Ireland toasts record Oscar success with 14 nominations
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[January 25, 2023]
DUBLIN (Reuters) - Ireland celebrated a record 14 Oscar
nominations on Tuesday, scooping five of the 20 acting spots up for
grabs and for the first time earning a nod for a feature film made in
the native Irish language.
The haul - which included nine nominations for "The Banshees of
Inisherin", the dark comedy filmed on a remote island off the western
Irish coast - was the top item on Ireland's flagship evening news
programme, relegating politics to second place.
"Congratulations to all the Irish Oscar nominations. It is fantastic to
see Irish creative talent achieving well deserved recognition on the
world stage," Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said on Twitter.
"Comhghairdeas mór leis An Cailín Ciúin (The Quiet Girl) - the first
Irish language movie ever to receive a nomination," he added, using the
native tongue to congratulate Ireland's first ever nominee in the
prestigious international film category.
Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson, Kerry Condon and Barry Keoghan all
earned their first Oscar ever nominations for "The Banshees of Inisherin",
while Paul Mescal joined Farrell in the best actor shortlist for the
independent movie "Aftersun."
Only the United States and Britain - with populations and film
industries that dwarf Ireland's - have been represented by five or more
acting nominees in a single year in the awards' near 100-year history,
according to Reuters calculations.
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Director Martin McDonagh and Colin
Farrell pose with their award for Best Motion Picture in a Musical
or Comedy for "The Banshees of Inisherin" at the 80th Annual Golden
Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, California, U.S., January 10, 2023.
REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni
Ireland was also well represented in
the craft categories, including best visual effects and editing
while former winner Martin McDonagh added to his growing Oscar CV
with best director and best original screenplay nods for "Banshees."
The film is also among the bookmakers' favourites for best picture.
Particular pride was saved for An Cailín Ciúin, a film that has put
a language spoken day-to-day by a small minority on the global stage
and beat filmmakers such as four-time Oscar winner Alejandro
Inarritu to the final international film selection.
"There was perhaps a notion out there that to make a film in the
Irish language was a dead end creatively or commercially. I think
that notion has been absolutely dispelled now," director Colm
Bairéad told the Irish Times as cast and crew celebrated in a local
Dublin cinema.
"There's no reason that Irish language filmmakers should limit their
ambitions, they should be making films for the world."
(Reporting by Padraic Halpin; Editing by Mark Heinrich)
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