Cardiff's Queer Iris Prize Expands International Reach Says Matthew Rhys

[Pictured above: Welsh actor Matthew Rhys, who plays the gay character in 'Brothers & Sister' made the cover of the world's most read gay magazine, The Advocate.]

Not only do the Welsh continue to lead the acting and film world, providing an endless parade of talent, but Cardiff, the capital city of Wales, has become a must-visit hot spot on the annual calendar for Gay & Lesbian Film production.



Here's the most recent news, directly quoted from the Iris Prize website:

"Brothers and Sisters star Matthew Rhys today (19 March 2009) confirmed that Melbourne Queer Film Festival and REELING - The Chicago Lesbian and Gay International Film Festival have become partner festivals for the Iris Prize.

Brothers & Sisters - Jason Lewis and Matthew Rhys first kiss



"They join the global network of gay and lesbian film festivals who nominate a short film to compete for the Iris Prize, the world’s largest gay and lesbian short film prize.

"I’m delighted that Iris has two new partner festivals located in Chicago and Melbourne. Having both these respected festivals join the family brings the total number of partner festivals to 16.

"The global network of film festivals who feed into Iris is hugely important in allowing Iris to identify and support the very best film making talent from all over the world," said Festival Patron, Matthew Rhys (pictured right).

"As the second oldest LGBT film festival in the world, Reeling: The Chicago Lesbian & Gay International Film Festival is delighted to participate in identifying the next recipient of the coveted Iris Prize.

B&S 2.01: Good Morning Kiss



"The Iris Prize not only recognizes excellence in LGBT filmmaking, it also makes possible the creation of new work, each year supporting a deserving filmmaker as they embark on their next short film adventure.

"We are thrilled to be part of this process," said Joe Sprague, Operations Director, Reeling.



To learn more about this fantastic festival, created by the Welsh wunderkind Berwyn Rowlands [having already placed Wales on the world stage, having established Ffresh, The Student Moving Image Festival of Wales (2002) and the Welsh International Film Festival (1989)]:

Click here to go directly to the Iris Prize website.


Iris Prize Festival 08 Montage





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Visit the UK Film Studies and World Cinema and Music Import Showcase
© 2009 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods Smart & Sexy? Your Queer Advantage advances while your Queer Day Rises!
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© 2009 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods

Cardiff ATRiuM: George Ewart Evans Centenary Fête April 1, 2009

[Pictured above: George Ewart Evans (1909, Abercynon, South Wales – 1988) was a Welsh-born schoolteacher, writer and folklorist who became a dedicated collector of oral history and oral tradition in the East Anglian countryside from the 1940s to 1970s, and produced eleven books of collections of these materials.]

My esteemed colleague Professor Hamish Fyfe writes to us:

Dear Colleagues,

A date for your diaries

The 1st of April 2009 marks the centenary of the birth of the writer and pioneer oral historian George Ewart Evans. His name is eponymous to the Centre for Storytelling here in CCI. George was born in Abercynon but completed most of his seminal work in Suffolk.

The gathering here in Atrium on the 1st of April will bring together significant figures to consider his life, his work and his legacy..

These will include his son the former Faber and Faber Chairman Matthew Evans, David Gentleman the artist, Colin Thomas the film-maker our colleague the historian Gareth Williams who is Evans’s biographer.

If you know about Evans’s work come and join us in celebrating, if you don’t come and learn more about the man and his work from those that knew, read and have been influenced by him . . .

Hamish Fyfe

Professor Hamish Fyfe,

Cardiff School of Creative and Cultural Industries

Atrium, University of Glamorgan

Adam Street, Cardiff, CF24 2XF





Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh-American Family Genealogy, on the World Wide Web.
Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh Music, Film, and Books Symposium, on the World Wide Web.
Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Celtic Cult Cinema on the World Wide Web.
Visit the UK Film Studies and World Cinema and Music Import Showcase
© 2009 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods
Smart & Sexy? Your Queer Advantage is waiting!
Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Queer Advantage, on the World Wide Web.
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Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai's Post-Evangelical-Granola on the World Wide Web.
© 2009 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods

Ireland-Wales Symposium 'Romantic Nations' at Cardiff University Oct 24-25 2008

Dear all,

We are writing to let you know that our next AHRC-funded Ireland-Wales symposium will take place on Friday 24th and Saturday 25th October, on the topic of Ireland and Wales: Romantic Nations.

