Veteran documentary filmmaker, Jerry Rothwell, maker of Sour Grapes, will host a masterclass at the Guth Gafa International Documentary Film Festival at Headfort House in Kells, Co Meath this weekend on turning a news story into a documentary thriller.
There are still places left on the Masterclass which takes place on Saturday at 11 am and will explore the kinds of news stories that attract documentary filmmakers as well as the challenges and the pitfalls to avoid.
The award-winning director was watching the trial of wine fraudster, Rudy Kurniawan for over a year before committing with Reuben Atlas to making a documentary on the intriguing story which is the opening film at this year’s Guth Gafa.
Their challenge as filmmakers was to make a film that would appeal to wine and non- wine audiences alike. They faced the added challenge of tracking down the main protagonists across two continents and persuading them to talk.
Jerry Rothwell is no stranger to Guth Gafa. He has previously been at the festival with films How to Change the World, a film about the history of Greenpeace and Donor Unknown, a film about a sperm donor and the family he never knew he had, all of which have been screened at Guth Gafa through the years.
Supported by Screen Training Ireland, The cost of this event is €30 and it’s booking up fast.
Guth Gafa International Documentary Film Festival is celebrating its 10th birthday this coming weekend with a bumper summer party of amazing film, mouth-watering food and live music in the glorious gardens of the 18th century Headfort House on the outskirts of Kells, Co Meath.
Over 60 of the best and latest documentary films from 25 different countries around the world, including 32 Irish Premieres and one World Premiere, will be screened in five specially constructed cinemas over four days and the festival will welcome 35 filmmakers from as far afield as Australia, Canada and Siberia.
The programme which gets underway on Thursday morning includes a great range of films for kids, teens and families.
And this year, the festival village will include a Virtual Reality Cinema to showcase some of the latest documentary films in VR technology, a first for any Irish film festival. The programme is live on Guth Gafa www.guthgafa.com.