merrion street

The Minister visiting Sceilg Mhichíl during the 2014 Star Wars film shoot

Arts Minister Heather Humphreys today said that the incredible beauty of Sceilg Mhichíl will be brought to an unrivalled global audience this week. Minister Humphreys was speaking ahead of the Irish premiere of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which was partly filmed on Skellig Michael in 2014.

Speaking today Minister Humphreys said:

This week, millions of film fans will be treated to the incredible beauty of Sceilg Mhichíl, as StarWars: The Force Awakens is released internationally. This is arguably the most eagerly anticipated film of all time and it is quite something to think that a remote part of South West Kerry is set to feature in it.

I am looking forward to seeing how Sceilg Mhichíl will feature on the big screen.  The impact of this  global exposure on our film and tourism sector is hard to quantify. There are of course limits on the number of people who can  visit Sceilg Mhichíl every day, but the release of this film has the potential to give our already thriving tourism sector a major boost and bring many more people to these shores.

I would like once again thank all of those, especially the local people in Kerry, who made the shoot possible. The Star Wars shoot illustrated, once again, that Ireland is a fantastic location for major movie production. It also showed how, with the right safeguards in place, film making can work in harmony with our stunning natural environment.