We have attached the provisional version of the programme. Registration details to follow. (The event will be free and open to all and will include lunches, teas and coffees).

Among the highlights of the event is a public lecture by the award-winning Welsh animator Mike Young -

http://www.mikeyoungproductions.com/

- the title of whose talk is "'Taking on the Mouse': Wales, Ireland and the Animation Trade'.

Ticket bookings for this talk have not yet opened, but we'll keep you posted.

Finally, the Cardiff University Wales-Ireland seminar continues into 2008-9.

The autumn lectures will be given by Dr Kirsti Bohata (Swansea University);

Michael Houlihan (Director General, National Museum Wales);
Dr Eamonn Hughes (Queens University Belfast).

Details as follows:

Oct 14 – Kirsti Bohata (Swansea University) ‘George Moore and Caradoc Evans’
Nov 25 – Michael Houlihan (National Museum of Wales) ‘Cultural memory and history in national museum spaces’
Dec 9 – Eamonn Hughes (Queen's University, Belfast) ‘Celtic Crime Fiction’

Seminars take place in Room 2.47, Humanities Building (off Colum Drive), Cardiff University on Thursdays at 5.15 p.m.

Parking in the Colum Drive Car Park is free from 4.30 pm.

For Location Guides, visit
Cardiff University Map


Please note change of day - from our usual Monday slot to Thursdays in the coming year.

We'd be most grateful if you could forward this message to others who might be interested.

Best wishes,
Claire Connolly, Katie Gramich, Paul O'Leary
AHRC Ireland-Wales Research Network


Related news:

Dr. Mark Leslie Woods's recommended Irish and Celtic Studies reading for September 2008:

Film, Media and Popular Culture in Ireland
Cityscapes, Landscapes, Soundscapes
by Martin McLoone



This collection of essays from Martin McLoone takes a new look at
contemporary culture in Ireland through the filter of three main
developments – the ‘Celtic Tiger’ economy in the South, the peace
process in the North and the general rise in Ireland of ‘diasporan
awareness’.



The book considers the impact of these three factors on
the film, television, and music produced in Ireland, mostly since the
1990s, and speculates on how this popular culture reflects both what
has been gained in the new Ireland but also what has been lost.



Specific concerns of the book are the secularisation of Ireland and
popular culture’s assault on the Church generally (and the priest in
particular); the changing cityscapes and landscapes of the new Ireland;

the ‘death’ of politics; sexual freedom and personal liberation; the problem of representing unionist culture in the North; Van Morrison’s Belfast and the rise of ‘possessive individualism’ in Ireland.



The book celebrates the new Ireland but also raises issues about the loss of aspects of Irish identity that were valuable and suggests the need for a new ‘collective imaginary’ that might reinvigorate Irish identity in the new millennium.

AIM: ATRiuM Intelligent Media
Chapter Arts Centre Cardiff
Cardiff School of Creative & Cultural Industries
mwoods[at]glam[dot]ac[dot]uk
Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh-American Family Genealogy, on the World Wide Web.
Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh Music, Film, and Books Symposium, on the World Wide Web.
Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Celtic Cult Cinema on the World Wide Web.
Visit the UK Film Studies and World Cinema and Music Import Showcase




© 2008 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods
Smart & Sexy? Your Queer Advantage is waiting!
Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Queer Advantage, on the World Wide Web.
Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai Razing Ziggurats, on the World Wide Web.
Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai's Post-Evangelical-Granola on the World Wide Web.
© 2008 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods

Channel Four Film Head David Rose Talks to Cardiff ATRiuM Film Students about BBC, British Film & TV Dramas

[Pictured above: David Rose, former head of Channel Four Drama.]

David Rose at the ATRiuM

Event Date May 14, 2008 5:30 p.m. – 8 p.m.

Location – ATRiuM, Cardiff

David Rose, one of the most significant figures in the history of British film and television drama will be visiting the ATRiuM in May.

The evening will start with a glass of wine at 5.30 in the ATRiuM then moving to the Auditorium where a compilation of David’s work will be shown, followed by an on-stage discussion and question and answer session ending at 8pm.

