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Introduction to Northern Irish cinema
After Irish independence in 1921, six counties in the north of Ireland remained part of the United Kingdom. However, there was no attempt to cultivate a local film industry and the region remained reliant on imports from mainland Britain and the US. The kinds of religious and moral campaigns waged against the cinema in Ireland were echoed in Northern Ireland, though with Protestant inflection. During the 1930s a number of films passed by the British Board of Film Censors attracted local censorship, including a complete ban on James Whale’s Frankenstein in 1931. A handful of British musical comedies starring Northern Irish actor and singer Richard Hayward, including The Luck of the Irish (Donovan Pedelty, 1935), The Early Bird (Donovan Pedelty, 1936), and Devil’s Rock (Germain Burger, 1938), were made with some state support, and played a role in the cultivation of a distinct Northern Irish identity. During World War II, a small number of propaganda documentaries were made, including The Story of the Ulster Home Guard (1944), promoting the war effort in Northern Ireland and comparing it favourably with Ireland’s neutrality. After the war a number of informational short documentaries and travelogues were funded or part-funded by the Northern Irish government, including Ulster (1948) and Land of Ulster (1951): these attempted to establish a distinct, though pro-British, regional identity. The difficulty of such a project was explored in a number of unofficial and independently-funded films that were openly critical of pro-British sentiment and ideology. These included Belfast Remembers ‘98 (1948) and Fintona—A Study of Housing Discrimination (1953). Tensions within the region became more pronounced with the beginning of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) bombing campaign in 1956, and the UK government was active in funding pro-British documentary films, including This is Ulster (1958) and Ulster Heritage (1960), while censoring films deemed sympathetic to Republican ideology. The earliest British film about ‘the Troubles’ is Carol Reed’s Odd Man Out (1947); and the critical success of Hunger (2009) by Turner prize-winning artist Steve McQueen and ’71 (Yann Demange, 2014) indicates that the subject is still a compelling one for British filmmakers and audiences. The formation of the Northern Irish Film Council in 1989 brought about an increase in film production in the province; and since 1995 a number of lottery-supported films have been produced, including Divorcing Jack (David Caffrey, 1998) and Wild About Harry (Declan Lowney, 1999). The animated film The King’s Wake (John McCloskey, 2000) has been acclaimed for its bleak deconstruction of Ulster myths. More recent notable films include The Shore (Terry George, 2011) and Good Vibrations (Lisa Barros D’Sa and Glenn Leyburn, 2012). Although local production is minimal, Northern Ireland is home to some runaway production, which makes use of the Paint Hall Studio in Belfast’s Titanic Quarter, as well as the surrounding rural landscapes. See also Britain, film in.
Kuhn, A., & Westwell, G. (2020). Northern Ireland, film in. In A Dictionary of Film Studies. Oxford University Press. Retrieved 18 Aug. 2022
In the library's collections/Searching the online catalog
- motion pictures northern irelandCall number range PN 1993.5 .I85 on Baker Level 4.
Introductory reading(s)
Cinema and Northern Ireland: film, culture and politics by Call Number: Baker-Berry PN 1993.5 .I85 H55 2006ISBN: 9781844571345Traces the history of film production in Northern Ireland from the beginnings of a local film industry in the 1920s and 1930s, when the first Northern Irish 'quota quickies' were made, through the propaganda films of the 1940s and 1950s and on to the cinema of the 'Troubles'.
Selected book title(s)
Roll away the reel world: James Joyce and cinema by Call Number: eBookISBN: 9781859184714This book focuses on Joyce's interest and involvement in early modern cinema and his subsequent thematic and formal borrowing for this genre. Leading Joyce and film studies scholars look at cinema's interest in Joyce as seen in important film versions of his work and contemporary films such as American Beauty (Mendes, 1999) and The Departed (Scorsese, 2006). For the most part Ulysses is the preferred text, but stories from Dubliners, as well as A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man and Finnegan's Wake also provide points of reference.
