Children's Matinee Added To South Side Irish Parade Film Fest

CHICAGO - A children's movie has been added as the matinee showing at the South Side Irish Parade Film Fest set for Saturday, March 2 at the Beverly Arts Center this year. "Song of the Sea," an Oscar-nominated animated film about an Irish boy named Ben will begin at 3 p.m. to kickoff the fourth annual event.

"This seems to be a really good one for the kids," said Julia McSweeney, co-chair of the South Side Irish Parade Film Fest with her husband, Tim.

Tim McSweeney says the addition of the children's matinee film is the latest in the growth of the popular pre-parade event that returned in 2016 as a collaboration between the Beverly Arts Center and South Side Irish Parade Committee.

The first year in the Film Fest's return featured only one evening feature. The next year organizers added a pre-movie reception and post-movie party and the third year was the debut of a matinee film.

This year's featured picture will be "Black '47," a film Julia McSweeney calls "a riveting revenge thriller" set in the days of the famine in Ireland.

"This has received pretty good reviews, and we think it will be a good fit for our South Side Irish audience," Tim McSweeney said.

An eight-minute animated short titled "Late Afternoon" will play before the featured show, the McSweeneys said.

Tickets for "Black '47" are $18, while the children's film is going for $6. Tickets are available on the Beverly Arts Center website, at the Box Office or by calling the B.A.C. The money from the Film Fest will benefit the arts center.

The Film Fest will come a week after the official Pre-Parade Fundraiser set for Feb. 23 at 115 Bourbon Street in Merrionette Park.

"Without the Irish Parade there would be no Film Fest and without the fundraiser there would be no parade," Julia McSweeney said.

Flyers via Beverly Arts Center