Irish Film Awards

Conor McPherson's film The Eclipse has taken the award for best film at the 7th Irish Film & Television Awards (IFTAs).

The winners were announced at a ceremony in Dublin last night.

The Eclipse also picked up awards for Aidan Quinn for best supporting actor (film) and for Conor McPherson/Billy Roche for best film script.

Actors Colin Farrell and Dervla Kirwan won the Actor in a Lead Role Film and Actress in a Supporting Role Film awards for their performances in Neil Jordan’s Ondine. Irish talent working in the international arena were also well recognised at the ceremony with Jim Sheridan announced the winner of the Director Film Award for Brothers, and actress Saoirse Ronan winning the Actress in a Lead Role Film IFTA for her performance in Peter Jackson’s The Lovely Bones.

In the international categories, the Irish Academy voted The Hurt Locker Best International Film with Robert Downey Jr (Sherlock Holmes) and Meryl Streep (It’s Complicated) winning both the International Actor and Pantene International Actress Awards for the second year in a row.

Finally, Brendan Gleeson, Jon Voight and Juliette Binoche presented the Lifetime Achievement Award to producer/director/writer John Boorman.