Author: Morgan Fields

Inflight Dublin was delighted to sponsor Apex MultiMedia Market’s Networking Event which took place on the evening of Tuesday 16th April between 19:30 – 22:30 at the Ely Wine Cellar in the IFSC.

The Airline Passenger Experience Association (APEX) is the only non-profit membership trade organization comprised of the world’s leading airlines, industry suppliers, major media groups and related aviation industry leaders dedicated to elevating the passenger experience for more than 80% of global passengers while driving industry initiatives and desired regulation.

The association offers members a wide range of opportunities to excel in the airline passenger experience industry by keeping them current with the latest industry news, trends and developments and by helping them develop relationships with clients and colleagues from around the world. 

APEX MultiMedia Market’s Networking event is a chance for airlines and service providers to meet with distributors offering a range of new and acclaimed TV, movie, games, app and audio content options. It is an invaluable experience to discuss current IFE content trends with top distributors from across the globe.

In addition to attending the APEX Multimedia Market, Inflight Dublin annually exhibits at the APEX Expo, which this year is taking place in Los Angeles from the 9-12 September. Our team of IFE specialists will be on site at the Inflight Dublin Booth 1307 to meet with both our existing airline partners and prospective airlines, showcasing first hand our full range of IFE products and services.

If you wish to schedule a meeting with one of the team attending the Expo, contact us via email on: mail@inflightdublin.com 

“One that really stood out to me, which I would have seen when I was about 15, was Breakfast on Pluto.”

Eimear chose the comedy-drama Breakfast on Pluto as her favourite, which came out in 2005 and is based on the novel by the same name by Patrick McCabe, of Butcher Boy fame.

“It’s directed by Neil Jordan who also did The Butcher Boy and The Crying Game. Very well respected Irish director.”

Starring Cillian Murphy as the lead, a transgender woman who was abandoned at birth and grows up in a small town in rural Ireland in the 1940’s.

“They get the essence of Patrick ‘Kitten’ Braden, who’s the main character, played by Cillian Murphy in the film.”

Cillian Murphy is famed for many roles, notably as the Scarecrow in The Dark Knight trilogy, but he also played lead roles in other famous Irish films, such as Intermission and The Wind That Shakes the Barley.

“Basically it’s split into about 36 chapters. So it’s a kind of, picaresque film, where it’s just following Patrick Kitten Braden through his life.”

From her upbringing in an uncaring foster home, to running away from home with a glam rock band and getting involved with the IRA, it’s a tumultuous existence Kitty lives, and yet she does it with complete poise.

“It’s sort of Dickensian in the way that his spirit triumphs throughout.”

Featuring a whole host of stars, some of rest of the cast include Liam Neeson, Ruth Negga, Liam Cunningham and Stephen Rea.

“I’d say the best cameo in it has to be Brendan Gleeson as a Womble.”

An award winning film, Breakfast on Pluto secured four Irish Film and Television Awards and earned Cillian Murphy a Golden Globe for Best Actor.

“I’m glad I re-watched it! And the costuming is incredible.”

Aoife, who if you’ve been listening you know loves all things horror, chose the recently released The Hole in the Ground. Released at the start of March of this year, The Hole in the Ground is a horror thriller that had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in January.

“It’s starring Seána Kerslake who was also in A Date for Mad Mary which I also absolutely loved. It was just such a fun movie, but this is a very different vibe.”

Seána Kerslake (pronounced Shaw-nah) is also well known for being one of the leading roles in the Irish television show, Can’t Cope, Won’t Cope. She is definitely a star on the rise in the film industry.

“It’s an interesting film because, you know we get a lot of these horror movies where these mothers are stuck in their houses and they become afraid of their children.”

A mother flees a possibly abusive relationship with her young son to the Irish countryside and settles down in a house next to a forest, where a large sinkhole sits in the centre.

“What would you do if you found out your child was becoming someone you didn’t like?”

The film draw on themes of doppelgängers and changelings, with changelings being heavily featured in Irish folklore as a cruel trick played by faeries, and doppelgängers originating from Germany and representing extreme bad luck.