During a long and distinguished career in drama, first in the theatre and then in film and television, David Rose has been involved with a quite remarkable list of projects, as producer, executive producer or commissioner, which reads like a history of ‘quality’ British television drama, and latterly feature film at both the BBC and Channel Four where he was the first head of film.

In a remarkable career David Rose has worked with and helped nurture some of the key figures in British film and television of the last forty years including Troy Kennedy Martin, Ken Loach, Alan Plater, Willy Russell, Alan Bleasdale, Alan Clarke, David Hare, Mike Leigh, Neil Jordan, Peter Greenaway and Stephen Frears.

The event is free and open to all. If you would like to attend contact Naomi Wells at njwells[at]glam[dot]ac[dot]uk


[Pictured above: The ATRiuM in coloured floodlights, as searchlights, limousines and and the celebrity redcarpet create a celebrity splash in sexy Cardiff city centre. The BBC Wales covered the event. Photography by Mark Leslie Woods © 2008]

AIM: ATRiuM Intelligent Media

Chapter Arts Centre Cardiff

Cardiff School of Creative & Cultural Industries

mwoods[at]glam[dot]ac[dot]uk

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh-American Family Genealogy, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh Music, Film, and Books Symposium, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Celtic Cult Cinema on the World Wide Web.

Visit the UK Film Studies and World Cinema and Music Import Showcase

© 2008 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods

Smart & Sexy? Your Queer Advantage is waiting!

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Queer Advantage, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai Razing Ziggurats, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai's Post-Evangelical-Granola on the World Wide Web.

© 2008 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods

Cyfrwng Welsh Media 2008 Holds Annual Seaside Resort Conference at Aberystwyth University May 1-2, Follows Gala April 27 BAFTA Cymru Awards

[Pictured above: Aberystwyth overlooks the Irish Sea.]

CYFRWNG 2008 CONFERENCE

Aberystwyth University
1-2 May 2008

New Platforms :: Convergence

The Cyfrwng 2008 conference will be held in the National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth, on 1-2 May and this year’s theme is ‘Convergence – Cydgyfeiriant’. During the two day event, a range of speakers, papers and panels will consider how the media in Wales are rising to the challenge of a digital, multiplatform world.



The conference programme will be published on this website shortly but we are urging people to register as soon as possible and to book their place at the conference dinner which will follow the Cyfrwng 2008 award ceremony on Thursday night 1 May.



The dinner will be hosted at the Council Chamber in the National Library but space is limited! Come back to the website soon for full programme details but speakers include:



[Pictured above: Dr David Barlow, University of Glamorgan]




Dr Mike Cormack, Sabhal Mòr Ostaig




[Pictured above: Phil George, National English Language Theatre]




[Pictured above: John Geraint, Green Bay Media Limited]

Rhian Gibson, S4C Director of Commissioning



Janet Lewis Jones, BBC Trust

Prof. Tom O’Malley, Aberystwyth University

Elis Owen, Managing Director ITV Wales




[Pictured above: Prof. Mike Pearson, Aberystwyth University]

Arshad Rasul, Director of Technology, S4C




[Pictured above: Dr Heike Roms, Aberystwyth University]

Mandy Rose, Creative Director: Multiplatform, BBC Wales




[Pictured above: Ceri Sherlock, Multiplatform Commissioning Executive, BBC Wales]



[Pictured above: Prof. Elan Closs Stephens, Aberystwyth University]

Prof. Ioan Williams, Theatr Genedlaethol Cymru

Rhodri Williams, Ofcom Wales

For further information, contact Elin Haf Gruffydd Jones or Rhodri ap Dyfrig on 01970 622533.

Cyfrwng Welsh Media Conference May 2008

BAFTA CYMRU

CYNHADLEDD CYFRWNG 2008

1-2 Mai 2008

Prifysgol Aberystwyth

Llwyfannau Newydd :: Cydgyfeiriant

Bydd cynhadledd Cyfrwng 2008 yn cael ei chynnal yn Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru yn Aberystwyth rhwng 1-2 Mai a’r thema eleni yw ‘Cydgyfeiriant – Convergence’. Dros gyfnod o ddau ddiwrnod, bydd amrywiaeth o ddarlithoedd a phaneli difyr yn trafod sut mae cyfryngau Cymru yn ymateb i her yr oes ddigidol, aml-lwyfan.



