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Extra.ie
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Extra.ie
BREAKING: Tributes pour in as iconic Irish filmmaker dead at 102
Morrison was best known for his documentary Mise Éire, the first full-length feature film to be produced in the Irish language. Irish filmmaker George Morrison, best known for the landmark documentary Mise Éire, has died at the age of 102. Morrison was born in Tramore, Co. Waterford, to an actress mother and a neurological anaesthetist father. He initially studied medicine at Trinity College Dublin but left to pursue a career in the arts. Mise Éire, released in 1959, was the first full-length feature film in the Irish language. The documentary used archival footage, a now common technique which was groundbreaking at the time, to tell the story of the 1916 Rising. Morrison was reportedly paid £375 for the project and received no royalties. His follow-up documentary, Saoirse? was released in 1961 and followed the lead-up to the 1916 Easter Rising and the War of Independence. Morrison continued working in film and released Dublin Day, a documentary on James Joyce's Ulysses, in 2007. His career was the focus of the 2008 documentary Waiting for the Light. In 2009, Morrison received the Industry Lifetime Contribution Award at the Irish Film and Television Awards. He was elected a Saoi of Aosdána in 2017 and received the gold torc from President Michael D. Higgins. In a statement released this morning, President Higgins described Morrison as 'a filmmaker of immense craft and skill'. 'He will rightly be remembered in particular as a great innovator in the techniques of film, using new and pioneering camera work while realising how film and music could be brought together in a way that is distinctive,' the President said. We are deeply saddened by the passing of esteemed filmmaker George Morrison. In June 2023, we had the honour of welcoming George for a special screening of Saoirse? with live accompaniment by the NSOI. His extraordinary legacy lives on. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis. — National Concert Hall (@NCH_Music) August 5, 2025 Last year, he was honoured at an event in Waterford organised by Sinn Féin TD Conor D. McGuinness, who today described Morrison as a 'groundbreaking figure'. 'It's for Mise Éire and Saoirse he will mostly be remembered, but he produced many great works during his lifetime,' McGuinness said. 'I was happy to nominate him last year for a civil honour from Waterford County and City Council.' 'Go dtuga Dia sólas dá mhuintir agus go raibh leaba i measc na naomh aige.'
Irish Daily Mirror
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Daily Mirror
Influential Irish filmmaker George Morrison dies aged 102 as tributes pour in
Tributes have been paid to pionering Irish documentarian George Morrison, who has passed away at the age of 102. Considered one of Ireland's most ground-breaking and influential filmmakers of the 20th century, Morrison made more than 20 films and produced some of Ireland's most innovative and historically important documentaries. Born in Tramore, Co Waterford, on November 3, 1922, Morrison's mother was an actress at Dublin's Gate Theatre, while his father worked as a neurological anaesthetist. Having developed an early fascination with motion pictures, Morrison dropped out of his medicine studies at Trinity College, Dublin, in order to pursue his passion in film. In 1942, he directed his first feature, Dracula, but the film was abandoned due to film stock rations during World War II. Then, in 1946, Morrison began working in documentary films, first as an assistant director and editor with MacLiammoir. George Morrison and wife Janet at the IFTA Awards at the Burlington Hotel in Dublin in 2009 Morrison is best known for his work during the 1950s and '60s, his most memorable works being the ground-breaking documentaries Mise Éire and its follow-up, Saoirse?, which told the story of the Easter Rising and Ireland's struggle for independence from 1896 to 1922. Mise Éire, which w as the first feature film to include a full orchestra and the first feature length (90 minutes or longer) Irish language film, draws almost exclusively on contemporaneous newspapers, newsreels and actuality footage from the early years of Ireland's revolutionary period to present a history of that turbulence. The era is divided into three segments and spans from the late years of the nineteenth century through to the 1916 Rising and concluding with Sinn Fein's electoral victory in 1918, a triumph that would be a precursor to revolution. Saoirse?, Morrison's sequel to Mise Éire, deals with the events of the War of Independence and its aftermath. In 2017, Morrison received the highest honour in the Irish arts world when President Michael D Higgins bestowed on him the title of Saoi of Aosdána. Morrison passed away on Monday (August 4) at the age of 102, with tributes pouring in for the visionary filmmaker. Conor D. McGuinness, Sinn Féin TD for Waterford, said Morrison was a "fearless, innovative" filmmaker whose "legacy stretches far beyond" his work. President Michael D. Higgins bestowed the highest honour in the Irish arts world, the title of Saoi of Aosdána, on film-maker George Morrison in 2017 "Saddened to hear of the passing of George Morrison — visionary filmmaker and proud Tramore man," he said. "George was a pioneer of Irish documentary film, best known for Mise Éire and Saoirse?, but his legacy stretches far beyond those works. He gave powerful voice to Irish history through film. "As someone who worked in documentary film before entering politics, I always looked up to him. He was a personal inspiration — fearless, innovative, and deeply respectful of the truth. "It was an honour to nominate George for a civic award from Waterford City & County Council last year. I'm glad he received that recognition from his native county, with his family present at the ceremony in Dublin. "Go dtuga Dia sólás dá mhuintir agus go raibh leaba i measc na naomh aige." Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news from the Irish Mirror direct to your inbox: Sign up here.
