JOHN FORD- IRELAND
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JOHN FORD Ireland will celebrate the work and legacy of one of the most
influential directors the world has seen – the legendary John Ford.
Ford as an Irish American, is a true representative of the Irish diaspora
and can be considered one of Ireland’s greatest emigrant sons.
The Irish Film & Television Academy (IFTA), in association with the John Ford
Estate and the Irish Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht,
established ‘JOHN FORD IRELAND’, celebrating the work and legacy of
John Ford, in December 2011.
The Irish Film & Television Academy will through JOHN FORD IRELAND,
will lay the foundations for honouring, examining and learning
from the work and legacy of legendary filmmaker John Ford,
who is widely regarded as one of the most important
and influential filmmakers of his generation.
John Ford is responsible for creating some of the most enduring films in
cinematic history – inspiring, engaging and resonating with audiences,
of all ages, around the world.
ABOUT JOHN FORD & IRELAND
John Ford still holds the record for winning the most Oscars for Best Director
along with claiming the very first AFI Lifetime Achievement Award,
presented to him by President Richard Nixon.
Over a film career spanning fifty seven years,
Ford directed 136 films, receiving 26 Oscar Nominations.
Ford was the first film maker to receive
America’s highest honour– the Medal of Freedom.
Ford always emphasised his Irishness and paid numerous visits to the land
of his parentage throughout his life - including a visit to his
father’s birthplace Spiddal, Co. Galway, during the Civil War.
His beloved yacht the Araner, was named in honour of his
mother’s birthplace – the Aran Islands.
His homage to Ireland and to the Irish experience emerges through
the many subjects and characterisations explored in his films.
The Informer based on the IRA novel by the Aran Islander Liam O’Flaherty
and for which Ford won his first Oscar;
Mother Machree which is notable as the first Ford film
to feature the young John Wayne, his last silent feature
Hangman's House set in Co. Wicklow;
The Plough and the Stars for which The Abbey Players
traveled to the States to star in;
The Rising of the Moon
filmed in Ireland and the partly directed Young Cassidy
a biographical drama based upon the life of Irish playwright
Sean O' Casey.
He filmed the Oscar winning feature film
The Quiet Man in 1951 in Cong, Co Mayo,
starring John Wayne and Irish actress Maureen O'Hara