About
The San Francisco Irish Film Festival
September 2012 – tba
The San Francisco Irish Film Festival (SFIFF) was founded in 2003. This year, we will be celebrating our 9th annual festival. The festival presents the very best in contemporary Irish cinema, celebrating everything from features to documentaries to Irish language films (with English subtitles for those of us who didn’t spend a summer at a Gaeltacht). With the Irish short film rapidly becoming the dominant art from in Ireland, we hit the pub and celebrate with free pints of Magners Original Irish Cider and watch Ireland’s best short films during our annual Magners n’ Shorts night. Stay tuned!
Throughout the year, we continue the celebration of Irish film in the Bay Area. Sign up for our newsletter to learn of our special events!
Staff
Niall McKay
Executive Director
Festival director Niall McKay founded the San Francisco Irish Film Festival in 2003. Niall’s critically acclaimed feature documentary “The Bass Player: A Song for Dad” was aired on RTÉ (Irish Television) in August and made its North American premiere at the Mill Valley Film Festival in October. It was nominated for an Irish Film and Television Academy Award. It is described as an “absorbing, charming and deeply moving documentary” in the The Irish Sunday Independent. The film was financed by the Irish Arts Council, The Irish Film Board and RTE (the Irish national broadcaster). McKay won an Emmy for his documentary “Sikhs in America” about the challenges of being Sikh in the US, which aired on PBS stations nationwide. His work includes documentaries for PBS and dramas for cable television. He co-produced Irvine Welsh’s directorial debut, “Nuts.” Niall is also the co-founder of the Los Angeles Irish Film Festival. A former print journalist, Niall’s work has appeared in The Economist, The New York Times and Wired Magazine. You can email Niall at info@sfirishfilm(dot)com
Una Fannon
Co-Director
Una Fannon is the Co-Director of the San Francisco Irish Film Festival. She has spent most of her career as a diplomat for the Irish Foreign Service and served as Vice Consul at the Consulate General of Ireland in San Francisco from 2004 to 2008. As part of her duties as Vice Consul, Una was responsible for promoting all aspects of Irish culture in thirteen of the western states.
Kate Gunning
Director Sponsorship/Marketing
Kate Gunning is responsible for the SF Irish Film Festival marketing and sponsorship activities. Kate has a background in drama and is a strong advocate for the arts and independent film making. She runs a business consultancy, BioVisability, specializing in market development for emerging international life science and clean technology companies. Kate is also a co-founder and vice chair of Biolink – USA, a network of Irish scientists and engineers working in the US.
