THE two new Irish films showing at the 50th Cannes Film Festival will have their world premiere screenings tomorrow night at exactly the same time and on opposite sides of the same street.
And both films will be shown again on Wednesday afternoon, again at the same time. The clash in scheduling has dismayed many of the festival's Irish contingent.
One of the films is I Went Dawn, a blackly humorous road movie featuring two inept minor Dublin criminals played by Brendan Gleeson and newcomer Peter McDonald. It is written by the 24 year old Irish playwright, Conor McPherson, and directed by Paddy Breathnach, who previously filmed the Joe O'Connor story, Ailsa. The film is produced by Robert Walpole of the Dublin production company, Treasure Films.
The second film, The Last Bus Home, is set on the day in 1979 when the Pope came to Dublin and deals with the problems of a self destructive punk hand known as the Dead Patriots. Brian O'Byrne, Annie Lynch and Anthony Brophy star in the film, which is written and directed by Johnny Gogan, and produced by Paul Donovan of the Irish company, Bandit Films.
Both films are scheduled to be unveiled to international film distributors and buyers tomorrow at 10 p.m., one at the Ambassades cinema on the Rue d'Antibes and the other a minute's walk away at the Star cinema across the road. The Cannes screenings of I Went Down are organised by the London based agents, the Sales Co and those of The Last Bus Home by the Australian company, Beyond Films.
"It is very unfortunate that two fine new indigenous Irish films should coincide like this," Mr James Flynn, business manager of Bord Scannan na hEireann, told The Irish Times at the film board's stand in the Cannes market yesterday.
"it will be a big day for the indigenous Irish sector, and having sales agents attached to the films will give them a much higher profile in Cannes, which helps them a lot."
Meanwhile the Irish made film, The Serpent's Kiss, is a late entry to the films in competition for prizes at Cannes this year, replacing the Chinese entry, Keep Cool, which was withdrawn at the request of the Chinese authorities.
Filmed in Sixmilebridge, Co Clare, last summer, The Serpent's Kiss is set in England in 1699 and was directed by a Frenchman, Philippe Rousselot.
The leading players are Ewan McGregor, Greta Scacchi and Pete Postlethwaite, but the cast includes many Irish actors, including Donal McCann, Gerard McSorley, Britta Smith, Susan Fitzgerald, Pat Laffan and Ruaidhri Conroy. Many of the crew, including the costume designer, Consolata Boyle, are Irish.