Dingle IFF to honour The Peck Family in Santa Barbara

Dingle International Film Festival is honoured to make a presentation to The Peck Family to acknowledge and celebrate Gregory Peck’s Birth Centenary. Members of the Peck family will be presented with The Gregory Peck Award at a ceremony on Saturday 6th February in Santa Barbara, CA. where Maurice Galway, Festival Director, is presenting a programme of Irish animated films as part of the 31st Santa Barbara International Film Festival.

Gregory Peck was born on April 5th 1916, a unique and seminal year in Irish history. His grandmother, Catherine Ashe, was Irish and from Minard, just outside Dingle and Gregory was related to the republican Thomas Ashe who played a major role in The 1916 Easter Rising. It is more than fitting then for Dingle IFF in this Ireland’s centenary to honour The Pecks.

“The Peck family is thrilled to be receiving the Gregory Peck Award during Gregory’s centennial year, and the centenary of Irish independence. We are looking forward to welcoming the Dingle International Film Festival to California, and to a bit of craic with Maurice Galway and our Dingle friends Brian and Maraid De Staic”. Cecilia Peck

The Gregory Peck Award is based on the Aglish Pillar from Minard, now housed in the National Museum of Ireland. The award is designed by Brian de Staic who is also attending the presentation in Santa Barbara.

Recipients of The Gregory Peck Award to date have included Laura Dern, Gabriel Byrne, Jim Sheridan, Jean-Jacques Beineix and Stephen Frears.

Dingle IFF, which runs from 17th to 20th March, will close its 10th festival with a screening of Gregory Peck’s classic film ROMAN HOLIDAY on March 20th.