, will be guests at this year's Belgrade Irish Festival. Both authors will read excerpts from their works and engage with the Belgrade audience. Rob Doyle will spend a month in Belgrade as a guest of the literary residency organized by BIF for the first time this year, in collaboration with "Krokodil," with support from Literature Ireland from Dublin. A native of Dublin, Doyle is the author of four internationally successful books. His debut novel, "Here Are the Young Men," was adapted into a film of the same name. He has also published novels "Threshold" and "This is the Ritual," a collection of short stories. During a month in Belgrade, he will continue working on his new novel. Doyle will interact with readers at "Krokodil" during the festival days, with the date and time to...

27 Feb

Posted at 14:48h in Belgrade Irish Festival 2024 by
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The Week of Irish Film, as part of the program of the 12th Belgrade Irish Festival - BIF (March 8 - 18), is dedicated to special guest Jim Sheridan, a screenwriter and director who has brought international recognition to modern Irish cinema and who, on this occasion, will be visiting Serbia once again. Throughout eight days of the Festival, dedicated to film (March 8 - 15), we will see 15 movies by Irish authors, all selected with the aim to introduce us to the lives and achievements of iconic Irish figures, from actors and musicians to footballers and LGBTQ+ activists. Guests of Belgrade and BIF, alongside Sheridan, include directors Alan Ginsenan, former director of the Irish Film Institute, Kevin Hughes, Katherine Harte, and Edwina Forkin, founder of Zanzibar Productions. We will watch their films at the Kinoteka, in the building on Kosovska 11, where, after the screenings, the authors will engage in...

05 Feb

Posted at 13:58h in Belgrade Irish Festival 2024 by
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The Belgrade Irish Festival will be held for the twelfth time this year, from March 8 to 18, as St. Patrick's Week in Belgrade. Over ten days, the Belgrade audience will have the opportunity to enjoy a selection of Irish films, award-winning theater performances, a photo exhibition, engage in discussions with directors, writers, and journalists from Ireland, and learn more about this country and its culture through socializing with the Irish living in Serbia. This year, the Belgrade Irish Festival will be opened by Jim Sheridan, a renowned Irish screenwriter, producer, and director whose films have received 16 Oscar nominations, best known to the local audience for movies like 'In the Name of the Father' and 'My Left Foot' (both starring Daniel Day-Lewis). On Friday, March 8, 2024, Jim Sheridan will open the 12th Belgrade Irish Festival at the Yugoslav Film Archive building. An exclusive guest of the Belgrade Irish Festival is the...

29 Jan

Posted at 08:19h in Belgrade Irish Festival 2024 by
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The Belgrade Irish Festival, in partnership with Literature Ireland and Krokodil Writers Centre, seeks applications from creative writers for a residential bursary in Belgrade, Serbia. This is an opportunity for a writer to travel to Serbia and live and work in the exciting cultural capital of Serbia, Belgrade. The residency will take place between 26 February and 25 March 2024 (four weeks’ duration). The bursary will be awarded to a practising writer from the island of Ireland. The successful candidate will be asked to work on their current writing project, and to immerse themselves in Belgrade’s rich literary and cultural life in the run up to the annual Belgrade Irish Festival. Towards the end of the residency, the successful candidate will participate fully in the festival, including at least one public event focusing on their work. This residency is suitable for an early to mid-career writer with an established publication record. Eligible genres are...