Last night was the Irish premiere of ‘The Secret of Kells’ ( and the closing film of the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival).
I’ve been waiting a long time to see this labour of Love from the Cartoon Saloon. Tomm Moore, director & Paul Young, producer were both there as well as a good number of cast & crew, including Brendan Gleeson.
Paul Young & Tomm Moore looking suitably proud.
I thought the ‘Secret of Kells’ was worth the wait & looked absolutely stunning with amazing design, great animation and beautiful music. Tomm really has stamped the film with a unique visual style and the split screen and flattened perspective is really gorgeous to behold. It’s also great to see a 2D movie on the big screen again.
Cast & Crew join Tomm onstage after the film.
While I’m sure it will be a massive hit among animators I wonder how well it will do among the general cinema going audience? There are moments of the film which were genuinely scary and could alienate a younger audience while attempts to skew the film to smaller kids might test the older crowd. It’s always hard to know and a lot depends on the kind of push the film gets from its distributer Buena Vista.
I wish Tomm & Paul and all the crew from the Cartoon Saloon the best of luck with the film and if you’re an animator, go and see it. It will blow you away!
