Conspiracy of Silence (2003 film)
Conspiracy of Silence is a British drama film set in Ireland and inspired by real events. The film challenges celibacy and its implication for the Catholic Church in the 21st century.
| Conspiracy of Silence | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | John Deery |
| Written by | John Deery |
| Produced by | John Deery & Davina Stanley |
| Starring | Jonathan Forbes Jason Barry Hugh Quarshie Hugh Bonneville Sean McGinley Chris O'Dowd Brenda Fricker |
| Cinematography | Jason Lehel |
| Edited by | Jamie Trevill |
| Music by | Francis Haines Stephen W. Parsons |
Production companies | Flick Features Little Wing Films |
| Distributed by | TLA Releasing (USA - DVD) Element Pictures (UK and Ireland - DVD) Watch Entertainment (USA - theatrical) Joejack Entertainment (Non-USA - DVD) |
Release dates | 2003 (limited) 2014 (re-release) |
Running time | 90 minutes |
| Countries | United Kingdom Ireland |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $3 million |
| Box office | $2,598 |
Written and directed by John Deery, the cast includes: Academy Award-winner Brenda Fricker, Hugh Bonneville, Chris O'Dowd, John Lynch, Jonathan Forbes, Jason Barry, Sean McGinley, Fintan McKeown, Jim Norton and Hugh Quarshie.
The movie won many international awards including the U.S. National Board of Review of Motion Pictures' Freedom of Expression Award in 2004, which it shared with Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11 and Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ. Deery was also nominated for Best Film Director at the Irish Film Awards in 2003. The screenplay was developed at the Sundance Screenwriters' Lab in Utah and won the Hartley-Merrill International Screenwriting Award presented to Deery at the Cannes Film Festival in 2001.
The film was invited to be shown at many film festivals in 2003 to be in Competition and/or Official Selection including: Taormina, Italy (first public screening, June 2003), Moscow International Film Festival, Opening Night film at the Galway Film Festival, Ireland, Montreal Film Festival, Hamburg Film Festival, Warsaw Film Festival where it won a Special Jury Award, Dinard Festival of British Cinema, France, and the American Film Institute (AFI) Festival in Los Angeles. It received an art house release in the United States. The film is available on Amazon Prime in the UK.