Belfast rap group KNEECAP make history with first Irish language film at Sundance Festival
Ground-breaking Irish-language rap trio KNEECAP have made history with their biopic premiering at the renowned Sundance Film Festival in Utah next month where it will screen on the opening night on Thursday 18th January.
Based on the origin story of the trio, the film stars the band’s Mo Chara, Móglaí Bap and DJ Próvaí alongside Michael Fassbender, Simone Kirby and Josie Walker.
Set in west Belfast in 2019, it chronicles how fate brings the trio together and how they then go on to “change the sound of Irish music forever”.
Speaking about the world premiere writer/director Rich Peppiatt said: “When I first set out to make a film in a language I didn't speak, set in a place I'm not from, little could I have imagined four years later we would be introducing Kneecap the movie to the world at the Mecca of Independent cinema.
Check out a sneak peek 👇
"It's an honour to be breaking new ground for Irish language cinema with a film that surprises & provokes every bit as much as Kneecap's music.”
KNEECAP added: “We are buzzing to be premiering at Sundance. Wherever we go we aim to smash preconceptions about cultural identity, language and highlight the role of the working classes to overthrow oppressive power.
"To now bring this message from the streets of West Belfast to the big screen is f*cking excellent. We're immensely proud of the film and can't wait to get it to cinemas around the world.”
KNEECAP is the first non-US film to ever be selected for the NEXT section of the festival. The festival describes selections for this section as “pure, bold works distinguished by an innovative, forward-thinking approach to story-telling”.
Producer Trevor Birney from Fine Point Films said: “This is the first Irish language film to have been selected by Sundance, which is simply incredible not only for Rich Peppiatt and Kneecap but for Fine Point and the film industry in Ireland, north and south."
The Sundance Film Festival will take place from 18th – 28th January in Park City and Salt Lake City, Utah with KNEECAP screening on the opening night.
How to watch KNEECAP:
KNEECAP will be released in Irish cinemas by Wildcard and Curzon in 2024.
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