Caiff rhaglen y gynhadledd ei chyhoeddi ar y wefan hon cyn hir ond rydym yn annog pobl i gofrestru mor fuan â phosib ac i sicrhau lle yng nghinio’r gynhadledd fydd yn dilyn seremoni wobrwyo Cyfrwng 2008 ar nos Iau 1 Mai.



Y bwriad yw cynnal y swper yn Ystafell y Cyngor y Llyfrgell Genedlaethol ond mae nifer y llefydd yn gyfyngedig, felly cyntaf i’r felin! Dewch nôl i’r wefan am fanylion llawn y rhaglen ond dyma rai o siaradwyr y gynhadledd:

Dr David Barlow, Prifysgol Morgannwg
Dr Mike Cormack, Sabhal Mòr Ostaig
Phil George, Theatr Genedlaethol cyfrwng Saesneg
John Geraint, Green Bay
Rhian Gibson, Cyfarwyddwr Comisiynu S4C



Janet Lewis Jones, Ymddiriedolaeth y BBC
Yr Athro Tom O’Malley, Prifysgol Aberystwyth



Elis Owen, Rheolwr Gyfarwyddwr ITV Wales
Yr Athro Mike Pearson, Prifysgol Aberystwyth




Arshad Rasul, Cyfarwyddwr Technoleg S4C
Dr Heike Roms, Prifysgol Aberystwyth
Mandy Rose, Cyfarwyddwr Creadigol: Aml-lwyfan, BBC Cymru
Ceri Sherlock, Gweithredwr Comisiynu BBC Cymru
Yr Athro Elan Closs Stephens, Prifysgol Aberystwyth
Yr Athro Ioan Williams, Theatr Genedlaethol Cymru
Rhodri Williams, Ofcom Cymru



Am fwy o wybodaeth, cysyllter ag Elin Haf Gruffydd Jones neu Rhodri ap Dyfrig ar 01970 622533.

AIM: ATRiuM Intelligent Media

Chapter Arts Centre Cardiff

Cardiff School of Creative & Cultural Industries

mwoods[at]glam[dot]ac[dot]uk

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh-American Family Genealogy, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh Music, Film, and Books Symposium, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Celtic Cult Cinema on the World Wide Web.

Visit the UK Film Studies and World Cinema and Music Import Showcase

© 2008 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods

Smart & Sexy? Your Queer Advantage is waiting!

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Queer Advantage, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai Razing Ziggurats, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai's Post-Evangelical-Granola on the World Wide Web.

© 2008 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods

Bagpipes Annually Recall 600 Irish Warriors Hailed as Mexican Martyrs

From the article entitled, "Bagpipers honor Irish who fought for Mexico"

By Chris Hawley, USA TODAY

"MEXICO CITY — Every month, a wail of bagpipes reverberates through a plaza in downtown Mexico City, causing startled passersby to stop and stare.

Then, from behind the bullet-scarred walls of an old fortress, a platoon of Mexican bagpipers emerges through the gates — paying tribute to an obscure but divisive chapter of history involving Mexico, Ireland and the United States.

The ceremony honors the St. Patrick Battalion, a group of 600 Irish-American soldiers who switched sides to fight for Mexico in the 1846-1848 Mexican-American War.

On St. Patrick's Day, many Mexicans will raise a glass to commemorate the "Irish martyrs" who are regarded as heroes in a war that still arouses passions here.

"It's a little bit of a weird twist on history … and quite romantic for the Irish community," said Myles Doherty, the Irish consul in Mexico City.


[Pictured above: brutal branding of Irish soldier / male sado-masochism depicted as a reality of war in One Man's Hero (1999) starring Tom Berenger, Don Wycherley, Ilia Volokh, Wolf Muser, Luke Hayden, and Gredd Fitzgerald]


The battalion's story begins with Ireland's Potato Famine of the 1840s, which forced thousands of Irish to emigrate to the USA and other countries."

Read the entire article here:

Bagpipers honor Irish who fought for Mexico

You might be asking, with such a bizarre story, had anyone made a film, yet?

The article tells us:

"The San Patricios were seen much differently in the USA, even by fellow Irish immigrants, said Ian McGowan, archivist at the Institute for Irish-American Studies at the City University of New York.

