IFI To Screen John Healy Doc


Barbaric Genius from Filmmaker Paul Duane will screen exclusively at the Irish Film Institute (IFI) from the 25th to the 29th of May. It is produced by Mary Carson and Paul Duane for Screenworks.

Barbaric Genius is the life story of John Healy and tells the story of his journey from street mugger and wino to chess champion and award-winning author.

Grass Arena was his debut novel in the early 1990s. The novel told his story of life on the streets in London and his travels to and from Ireland. In the early 1990s he disappeared from public view, many stories surrounded his disappearance. Barbaric Genius tells his story between his success and now.

The film was funded by Bord Scannán na hÉirean/Irish Film Board and RTÉ.