Film Ireland Podcast

In this Film Ireland podcast, Director Imogen Murphy talks to Natasha Waugh about ‘Dead Still’. Set in 1880s Ireland in the Victorian era heyday of ‘postmortem photography’, this six-episode period drama follows renowned memorial photographer Brock Blennerhasset played by Michael Smiley (Luther). When a series of murders threatens to sully Brock’s reputation, a tenacious detective drags him into an investigation of Dublin’s criminal underbelly. Dead Still is directed and co-created by Imogen Murphy. Dead Still is currently streaming in the US and Canada on Acorn TV and is released in the UK, Australia and New Zealand on 29th June. Imogen Murphy is an award-winning Irish director. Her TV credits include Cant Cope Wont Cope, Red Rock and Holllyoaks. Her short film Cry Rosa was nominated for a Royal Television Society award and an IFTA award. Most recently she was lead director and co-story writer on Dead Still www.imogenmurphy.com http://filmireland.net/

In this Film Ireland podcast, Paul Farren talks to Steven Berkoff about his feature film adaptation of the Edgar Allan Poe chiller The Tell-Tale Heart Staying faithful to Poe’s original short story of 1843, the film is a spine-chilling retelling of the dizzying tale of Edmund (Berkoff), a solitary figure who endeavours to convince the viewer of his sanity, whilst describing a murder he has committed. Haunted by the still beating heart of the dismembered body of his victim which he has hidden under the floorboards and under investigation by the police, the unhinged killer finally gives himself away driven mad by the sounds inside his head. Tell Tale Heart is available on DVD from 11th June 2020 and on various digital platforms including Amazon, Apple TV and Google Play. Directed by Stephen Cookson. Adapted by Steven Berkoff and Stephen Cookson from a short story by Edgar Allan Poe. Starring Steven Berkoff, Henry Goodman, Dudley Sutton.

In this Film Ireland podcast, Gemma Creagh talks to David Freyne about his latest film Dating Amber. Set-in Ireland during the mid-90’s, Eddie and Amber decide to stage a relationship in order to stop everyone speculating about their sexuality. Eddie is keen to follow his Dad into the military, while Amber dreams of moving to the liberal hub of London. However, their ‘ideal’ arrangement begins to fall apart, forcing Eddie deeper into denial as Amber realises that a perilous future awaits her best friend unless she intervenes. Dating Amber is available on Amazon Prime Video from 4th June in Ireland & the UK. http://filmireland.net/

In this Film Ireland podcast, Gemma Creagh talks to Antonia Campbell Hughes about her short film Acre Fall Between. On a desolate Northern Ireland border, a man (Mark O’Hallor an) begins a desperate search for his family, knowing the future he feared is nigh.  Acre Fall Between features in The Uncertain Kingdom – the groundbreaking anthology of 20 short films released on demand on 1st June on BFI Player, Curzon Home Cinema, iTunes, & GooglePlay. Climate change, migration, disability, homelessness and sexuality are just some of the subjects explored in The Uncertain Kingdom, a ground-breaking anthology of 20 short films from twenty directors that together offer a unique snapshot of the UK in 2020. From comedies and dramas, through documentaries and experimental pieces, made by a mix of established names and new talent, the collection reflects the state of our nation as seen by the 20 filmmaking teams behind them. Find out more at https://theuncertainkingdom.co.uk http://filmireland.net/

In this Film Ireland podcast, Paul Farren talks to Nick McLean, one of the most acclaimed camera operators in American cinema, during which time he shot many classics including McCabe & Mrs. Miller, Heaven Can Wait, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, The Deer Hunter, Marathon Man, Being There and The Goonies and television shows including Evening Shade, Cybill, and Friends. http://filmireland.net/ Nick is the subject of a book by Irish film journalist and author Wayne Byrne, co-written with McLean himself, which takes readers on an entertaining journey through five decades of Hollywood filmmaking.