Recording memories from political violence: a film-maker's journey by Call Number: eBookISBN: 9786612896088Based on work the author has carried out with survivor groups in South Africa and Northern Ireland, Recording Memories from Political Violence combines written and audiovisual texts to describe and analyze the use of documentary film making in recording experiences of political conflict. A variety of issues relevant to the genre are addressed at length, including the importance of ethics in the collaboration between the filmmaker and the participant and the effect of location on the accounts of participants. ...
Other library resource(s)
Irish cinema from Oxford Bibliographies Online by Call Number: Electronic resourceISBN: 9780199791286Irish cinema occupied a marginal status in world cinema until the double Oscar success in 1990 of the Irish feature My Left Foot, the directorial debut of Jim Sheridan.
Finding scholarly articles and journals
You can find scholarly literature for Northern Irish films in a variety of journals. However, if you want to do targeted searching, you can use a subject specific database such as Film & Television Literature Index. You can also use the search box at the top of the page.
Film & television literature indexCall Number: Electronic resourceThis index covers over 300 journal and magazine titles for film and television reviews, scholarly and critical analysis of cinema and television, and articles of popular interest about film and television. About half the journals and magazines are film periodicals and the other half cover film and television with some regularity. Subject coverage includes film & television theory, preservation & restoration, writing, production, cinematography, technical aspects, and reviews.
Screen studies collection by Call Number: Electronic resourceA comprehensive survey of current publications related to film scholarship alongside detailed filmographies. This collection includes the FIAF International Index to Film Periodicals Database and the detailed and complementary filmographies created by the American Film Institute (AFI) and the British Film Institute.
Media history digital library by Call Number: Electronic resourceThe Media History Digital Library digitizes collections of classic media periodicals that belong in the public domain for full public access. The project is supported by owners of materials who loan them for scanning, and donors who contribute funds to cover the cost of scanning.
The Collection feature extensive runs of several important trade papers and fan magazines.
The web of science citation databases by Call Number: Electronic resourceThe online version of 3 separate ISI indexes: Arts & Humanities Citation Index, Science Citation Index and, Social Sciences Citation Index.
Selected movie titles
Find more films from Northern Ireland in the library's online catalog. For another list of films, see the Internet links below.
- '71 byCall Number: Jones Media DVD #19310A British soldier is caught behind enemy lines in Belfast 1971. Unable to tell friend from foe, and increasingly wary of his own comrades, he must survive the night alone and find his way to safety through a disorienting, alien, and deadly landscape.
Belfast by Call Number: Jones Media DVD #23327A poignant story of love, laughter, and loss in one boy's childhood, amid the music and social tumult of the late 1960s.
Bloody Sunday by Call Number: Jones Media DVD #3580ISBN: 9780792186908Recreation of the events of "Bloody Sunday", Jan. 30, 1972, when British troops fired on unarmed protesters in Derry, Northern Ireland. By the end of the day, 13 civilians were dead and 14 more wounded in the tumult and tragedy of Northern Ireland's darkest day.
Miss Julie by Call Number: Jones Media DVD #18885A wealthy aristocrat and her father's valet's innocent flirtation turns into a heated and dangerous affair that tests the boundaries of class and desire.- The Thompsons byCall Number: Streaming videoThis film tells the story of a Protestant family in rural Ulster and their fight to remain British and free from Irish rule.
Internet resource(s)
- 10 Great Films About the Troubles from BFI
As Yann Demange’s acclaimed debut, ’71, gets its UK premiere at the London Film Festival ahead of a nationwide release, we look at some of the best films about Northern Ireland’s Troubles. [10/02/2014] - Northern Ireland ScreenNorthern Ireland Screen is the national screen agency for Northern Ireland. They are committed to maximising the economic, cultural and educational value of the screen industries for the benefit of Northern Ireland. This goal is pursued through their mission to accelerate the development of a dynamic and sustainable screen industry and culture in Northern Ireland.
Keeping up with Film Studies journal literature
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Don't own or use a mobile device? You can still use BrowZine! It's also available in a web version. You can get to it here. The web version works the same way as the app version. Find the journals you like, create a custom Bookshelf, get ToCs and read the articles you want.