London, 4 April 2024 — Picturehouse and the nonprofit Sundance Institute announced today the opening and closing night films, Kneecap and Dìdi (弟弟), two hotly anticipated feature directorial debuts, for the 11th edition of Sundance Film Festival: London 2024, taking place from 6 to 9 June at Picturehouse Central.
Writer and director Rich Peppiatt’s raucous and infectious Irish-language film, Kneecap, which scooped the 2024 Sundance Film Festival Audience Award: NEXT in January in Utah, will open Sundance Film Festival: London 2024 with its UK Premiere on 6 June.
Of the 80,000 native Irish speakers, 6,000 live in the North of Ireland and three of them became a rap group called Kneecap. This is the real-life story of how this anarchic Belfast trio became the unlikely figureheads of a civil rights movement to save and reinvigorate their mother tongue. Set in post-troubles Belfast, childhood best friends Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh and Naoise Ó Cairealláin live debaucherously, selling drugs and partying to pass the time, but when they inadvertently cross paths with high school teacher JJ Ó Dochartaigh, things begin down a path none of them saw coming. At the same time, a civil rights movement, led by JJ’s partner is fighting for the right to have the Irish language instated as an official language of Northern Ireland. With this political backdrop, JJ sees an opportunity to use music to further the cause. Following in the footsteps of Naoise’s father (played by Michael Fassbender), an IRA stalwart who instilled in them the power of language and culture, the three of them form Kneecap, a politically charged, anti-establishment rap trio who rap in Irish and embody the spirit of defiance. Kneecap was produced by Mother Tongues Films and Fine Point Films, in collaboration with Northern Ireland Screen, Screen Ireland and the BFI. The film was co-produced by Curzon and Wildcard and will be released in the UK and Eire in August 2024.
The festival will close on 9 June with the UK premiere of Dìdi (弟弟) written and directed by Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Sean Wang. Wang was recently Oscar-nominated for his documentary short Nai Nai & Wai Pó.
The film, set in 2008 in California’s Bay Area, is a funny, irreverent, and affecting ode to first-generation teenagers navigating the joy and chaos of adolescence as seen through the lens of a 13-year-old Taiwanese American boy, played by Izaac Wang (Good Boys, Disney’s Raya and the Last Dragon). At its premiere in competition at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival it received critical and audience acclaim, winning both the U.S. Dramatic Audience Award and the U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award for Best Ensemble Cast.
Eugene Hernandez, Director, Sundance Film Festival and Public Programming said: “Having Kneecap and Dìdi (弟弟) bookend the upcoming Sundance Film Festival: London 2024 sets the stage for a rousing edition celebrating new cinema. These two debut films, by breakthrough directors Rich Peppiatt and Sean Wang, offer irresistible storytelling and bold filmmaking that resonated deeply with our audiences at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. It’s been an honour to welcome these filmmakers into the Sundance community. We look forward to bringing these exciting discoveries to London audiences and to sharing their energy and passion for independent cinema.”
Clare Binns, Managing Director, Picturehouse Cinemas added: “We’re thrilled to once again host the Sundance Film Festival: London at Picturehouse Central. This eleventh edition brings a selection of the finest independent films to the heart of London for their UK premieres, coming directly from the 2024 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. Audiences will be able to hear from the filmmakers, take part in Q&As, watch inspiring talks and enjoy the best new voices in filmmaking at the jewel in London’s cinema crown.”
The Festival will showcase a full programme of fiction and documentary features that premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival in Utah in January, specially curated for London by the Sundance Film Festival programming team in collaboration with Picturehouse. A special programme of UK shorts has also been assembled, as well as a strand of repertory titles to celebrate Sundance Film Festival’s 40th year of the U.S. edition, plus a series of public talks to bring big ideas to life. The full programme will be announced later in April.
Sundance Film Festival: London 2024 passes are released on sale today, with early bird pricing in effect until 26 April.
