Local graffiti art film to be shown in Harlem

‘Together in Pieces’ will be screened at the Hip Hop Film Festival, which runs from tomorrow until Friday at the National Black Theater in Harlem.

It will be the second airing of the documentary in America as Derry film makers Eileen Walsh and David Dryden have previously brought their 25-minute work to the Capital Irish Film Festival in Washington D.C. back in March.

‘Together in Pieces’ is a look at the North’s changing political landscape through graffiti, slogans and murals.

The film is the first documentary by Walsh and Dryden, who work as Foxwall Films, and was filmed in Derry with funding from the Community Relations Council.

It examines how political murals and slogans sit cheek by jowl with a new wave of street art and graffiti.

Speaking ahead of the duo travelling to New York to present the film, producer Eileen Walsh commented: “The way we have dealt with the whole idea of sectarianism - we have used graffiti and hip hop, which go together.

“That makes it very appealing to a youth audience. The kind of film we wanted to make was a modern film that would appeal to young people, not one that uses archive material from the Troubles.

“Derry has come from being the birthplace of the Troubles, and now internationally Derry is seen almost as a world centre of peace and reconciliation,”

She added: “People are looking at us and what we are doing, but we still have a way to go.”