“I think that Irish horror in general is having a little bit of a moment.”

Some of the more popular Irish horror films that have come out in the last decade and that we highly recommend are The Hallow, The Lodgers and The Canal. If you’re a horror fan they are definitely worth a watch!

“I wanted to talk very briefly about Without Name. This is the eco-horror.”

Directed by Lorcan Finnegan and starring Alan McKenna, this film centres on a mysterious forest and a man with something to hide.

“Extra Ordinary is coming out as well which is sort of like a, comedy horror it looks like? With Maeve Higgins in it, I think she plays a driving instructor who can converse with the dead.”

Extra Ordinary had its world premiere in March at the SXSW Film Festival in the United States. Official release date is still to be announced but it is making waves in the festival circuit.

“I feel like the Irish have a good sense of a Gothic tale.”

As the birth place of Bram Stoker, Halloween and banshees, it’s safe to say the Irish know how to tell a good horror story.

That’s not to say they can’t tell an uplifting one from time to time either! Have a listen and leave a comment, do you have a favourite Irish film? Let us know!

Samantha Lyons | Inflight Dublin

Our team of IFE specialists were once again delighted to attend the AIX Expo 2019 in Hamburg alongside the top airlines, CSP’s and tech companies in the airline industry. The AIX Expo is the world’s leading event for airlines and the supply chain to source the latest interior technologies and products. 

Several members of our team were on site to discuss the specialised needs of airlines in terms of their IFE content offering and wireless solutions. Our stand enabled attendees to sample our state-of-the-art hardware and software solutions first-hand. 

The demonstration of our Augmented Reality software generated great intrigue with airline representatives. Users could witness our innovative new concept designed to enhance IFE and inflight services such as Food and Drink menus and Duty-free shopping.  The software platform also provides airlines with a weight-saving initiative, offering the opportunity to reduce the need for paper based menus and brochures.

In addition to this, the first-generation demo of Inflight Dublin’s Everhub™  portable wireless server was on display, showcasing our innovative new hardware option for airlines. The server has the ability to opperate off battery power or aircraft power, and delivers secure high definition browser-based DRM content. This reinforces our stance as being the only true end-to-end wireless solution for airlines – providing Hardware, Software and Content all under one roof.

Our development team are continuously updating and improving the server to reduce size and weight, with the final product due to launch in the coming months. 

In addition to attending the AIX Expo, Inflight Dublin annually exhibits at the APEX Expo, which this year is taking place in Los Angeles from the 9-12 September. Our team of IFE specialists will be on site at the Inflight Dublin Booth 1307 to meet with both our existing airline partners and prospective airlines, showcasing first hand our full range of IFE products and services.

If you wish to schedule a meeting with one of the team attending the Expo, contact us via email on: mail@inflightdublin.com 

We started out as Inflight Audio in ’84 in a small studio with two employees and our focus was entirely on audio, specifically analogue. Ken Harley, who is still with us today, joined in 1998 when we moved to a two-room location and added a Tech Guy to bring Inflight into the Digital Age! Ken started as an audio engineer and studio manager and now is the Head of Analogue Audio as well as being the glue that keeps our physical office together!

In 2000 Megan Fannin joined our ranks as an Account Exec as one of 8 staff members, she is now the Head of Operations for the entire company and knows more about operations than anyone else.

Shortly afterwards in 2002, we moved to a new office in Ranelagh and Pat Nolan came on board as an Audio Engineer, rounding the numbers up to 10. Pat is now Head of AV and IT and is the go-to man for all computer issues in the office.

In 2004 Barry Flynn arrived as Output Manager and our numbers rose to 15, and today Barry is our Chief Commercial Officer and the man with all the knowledge.

It wasn’t long after that when Clint Withington arrived in 2006 as a video editor, our numbers were about the same and Clint still works today in our Video department and can answer any question you may possibly have about video.

Immediately afterwards in 2007, Philip McCarthy joined us in the Output Department and we kept steady at 15 staff. He’s now one of two Senior Account Managers and is always willing to impart his wisdom.

