IRISH FILM BALL TO TAKE PLACE IN RDS

The 2001 Irish Film Ball will take place at the RDS in Dublin on November 30.
As the key event in the Irish film industry calendar, the ball is an appropriate platform for the richest awards ever given to members of the industry. These awards will be presented in the gaze of 450 of the brightest lights of the film, television and music industries.
The Film Institute of Ireland (FII), will present two awards on the night and showcase the UIP / Film Makers Ireland Awards: The FII Award for Lifetime Achievement will go to one of the most interesting and successful actors working in the world today, Gabriel Byrne, who will travel from New York to accept the honour.
Byrne has starred in some of the most important films of the last two decades including ‘Miller’s Crossing’, ‘The Usual Suspects’, ‘Excalibur’, ‘In The Name of The Father’ and ‘Into The West’.
The FII Award for Contribution to Irish Film will go to Kevin Rockett, a film chronicler and academic and a film writer and lecturer of international renown. Rockett co-wrote the seminal ‘Cinema and Ireland’ and is a founder of the UCD Film School.
The UIP Award for Best Director will go to Vinny Murphy for his feature film, ‘Accelerator’. Murphy has worked as a director, actor, writer and composer for film, television and theatre. ‘Accelerator’ is Murphy’s feature film debut.
The UIP Award for direction of a live action short goes to Brian Tucker and Ronan Carr for ‘Coolockland’ and for direction of his animated short goes to Tomm Moore for ‘Dress Rehearsal’.
The Film Institute Awards will be presented by John Boorman who gave Byrne his feature film debut in ‘Excalibur’. The Awards have been commissioned of fused glass artist Valerie Ritchie whose work is prized in Ireland and worldwide.
Proceeds from the 2001 Irish Film Ball will go to the Irish Film Archive – the custodian of our film heritage. (CD)