Docs Ireland: Outsider Cinema
Docs Ireland presents a talk on independent and amateur Northern Irish cinema by Dr. Ciara Chambers.
Northern Ireland has a rich heritage of amateur and independent cinema that includes several prolific filmmakers and collectives. This illustrated talk will explore the work of these image makers, many of whom garnered prestigious awards on the international independent film circuit and had their work shown in film festivals and on television.
Dr Ciara Chambers is Senior Lecturer in Film & Screen Media, University College Cork. She is also an advisor to Atticus Education, the digital education company established by Oscar-winning film producer Lord David Puttnam.
The event will begin with a screening of the illuminating Bridge to the Future, about Lagan College, directed by Roy Spence in the early 1980s.
This special event will launch Ciara’s new book Outsider Cinema: Amateur and Independent Filmmaking in Northern Ireland, 1929-1989 (Edinburgh University Press, 2026).