In this Film Ireland podcast, Gemma Creagh talks to Keith Walsh about When All is Ruin Once Again, a film about rural life in the midst of great local, national and global change. When All is Ruin Once Again was filmed over a 7 year period amongst the communities of Gort in South Galway and Crusheen in Co. Clare where the filmmakers live. A new motorway ploughs forth through the landscape, a glaring symbol of our modern age. The film weaves an expansive tapestry of reflections from bog-lands, fire-sides, race tracks and hurling pitches;all while the country is hit by the worst economic crisis it has ever faced and the realisation that we are living unsustainably slowly dawns. W.B Yeats, who lived and wrote in the area where the film is set, provides the title’s prophetic words and prompts us to consider the value of memory and the impermanence of our existence. All is in flux. The mis-use of our natural resources percolates beneath the surface and rises up in the form of rising flood-waters. The prolife

Photo credit: Derek Speirs In this Film Ireland podcast Gemma Creagh talks to Anna Rodgers whose documentary When Women Won screened at this year’s Dublin International Film Festival. When Women Won tells the emotional inside story of the Together for Yes campaign to repeal the 8th amendment and change Irish society forever. In the aftermath of the tragic death of Savita Halappanavar, three Irish feminists joined forces and set about establishing a grassroots, women-led social movement. Working with teams in every county in Ireland, they ultimately delivered a landslide victory. Compelling and insightful, this documentary brings you back to the highs and lows of the tumultuous campaign, and captures the most seismic shift in Irish society in the past 35 years. Anna also talks about Creative Kids, a documentary inspired by the roll-out of Creative Schools, focussing on creativity and the Arts in primary and secondary schools all around Ireland. Creative Kids broadcasts on Sunday, 3rd of May, RTE One, 6.30

In this Film Ireland podcast, Gemma Creagh talks to director Nick Rowland about his feature debut, adapted by Joe Murtagh from Colin Barrett's novella Young Skins. Ex-boxer Douglas ‘Arm’ Armstrong (Cosmo Jarvis) is the faithful and violent right-hand-man to the drug-dealing Devers clan, ready to dole out beatings at the whim of his best friend, and the family’s unpredictable protégé, Dympna (Barry Keoghan). Arm’s struggle to find his place in the world has consequences on his relationship with his ex-girlfriend Ursula (Niamh Algar) as she strives to find a better life for herself and their young son Jack. http://filmireland.net/

In this podcast Natasha Waugh talks to BAFTA-winning writer and director Neasa Hardiman about her debut feature Sea Fever. For marine biology student Siobhan, it was supposed to be a research excursion with a trawler crew fishing the West Irish seas. But when they hit an unseen object and become marooned, a mysterious parasite infects their water supply. Soon the oozing force infiltrates the entire vessel and turns Siobhan’s journey into a claustrophobic fight for survival. Can they stop the mysterious water borne parasite from spreading before it’s too late? Sea Fever is available on VOD platforms from Friday, 24th April. Amongst the discussion Matasha and Neasa discuss: -her intention behind the film -reflecting transnationalism -the film inhabiting both a cinema of political meaning and a cinema of spectacle -the conflict between magical thinking and the scientific method -the ethics of contagion -probing the cliches of scientists in cinema -the lead character Siobhan owning her own agency -the dev

In this podcast Natasha Waugh talks to director Lenny Abrahamson about his work on the BBC series Normal People. Adapted by Sally Rooney from her acclaimed 2018 novel alongside writers Alice Birch and Mark O’Rowe, Normal People is a 12-part drama for BBC Three in partnership with Hulu. It will star Daisy Edgar-Jones (War Of The Worlds, Cold Feet) as Marianne and Paul Mescal in his first television role as Connell, in an exquisite and compulsive modern love story about how two people can profoundly impact each others’ lives. Lenny Abrahamson directs episodes 1 – 6. Hettie Macdonald directs episodes 7 – 12. Normal People will land as a complete boxset on BBC Three on Sunday, 26th April . It will also air on BBC One from Monday, 27th April at 9pm with weekly double episodes. Normal People will air on RTE One on Tuesday, 28th April . Normal People consists of 12 episodes, with each episode half an hour long. http://filmireland.net/

In this podcast Gemma Creagh talks to award-winning screenwriter and story consultant Mary Kate O Flanagan. Mary Kate O Flanagan was born in Dublin, Ireland and grew up bi-lingual. She spent her teenage years in Denmark where she attended an international school. Since leaving school she has studied French, Italian and Biblical Hebrew and lived in Italy and London before returning to her native Ireland. Her experiences of living in different European countries informs her work with screenwriters across Europe. Her main work is in helping writers to write cinema stories that cross borders, while preserving their authentic voices. She spends two months a year in Los Angeles collaborating with her former teachers at USC. Mary Kate is a working writer who has won awards for her screenwriting projects and is a published short story writer and journalist. http://filmireland.net/

