''Light Years Away'' (french: Les Années lumière) is a 1981 film directed by

Alain Tanner Alain Tanner (6 December 1929 – 11 September 2022) was a Swiss film director. Early years and education Tanner was born in Geneva, and studied economics at the University of Geneva. In 1951, he joined the film club which Claude Goretta had re ...

. It tells the story of a young man who meets an old man who says he was taught by birds how to fly and is building a flying machine. It is based on a novel by

Daniel Odier Daniel Robert Odier (born 17 May 1945 in Geneva), is a Zen master, Chan master, writer, poet, screenwriter and essayist, specialist in Kashmir Shaivism. Praised by Anaïs Nin as "an outstanding writer and a dazzling poet," he is also a spiritual ...

. Although filmed in English and shot in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, it was made by a Swiss director and produced by companies from

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

. The film won the

Grand Prix Grand Prix ( , meaning ''Grand Prize''; plural Grands Prix), is a name sometimes used for competitions or sport events, alluding to the winner receiving a prize, trophy or honour Grand Prix or grand prix may refer to: Arts and entertainment ...

at the

1981 Cannes Film Festival The 34th Cannes Film Festival was held from 13 to 27 May 1981. The Palme d'Or went to the ''Człowiek z żelaza'' by Andrzej Wajda. The festival opened with '' Three Brothers'' (''Tre fratelli'') by Francesco Rosi and closed with '' Honeysuckle R ...

Cast

Trevor Howard Trevor Wallace Howard-Smith (29 September 1913 – 7 January 1988) was an English stage, film, and television actor. After varied work in the theatre, he achieved star status with his role in the film ''Brief Encounter'' (1945), followed by ''T ...

as Yoshka Poliakeff *

Mick Ford Mick Ford (born 1 August 1952) is a British actor, screenwriter and playwright, best known for his portrayal of intellectual convict Archer in the cinema version of ''Scum (film), Scum''. Early life and education Ford was born on 1 August 19 ...

as Jonas *

Bernice Stegers Bernice Mary Stegers (born 12 July 1949) is an English actress. She is known for her roles on television, as well as the horror films ''Macabre'' (1980) and ''Xtro ''Xtro'' is a 1983 British science fiction horror film directed by Harry Broml ...

as Betty *

Henri Virlojeux Henri Virlogeux (22 March 1924 – 19 December 1995) was a French actor. He is known for "The 400 Blows" (1959), "Les rois maudits" (1972) and "Schulmeister, espion de l'empereur" (1971). He was married to Véronique Silver. He died on December 19, ...

as Lawyer *

Gerard Mannix Flynn Mannix Flynn (born Gerard Mannix Flynn, 4 May 1957) is an Irish independent politician who has served as a Dublin City Councillor since May 2009.Joe Pilkington Joe Pilkington (1940 – 7 July 1999) was an Irish actor, best known for his portrayal of Eamon Maher in the long-running TV series ''The Riordans''. Father of actress Rachel Pilkington, Joseph Pilkington made a marked contribution to Irish art ...

as Thomas * Louis Samier as Trucker * Odile Schmitt as Dancer * Vincent Smith as Cop

References

External links

* French aviation films 1981 films Swiss drama films 1981 drama films Films directed by Alain Tanner Films shot in Ireland English-language French films English-language Swiss films Cannes Grand Prix winners 1980s English-language films 1980s French films {{1980s-France-film-stub