Shane Healy arrived in 2010 as an Output Engineer and moved from that, to Head of Audio, to the Account Manager he is today.

It was after that in 2011 that we moved to Belfield Office Park and grew to a staff of 25 people and John White became our CEO.

Now here we are in 2019 with two offices, 75 incredible staff and every day we keep growing. Something we couldn’t do without the backing of our wonderful employees.

Here’s to the next 35!

Our resident film nerds are back with another podcast! This time around, Aoife and Sam chat about the recent Golden Globe winners and Oscar nominees in a few of the big categories, ahead of the bumper podcast that will be coming your way at the beginning of March.   “So Bohemian Rhapsody won the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture/Drama and I thought that was kind of disappointing to be honest.”  

Winner of Best Motion Picture – Drama in the Golden Globes and nominated for the Oscar for Best Motion Picture, Bohemian Rhapsody also has its star Rami Malek up for an Oscar for Best Actor after winning the Golden Globe.   “I think it’s just one of those films where it baits the crowd. This is exactly what people want even though it’s not what happened.”

To say these two disagreed with some of the winners is an understatement so be prepared to hear a lot of opinions about who won and who they felt should have.   “That’s what I was planning to do with A Star is Born, I was like, I don’t think I’m going to like this movie and people are going to hate me for not liking it. But someone said, no, you have to go see it! So I trusted that person and I did not love it.”

Some of the breakout hits of the year that captivated audiences and critics alike, such as A Star is Born, just did not hit the mark for these two. Nominated in four categories in the Golden Globes and snagging the win for Best Original Song with “Shallow”, this popular drama has been nominated for eight Oscars over all.   “It would be a bit of a kick in the teeth for the other actresses who have been around for a long time for a singer to get an Oscar on her first try.”

That’s not to say they hated everything, two films got mentioned more than once as favourites by them; Roma and The Favourite.   “She was really good, she just wasn’t outstanding. Unlike Yalitza Aparicio, she was the lead in Roma and she was just absolutely outstanding. She just blew me away.”   Roma took home two Golden Globes, for Best Motion Picture – Foreign Language and Best Director respectively, and is also up for a grand total of ten Oscars, competing directly with The Favourite who is up for the same after Olivia Colman’s win at the Golden Globes.

We’d love to hear your opinions on the Golden Globes and don’t forget to check back next month for our take on the Oscars 2019!

  Samantha Lyons | Inflight Dublin   © 2018 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All rights reserved. © 2018 Warner Bros. Ent. All rights reserved.

With five Golden Globe and twelve BAFTA nominations, as well as being the winner of two awards at the Venice International Film Festival, The Favourite has been causing waves with critics and audiences alike since its release. Queen Anne (Olivia Colman) is in bad health and sits on the throne, though she seems to have little interest in governing and more in pursuing her quirky interests. However, her trusted advisor and friend Duchess Sarah Churchill (Rachel Weisz) more than makes up for Anne’s lack of interest by directing and controlling the Queen’s choices and effectively running the country through her suggestions.

  This delicate balance begins to tip when Abigail Hill (Emma Stone), Sarah’s impoverished cousin, arrives and starts to court the Queen’s desire for gentle affection, the type Sarah has not provided in a long time. These two women start to play the game against one another, though it soon becomes apparent that the position of a pawn on the board is not as clear cut as it initially seemed. After all, there can be only one Queen.  

Starring Olivia Colman, Rachel Weisz, and Emma Stone, these three award-winning giants of cinema use their formidable talent to display the passions, desires, and hunger for power these three historical figures sought and sacrificed heavily for. Director Yorgos Lanthimos of The Lobster and The Killing of a Sacred Deer, also uses his skill of combining subtlety with vibrant essences to showcase this sumptuous dramatization of the life of one of the more enigmatic monarchs in British history.

With 12 nominations, along with its notable success at the Golden Globes,  The Favourite and it’s stellar cast are all but set to occupy the throne at this years BAFTA Film Awards.   Samantha Lyons | Inflight Dublin   © 2018 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All rights reserved.