THE IRISH Film and Television Academy (Ifta) is to honour English director, writer and producer John Boorman’s contribution to Irish cinema at its awards ceremony next month.
Boorman, who has lived in Co Wicklow for some 40 years, is to receive Ifta's Lifetime Achievement Award. He is best known for directing Deliverance, Point Blank, Excaliburand The General. Ifta said Boorman (77) was a visionary filmmaker and an infinite source of inspiration who had given great leadership to the Irish film industry over the years.
A former chairman of the Irish Film Board and chairman of Ardmore Studios in Co Wicklow, Boorman is credited with mentoring a generation of Irish filmmakers such as Neil Jordan.
“John Boorman gave me my first real screenwriting job,” Jordan said. “He is a true artist of the cinema, and his place in its history has long been secure.”
Boorman will receive the honour at the seventh Ifta awards which take place in the Burlington Hotel in Dublin on February 20th.
A total of 37 awards will be up for grabs on the night and among the nominees are Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson, Gabriel Byrne, Saoirse Ronan, Jim Sheridan and the late writer Frank Deasy.
Jordan's Ondine, Paul Young's The Secret of Kellsand Séamus Byrne's Eamonare among the nominees for best film, while The Tudors, Pure Muleand The Clinicwill battle for the best television drama award.
Farrell is nominated for best actor in a lead role (film) for his performance in Ondine. Other contenders include Darren Healy ( Savage), Ciaran Hinds ( The Eclipse)and Stephen Rea ( Nothing Personal). Big hitters Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Liam Neeson, Gleeson and Byrne are vying for the best actor in a lead role (television) award.
Ronan (15) is nominated for best actress in a lead role for her performance in The Lovely Bones. She will compete with Janice Byrne ( Zonad), Amy Kirwan ( Eamon) and Jade Yourell ( Happy Ever Afters) for the award.
The contenders in the best international actor category are Sam Rockwell ( Moon), Vincent Cassel ( Mesrine) and Robert Downey Jnr ( Sherlock Holmes), while Avatar, Up, Let the Right One Inand The Hurt Lockerwill compete for the title of best international film.
Deasy, who died in September, is nominated for best television script for Father Son.
At the launch of the awards, Minister of State for the Office of Public Works Dr Martin Mansergh, deputising for Minister for Arts Martin Cullen who has a back injury, said it was abundantly clear that the Irish film and television community continued to deliver in 2009.
“The nominated titles this year show Ireland has a fantastic resource of creative talent and expertise, writers, directors, producers, actors and crafts people,” he said.
Full list of nominees www.ifta.ie