Three types of passes are available:
Festival Pass
£75 early bird price then £80 full price
- 5 festival ticket credits
- Priority ticket booking
- 20% off food and drink during the festival
VIP Festival Pass
£450 early bird then £500 full price
- 1 free ticket for every Sundance Film Festival: London screening and event
- Invites to exclusive parties and events throughout the festival
- Access to all industry talks and events
- Priority ticket booking
- 20% off food and drink during the festival
Industry Pass
£110 early bird price then £125 full price
- Includes 3 x Sundance Film Festival: London film tickets
- Access to exclusive Industry talks, networking and social events throughout the festival
- Priority ticket booking
All pass information can be found at picturehouses.com/sundance.
We are committed to offering a number of Festival screenings and events with access options for people who are deaf and hard of hearing; more details will be published on the website in May. For any questions or for more information about our accessibility offerings, please email enquiries@picturehouses.co.uk.
More information will be available at picturehouses.com/sundance. Join the conversation on social media with #sundancelondon.
The festival’s Media Partner for 2024 are Screen International, who return as our industry media partner the third year, and Little White Lies who join as a new consumer media partner this year.
All Sundance Film Festival: London press enquiries
Festival Press Office
Sundancelondon@christelleandcopr.com
Film images for press: Available on Dropbox
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**Press accreditation is now open – please email Sundancelondon@christelleandcopr.com to request
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Notes to editors:
About Sundance Institute
As a champion and curator of independent stories, the nonprofit Sundance Institute provides and preserves the space for artists across storytelling media to create and thrive. Founded in 1981 by Robert Redford, the Institute’s signature labs, granting, and mentorship programs, dedicated to developing new work, take place throughout the year in the U.S. and internationally. Sundance Collab, a digital community platform, brings a global cohort of working artists together to learn from Sundance advisors and connect with each other in a creative space, developing and sharing works in progress. The Sundance Film Festival and other public programs connect audiences and artists to ignite new ideas, discover original voices, and build a community dedicated to independent storytelling. Through the Sundance Institute artist programs, we have supported such projects as Beasts of the Southern Wild, The Big Sick, Bottle Rocket, Boys Don’t Cry, Boys State, Call Me by Your Name, Clemency, CODA, Drunktown’s Finest, The Farewell, Fire of Love, Flee, The Forty-Year-Old Version, Fruitvale Station, Get Out, Half Nelson, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Hereditary, Honeyland, The Infiltrators, The Last Black Man in San Francisco, Little Woods, Love & Basketball, Me and You and Everyone We Know, Mudbound, Nanny, Navalny, O.J.: Made in America, One Child Nation, Pariah, Raising Victor Vargas, Requiem for a Dream, Reservoir Dogs, RBG, Sin Nombre, Sorry to Bother You, The Souvenir, Strong Island, Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised), Swiss Army Man, Sydney, A Thousand and One, Top of the Lake, Walking and Talking, Won’t You Be My Neighbor?, and Zola. Through year-round artist programs, the Institute also nurtured the early careers of such artists as Paul Thomas Anderson, Wes Anderson, Gregg Araki, Darren Aronofsky, Lisa Cholodenko, Ryan Coogler, Nia DaCosta, The Daniels, David Gordon Green, Miranda July, James Mangold, John Cameron Mitchell, Kimberly Peirce, Boots Riley, Ira Sachs, Quentin Tarantino, Taika Waititi, Lulu Wang, and Chloé Zhao. Support Sundance Institute in our commitment to uplifting bold artists and powerful storytelling globally by making a donation at sundance.org/donate. Join Sundance Institute on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X (formerly Twitter), and YouTube.
About Picturehouse Cinemas
Picturehouse is an award-winning UK film company incorporating cinema, distribution and home entertainment, formed in 1989 to challenge the multiplex model. Its flagship cinema Picturehouse Central is situated in the heart of London’s West End, with the rest of its 25 venues located across England and Scotland.
Picturehouse’s architecturally-unique cinemas sit in the heart of local neighbourhoods and cater to a diverse and wide-ranging audience. They provide bespoke food and drink offerings across their cafés, bars, restaurants and members bars. The programme is curated to champion films made for all ages, backgrounds and walks of life, from quality mainstream film through to foreign-language and documentary features, as well as live event cinema. 35mm and 70mm presentations are also offered in some locations.