This Land: New film about race in Ireland premieres on YouTube tonight

"I've been researching this film from the moment I landed in Ireland."

A new documentary about race and Irishness is premiering live on YouTube this evening. This Land is a film about immigration in Ireland, and the impact that racism can - and still does - have on a person's sense of identity. Directed by Dublin-based filmmaker and photographer Zithelo Bobby Mthombeni, the documentary explores cultural identity in Ireland, portraying new and necessary ways of experiencing Irishness.  Featuring interviews with prominent Irish artists, activists, and journalists, This Land examines the racism that many Irish people are still exposed to and how this has shaped their own identity and sense of belonging in Ireland. The film (premiering tonight, April 2) also addresses the issue of Direct Provision and the impact that the system has had on the lives of those who are living within it. Director Zithelo says he feels as if he has been working on the documentary since he first arrived in Ireland. “I found great comfort in discovering that so many other people featured in this documentary are in the same position as me," he says. "They are still in the process of figuring out who they are. They're constantly trying to find out what Irishness is to them." “It feels like I've been researching this film from the moment I landed in Ireland when I was 10 years old.” This Land features interviews with Felispeaks, Tara Stewart, Bounce The P.R.O., Senita Appiakorang, Pedro Ferraz, NUXSENSE, and many more. It also includes work from Asylum Archive - a project dedicated to the documentation of Ireland's Direct Provision system and the various locations that asylum seekers are being held. Following the live premier of This Land, there will be a Q&A with director Zithelo, producer Eric Davidson, poet Felicia 'Felispeaks' Olusanya & Senita Appiakorang of Shookrah. You can tune into the premier of This Land tonight at 7pm here.  You can check out the trailer for This Land here:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3lIP19tHlO4