The Journal
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Journal
Irish filmmaker George Morrison who made Mise Éire dies aged 102
RESPECTED IRISH FILMMAKER George Morrison has died. Morrison, best known for his documentary Mise Éire, died yesterday at the age of 102. It was the first full length feature film ever produced in the Irish language. Morrison was born in Tramore, Co Waterford in 1922 to his mother, an actress at the Gate Theatre, and his father, an anaesthetist. He initially studied medicine at Trinity College, before leaving to pursue a career in the arts. His first documentary of note Mise Éire was released in 1959. It blended footage of events surrounding the 1916 Rising from archives across Europe and was met with rave reviews. A follow-up documentary titled Saoirse? was not so well received, as its analysis of the still-divisive Civil War was controversial. Morrison later told the Irish Independent that he was paid £375 for his work on Mise Éire and received no further royalties. Advertisement In 2007, Morrison released Dublin Day, a documentary on James Joyce's Ulysses. Morrison was the subject of a 2008 documentary called Waiting for the Light, which centred his career. He went on to receive the Industry Lifetime Contribution Award at the annual Irish Film and Television Awards in 2009. President Michael D. Higgins bestowed the highest honour in the Irish arts world, the title of Saoi of Aosdána, on Morrison. Morrison was honoured again at an event last year organised by Sinn Féin TD in Waterford Conor D McGuinness. On learning of his death today, McGuinness described Morrision as a 'groundbreaking figure'. 'It's for Mise Éire and Saoirse he will mostly be remembered, but he produced many great works during his lifetime,' he said. 'I was happy to nominate him last year for a civil honour from Waterford County and City Council. 'Go dtuga Dia sólas dá mhuintir agus go raibh leaba i measc na naomh aige.' Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
Irish Examiner
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Examiner
Influential Irish documentarian George Morrison dies aged 102
Influential Irish documentarian George Morrison has died aged 102. Morrison was best known for his celebrated 1959 work Mise Éire, which premiered that year at the Cork Film Festival. The documentary, produced by Gael Linn and scored by Seán Ó Riada, dealt with key figures and events in Irish nationalism between the 1890s and 1910s. The title itself was taken from a 1912 poem by Republican revolutionary Patrick Pearse. Morrison's work on Mise Éire was painstaking, and involved the identification, salvage, and restoration of more than 300,000 feet of newsreel and other footage. The documentary, the first full feature-length film produced in Irish, was constructed from archival footage, a now common technique which was groundbreaking at the time. Morrison's follow-up documentary, Saoirse?, which charts the lead-up to the 1916 Easter Rising and the War of Independence, was released in 1961. Born in Tramore in Waterford on November 3, 1922, Morrison's mother worked as an actress at Dublin's Gate Theatre. His father worked as a neurological anaesthetist. Morrison studied medicine at Trinity College Dublin, but subsequently dropped out to pursue a career in film. The first project on which he worked was an uncompleted production of Dracula. After being introduced to the founders of the Gate Theatre — Micheál Mac Liammóir and Hilton Edwards — Morrison began working on documentaries in partnership with the venue. Morrison's later documentary works included 1961's Rebellion, about Ireland from 1913 to 1923, Two Thousand Miles of Peril, released in 1972, and Dublin Day, a 2007 documentary on James Joyce's Ulysses. In 2009, Morrison received the Industry Lifetime Contribution Award at the Irish Film and Television Awards. Speaking at the time, director Neil Jordan said: "It is remarkable what George Morrison has achieved through the 1970s and 1980s with almost no support. He's done extraordinary documentary work and extraordinary work as an archivist, one of the few in Ireland who have done that, he's an inspiration to all of us." He was elected a Saoi of Aosdána in 2017 and presented with the symbol of the office of Saoi, the gold torc, by President Michael D Higgins. Morrison is predeceased by his wife, Theodora Fitzgibbon. Speaking to the Irish Examiner in 2012, Morrison said Mise Éire was the film he enjoyed making most during his career. "It combined all operations of film-making in the one structure, the archival, too. I was very pleased with that.'