"For a good 40 or 50 years, they were almost completely forgotten about," McGowan said. "The unofficial position of Irish who were looking to become Americans in the 19th century was not to discuss them."

"Recently, Americans have begun to pay more attention to the battalion. Several books have been written in the past decade and the 1999 movie One Man's Hero was about Riley."

Plot summary for One Man's Hero (1999):

"One Man's Hero" tells the little-known story of the "St. Patrick's Brigade" or "San Patricios," a group of Irish immigrants who deserted to Mexico after encountering religious and ethnic prejudice in the U.S. Army during the Mexican-American War.

The plot centers around the personal story of John Riley, an Irishman who had been a seargent in the American Army who leads the brigade, as he leads his men in battle and struggles with authorities on both sides of the border.

One Man's Hero (1999) at the IMDB

One Man's Hero, directed by Lance Hool was nominated for the 2000 'Outstanding Director of a Feature Film' ALMA Award (American Latino Media Arts Awards).

En Espanol: Héroes sin patria (1999)

AIM: ATRiuM Intelligent Media

Chapter Arts Centre Cardiff

Cardiff School of Creative & Cultural Industries

mwoods[at]glam[dot]ac[dot]uk

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh-American Family Genealogy, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh Music, Film, and Books Symposium, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Celtic Cult Cinema on the World Wide Web.

Visit the UK Film Studies and World Cinema and Music Import Showcase

© 2008 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods

Smart & Sexy? Your Queer Advantage is waiting!

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Queer Advantage, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai Razing Ziggurats, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai's Post-Evangelical-Granola on the World Wide Web.

© 2008 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods

2 Week Gaelic Immersion April 14 - 25th, Cape Breton Gaelic Society Nova Scotia

[Pictured above: Oi Polloi were the first punk rock band to record a single Carson in Scottish Gaelic.]

2 WEEK Gaelic Immersion
Speak and understand more Gaelic with this intensive 2 week course!



WHEN: Monday APRIL 14 to Friday APRIL 25
10am till 4pm 1 hr lunch break

WHERE: Cape Breton Gaelic Society
296 George Street, Sydney

Instructors: Angus MacLeod and Beth MacNeil



The classes will be in the TIP (Total Immersion Plus) methodology.

It is total Gaelic immersion during class time. You learn through hands-on interaction with the tutor and fellow students.

You will learn practical and useful language in a fun and comfortable setting.



The tutors have a wonderful sense of humor which makes your learning experience more enjoyable.

It is recommended that you bring a recording device as there is no reading or writing taught.

Gaelic show about Cape from 70's



By listening to your recordings at home you will learn and progress much faster.

Bring your lunch, tea and coffee will be provided.



[About this video: this is a very old show called Se' Ceap Breatainn Tir Mo Graidh which was prodiced by scottish television about Gaelic in Cape Breton. It is the only footage I've ever seen of Joe Neil MacNeil and other old timers. This segment features Maxie MacNeil and his daughters as well as a Gaelic mass in Glendale. Its a rough copy. ]

For registration or more info
call Peggy Gillis 902-828-2218



WEEKLY CLASSES

WHEN: Every Saturday until April 12 (with the exception of Easter Saturday March 22)
10am till 3pm 1 hr lunch break

WHERE: Cape Breton Gaelic Society
296 George Street, Sydney

Instructors: Beginners Beth MacNeil
Intermediate Shannon MacDonald
Advanced Angus MacLeod
The teaching method used is TIP (Total Immersion Plus).
Bring lunch, tea and coffee provided.
Call Peggy with any questions
828-2218

AIM: ATRiuM Intelligent Media

Chapter Arts Centre Cardiff

Cardiff School of Creative & Cultural Industries

mwoods[at]glam[dot]ac[dot]uk

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh-American Family Genealogy, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh Music, Film, and Books Symposium, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Celtic Cult Cinema on the World Wide Web.

Visit the UK Film Studies and World Cinema and Music Import Showcase

© 2008 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods

Smart & Sexy? Your Queer Advantage is waiting!

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Queer Advantage, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai Razing Ziggurats, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai's Post-Evangelical-Granola on the World Wide Web.

© 2008 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods