Home News Kneecap thank DUP after landing audience award at Sundance
ON THE RISE: Kneecap's Mo Chara, Móglaí Bap and DJ Próvaí

Kneecap thank DUP after landing audience award at Sundance

News January 27, 2024 by Anthony Neeson

AFTER a whirlwind week in Utah, Kneecap the movie – the fictionalised autobiography of the eponymous West Belfast Irish language rap band – has scooped the audience award at the Sundance Film Festival.

On hearing the news the band posted their delight at receiving the coveted gong by giving a "special thanks to our PR team at the DUP".

This week members of the DUP and former Secretary of State Theresa Villiers criticised public funding for the movie.

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The band controversially arrived in a PSNI Land Rover to the premiere of their debut film on the opening night of the prestigious independent movie festival. The Irish language movie has received critical acclaim and has been bought by Sony Picture Classics for distribution this summer in North America, Latin America, eastern Europe, Turkey and the Middle East. The film will be released in Ireland later this year.

The film, set in 2019 tells the story of the group's origin and features Mo Chara, Móglaí Bap and DJ Próvaí in their acting debuts alongside Academy Award nominated Michael Fassbender, Simone Kirby, Jessica Reynolds, Fionnuala Flaherty and Josie Walker. 

According to Variety – the highly respected movie trade publication – the movie "flips the finger at British imperialism".

"Bursting with unruly energy that practically escapes the confines of the screen, Kneecap is a riotous, drug-laced triumph in the name of freedom that bridges political substance and crowd-pleasing entertainment."

It adds: "Oscar-nominated 'The Quiet Girl', a quaint drama in Irish, emerged from Ireland’s state-funded efforts to use cinema as a vehicle to promote and preserve the language spoken by 80,000 people. With an anarchic tone that’s sure to ruffle some feathers, 'Kneecap' joins a growing list of titles slowly building a filmic archive of stories in the Irish language."

 

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