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Rich Peppiatt
Born	England
Occupations	Writer director
Years active	2012–present

Rich Peppiatt is an English writer and director. He is best known for films Kneecap and One Rogue Reporter.

Career

After graduating from the University of Warwick, Peppiatt worked as a journalist across a number of national newspapers. He first came to prominence in 2011 when his resignation letter to Daily Star proprietor Richard Desmond, accusing the paper of Islamophobia and unethical journalism, went viral when it was leaked to the Guardian newspaper. He became a prominent critic of tabloid behaviour, giving evidence at the Leveson Inquiry into Press Ethics.

One Rogue Reporter

Peppiatt turned his experiences as a journalist and fallout from his resignation into a stand-up comedy show titled One Rogue Reporter which premiered at the 2012 Edinburgh Festival Fringe, described as "hilariously turning the tables on the tabloid power players, testing the public’s right to know to its eye-opening extremity." After Edinburgh the show toured across the UK, finishing with a run at London’s Soho Theatre.

The stage show was transformed into a documentary One Rogue Reporter, starring the likes of Hugh Grant, Steve Coogan and John Bishop. It premiered at Sheffield DocFest in 2014 and was nominated for Best Independent Feature at the National Film Awards UK.

Short films

In 2018 Peppiatt released two short films through his production company Naughty Step titled Backseat Driver and Grounded. Grounded was long-listed for the 2020 Academy Awards.

Television

Peppiatt was the writer and occasional director of five seasons Channel 4’s satirical consumer affairs show Supershoppers. He was writer of season five of Channel 4’s Tricks of the Restaurant Trade.

Kneecap

In 2024 Peppiatt wrote and directed his first narrative feature film Kneecap, about the rise of the Belfast-based hip-hop group Kneecap. The film stars the band members as themselves, as well as Michael Fassbender. The idea for a film was first conceived in 2019 when Peppiatt watched the group perform in Belfast. He went on to shoot the music video for their track “Guilty Conscience”. The film premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival, winning the NEXT Audience Award. It was released worldwide in August 2024 claiming the biggest Irish weekend opening ever for Irish language film.

At the 2024 Galway Film Fleadh Kneecap won three main prizes: Best Irish Film, Best Irish Language Film and Audience Award. It is the first film in the 36-year history of the festival to do so.

Kneecap has been selected as Ireland’s entry for the 2025 Academy Awards.

Personal life

Peppiatt lives in Belfast, Northern Ireland and his wife is Irish.

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations

References

1. ^ Jones, Rob (27 August 2024). "Rich Peppiatt Talks Kneecap". Filmhounds Magazine. Archived from the original on 26 September 2024. Retrieved 26 September 2024.
2. ^ "'Kneecap' Helmer Rich Peppiatt Inks With Anonymous Content & WME Following Film's Splashy Sundance Debut". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
3. ""I Knew Right Then the Filmmaking Gods Were Looking Down on Us" - Rich Peppiatt, Kneecap". filmmakermagazine.com. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
4. "One Rogue Reporter: Richard Peppiatt's film on a journey from Daily Star reporter to pranking editors". theguardian.com. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
5. ""This film is going to be very controversial": Kneecap movie director Rich Peppiatt on Irish-language rappers' biopic premiering at Sundance Film Festival". irishnews.com. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
6. "Interview: Daily Star former reporter Richard Peppiatt". gulfnews.com. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
7. "Richard Peppiatt's letter to Daily Star proprietor Richard Desmond". theguardian.com. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
8. "'You can shove your job': a history of dramatic resignations". telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
9. "Question: As Richard Peppiatt quits Daily Star have tabloids hit rock-bottom?". thedrum.com. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
10. "Richard Peppiatt". discoverleveson.com. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
11. "The Leveson inquiry: what we've learned so far". theguardian.com. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
12. "David Hasselhoff, Eddie Izzard, Jimmy Carr to Perform at Edinburgh's Fringe Festival". hollywoodreporter.com. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
13. "The camera is turned on tabloid editors in Richard Peppiatt's 'One Rogue Reporter'". independent.co.uk. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
14. "One Rogue Reporter". frontlineclub.com. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
15. "Telling it like it is - a rogue reporter and a piece of promenade theatre". theguardian.com. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
16. "Nomination announced for the National Film Awards UK 2015". nationalfilmawards.org. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
17. "Grounded". stockholmfilmfest.net. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
18. "Backseat Driver, the perfect psychological short film". collater.al. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
19. "Tricks of the Restaurant Trade". avclub.com. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
20. "'Kneecap' Review: Irish Rap Group Flips the Finger at British Imperialism in Wonderfully Offbeat Docudrama". variety.com. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
21. "Kneecap film: Irish language rappers head stateside for Sundance". bbc.com. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
22. "Rich Peppiatt's comedy featuring Irish rap group Kneecap slated for GREAT 8 Showcase in Cannes". screenireland.ie. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
23. ^ "2024 Sundance Film Festival Announces Award Winners". Sundance Institute. January 26, 2024. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
24. "Kneecap movie claims biggest Irish weekend opening ever for Irish language film". irishnews.com.
25. ^ Clarke, Donald (2024-07-15). "Galway Film Fleadh 2024: Kneecap scoops three main prizes". The Irish Times. Retrieved 2024-07-15.
26. "Kneecap movie chosen as Ireland's Oscar entry for Best International Feature". rte.ie.
27. "Is Sundance Ready for Irish Rap Trio Kneecap's Wild Michael Fassbender-Starring Biopic? They 'Just Don't Give a S—,' Director Says". variety.com. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
28. Ritman, Alex (2024-12-08). "'Kneecap' Dominates British Independent Film Awards With Seven Wins, Including Top Honor". Variety. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
29. "Celebrating the best of European Cinema". European Film Academy. 2024-12-08. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
30. Calnan, Ellie (23 October 2024). "'Kneecap' among European University Film Award 2024 nominees". Screen Daily. Retrieved 2024-12-08.
31. "2024 FILM & TV LINEUP". sxsw.com. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
32. Rosser, Michael (7 May 2024). "Sydney Film Festival reveals 2024 competition line-up". Screen Daily. Retrieved 2024-06-01.

External links

• Rich Peppiatt at IMDb
• Official website

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