In this Film Ireland podcast, Paul Farren talks to director Lorcan Finnegan and writer Garret Shanley about their film Vivarium, which is available on digital from 27th March. During their search for the perfect home, Gemma (Imogen Poots) and Tom (Jesse Eisenberg) find themselves trapped in a mysterious labyrinth-like suburban neighbourhood named Yonder. All attempts to escape end in failure, culminating in the discovery of a baby on the pavement outside house number 9 with the instructions ‘raise the child and be released’ . Listen to the podcast as Lorcan and Garret take us inside number nine... http://filmireland.net/

On Thursday, 12th March, to celebrate the publication of John Boorman's new book Conclusions, the IFI will host screenings of short films I Dreamt I Woke Up and Tree Poems, plus a public interview with the Oscar-nominated director. In this podcast, Paul Farren talks to John Boorman about his book and career, including  - the reasons behind the book - working with Lee Marvin (Point Blank) - Hell and the Pacific and Toshirō Mifune - Irish actors and crew on Excalibur - trying to adapt Lord of the Rings - Leo the Last, a law case and its revival - Deliverance, Burt Reynolds and stealing stories - Driving around with Lee Marvin on the roof of his car http://filmireland.net/

Ahead of the 2020 Dublin International Film Festival, three filmmakers whose films are screening at the festival joined Gemma Creagh on the latest Film Ireland podcast. Pictured above, Tristan Heanue (Ciúnas), Iseult Howlett (The Grass Ceiling) and Suri Grennell (Wrath) came into the studio to talk about their films and the craft of filmmaking. http://filmireland.net/

Welcome to the 2020 Reel OSCAReS Horror Show Awards Ceremony. On a dark Winter's Eve under a misty stained Dublin sky, our gruesome gang of ghouls gathered to  present the awards for artistic merit in the horror film industry.   Tune in to hear Conor McMahon, Sarah Cleary, Ali Doyle and Paul Farren bare their fangs and flex their chainsaws and announce the nominations and winners in the following categories: Best Scene Best Script Best Actor Best Actress Best Score Best Documentary Best Disappointment Best Director Best Film

In this podcast Gemma Creagh talks to Ciaran Cassidy, whose film Jihad Jane is in cinemas Friday, 14th February. In March 2010, the arrest on terror charges of a blonde haired, blue-eyed, American woman who called herself ‘Jihad Jane’ made headlines worldwide and was described as the 'new front in the war on terrorism.' The story of Coleen LaRose, a forty six-year-old woman, who had radicalised in rural Pennsylvania led the evening news bulletins. What made the case more surreal and confusing was the arrest of another American woman, Jamie Paulin Ramirez, a Colorado native — this time in Waterford, Ireland. In this podcast, Ciaran talks about his film plus getting into film his first films and learning the process of filmmaking his approach to storytelling and its different genres what draws him to particular stories Jihad Jane how the story unravelled the characters involved positioning the story and maintaining a balance the editing process http://filmireland.net/

Film Ireland Podcast: Episode 39 - Farewell 2019! by Film Ireland

In this podcast, Paul Farren & Wayne Byrne discuss Sam Peckinpah’s masterpiece The Wild Bunch, which celebrated its 50th anniversary this year. Paul and Wayne look back on the film’s legacy and celebrate its “ballet of violence” plus: how Peckinpah turned the Western genre on its head the response to the film at that time Peckinpah’s career & style themes and symbols running through his films the personal Peckinpah different readings of the film his collaborators the death of the Western the legacy The Wild Bunch leaves http://filmireland.net/

Our podders return after a Film Ireland funded extended holiday to look back on the last couple of months in film. Dividing their time between tropical islands and cinemas in Dublin, Sarah Cullen and Richard Drumm take out their film scalpel and get under the skin of Extra Ordinary, Joker, Harriet, The Irishman, The Laundromat, La Belle Époque, Hustlers, Gemini Man and Ready or Not. http://filmireland.net/

In this podcast, Paul Farren talks to author Wayne Byrne about his latest book Burt Reynolds on Screen, the first critical overview of Reynolds’ work which examines his complete filmography, featuring candid discussions with costars and collaborators, exclusive behind-the-scenes photos and a wealth of film stills.