AN IRISH-AMERICAN FILM about child abuse by a Catholic priest in a US school has won three Emmy awards.

Documentary film Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God tells the story of four deaf men who were abused by a priest in the 1960s, and who sought to expose the Catholic Church’s cover-up of paedophilia around the world.

The film was directed by Oscar-winning director Alex Gibney and was partially funded by the Irish Film Board.

At an awards ceremony in Los Angeles last night, the film won Creative Arts Emmys for exceptional merit in documentary filmmaking, outstanding writing and outstanding picture editing.

In an interview earlier this year, documentary maker  Alex Gibney said the film was “not just about the crimes of the cover up of this sexual abuse, but it’s about the people that fought back”.

“When it comes to outing child sex abuse there are still constant obstacles that people face. I think the shame of the church is that it’s not really reckoning with the depth of the scandal,” he said.

(Video: tiff/YouTube)

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