Italian 'Oscar' for Michael Brunnock

Kells-native musician Michael Brunnock has won in the Best Original Song category at this year's David di Donatello awards ceremony, the Italian equivalent of the Academy Awards. New York-based Brunnock, along with David Byrne and Will Oldham, was nominated for 'If It Falls, it Falls', one of the songs from the soundtrack of the new movie 'This Must be the Place', starring Sean Penn and Frances McDormand. Ex-Talking Heads singer Byrne cast Brunnock to sing the role of an Irish musician on the brink of success whose voice guides Sean Penn through an emotional journey of self-discovery in 'This Must Be the Place'. The score by Byrne, with lyrics by Will Oldham, called for a distinctive vocalist, and Brunnock was discovered by Byrne's management while searching for Irish singer/songwriters on the internet. The Irish man and director Paulo Sorrentino were congratulated by Italian President Giorgio Napolitano at a reception at the Palazzo del Quirinale in Rome, which was to honour the nominees for the 2012 David di Donatello Awards. Brunnock performs six songs, all written by Byrne and Oldham, in the movie which was part-filmed in Dublin and the US last year. The 56th David di Donatello ceremony was held at the Auditorium Conciliazone, Rome.