A producer could be forgiven for passing on the potential powder-keg project of ‘The Guarantee’, with memories of that fateful night in 2008 still in the minds of many people still feeling the effects in Ireland.
However, John Kelleher - a former Controller of Programmes at RTÉ One who was also director and shareholder in the Windmill Consortium that was awarded the TV3 licence – and his company John Kelleher Media clearly had other ideas as they amassed an impressive cast and crew to create a film that generated national discussion.
Directed by Ian Power (‘The Runway’), written by Colin Murphy (based on his stage play ‘Guaranteed!’) and starring Peter Coonan (‘Love/Hate’), David Murray (‘Amber’), Orla Fitzgerald (‘The Wind That Shakes The Barley’), Morgan C. Jones (‘Vikings’), and Gary Lydon (‘Calvary’) the film recreates the drama surrounding the most significant political decision in modern Irish history; when the Irish government decided to guarantee the entire domestic banking system.
IFTN talks to John Kelleher about the making of the film, its unique live event world premiere last month and a potential sequel aptly entitled ‘The Bailout’.
IFTN: ‘The Guarantee’ chronicles a sensitive and indigenous subject matter blowing the lid even further on something that is still to the forefront of people’s minds today – why and when did you decide to come on board of a production as potentially controversial as ‘The Guarantee’?
JOHN KELLEHER: ‘I got involved when I was asked by Colin Murphy to go to the play ‘Guaranteed!’ which he wrote and was the original basis for ‘The Guarantee’. So, I went to see the play and actually I went to see it three times. I thought it was a very imaginative way of telling the story of the people and the events involved in the guarantee of September, 29th, 2008. So, we talked about a film and how it might be realized and then Ian Power came on board and he had a particular vision as well and that’s really how it started.’
What was it like working with Ian Power then when he came on board?
‘Well, I have known Ian for a very, very long time. He’s an extremely dynamic director and he has a terrific overview of the all of the creative and technical process so he made it into a pretty exciting whirlwind. My role was to make it happen and Ian’s job was to make it good and that’s a balance that you always have to strike when making a film and I think we did it. The whole thing was done very quickly. From the time of getting all the finance complete and in place to the premiere was only a couple of months.
And was it hard to get the finance in place?
‘It’s always hard to get the finance! But I think we were fortunate enough in that it came together very quickly. The Irish Film Board were the first to back us. They liked the idea that it was going to be a film with a theatrical release, however limited it would be. TV3 came on board shortly after that, then the BAI and then Section 481.’
‘The Guarantee’ had a unique premiere and a first for Ireland, a live event involving a satellite link-up to cinemas around Ireland followed by a panel discussion and a Q&A hosted by Matt Cooper. Was that your idea?
‘I think it came from Patrick O’Neill - the head of Wildcard Distribution. He was very keen to try to do something that would be an event and I think all of the financiers and all of the parties involved liked the idea of an event type opening – something that would build an excitement of its own and it certainly did that. It was the first time that a screening had been beamed up from a cinema so the Q&A was going from Movies@Dundrum to about 20 cinemas around the country rather than coming from somewhere else like the MET in New York or the National Theatre in the UK coming into Irish cinemas. So that was a first and that made it very exciting and fair play to Wildcard!’
And what was the response to the opening?
‘Well, it was pretty good – the social media response was really good. We were trending that night and during the course of the Q&A on the big screen you could see the tweets and the input from other cinemas and from people wanting to ask questions and so forth. Matt Cooper did a really, really good job. It was an excellent panel also, a really good panel that included writer Colin Murphy and director Ian Power.’
So, was it your intention to create something that was going to generate discussion on a national level or was ‘The Guarantee’ created solely for entertainment purposes. Or was it both?
‘I think it was definitely both. I mean I knew from watching the play those three times. The play was always followed by a Q&A and each night Colin Murphy, one of the actors or a local politician would participate in that discussion and you could see the interest and excitement that generated so we knew we would be tapping into that. And that is what happened. With something like ‘The Guarantee’ where everyone was in one way or another affected by it there is a natural kind of interest in it from the beginning.’
Where does ‘The Guarantee’ go from here? TV3 will be broadcasting soon?
‘TV3 will be transmitting it after Christmas in the early part of next year I understand. It’s still in cinemas at the moment and there will be a DVD release of course and we anticipate that doing very well. It’s an ideal Christmas present!’
Your company John Kelleher Media was founded in 2011. What do you look for in a production?
‘Something that appeals to us. We’re a very small company, there are only two of us really – myself and Head of Development David Power. So, it has to be something that appeals to us which clearly ‘The Guarantee’ did. We’re only developing and looking at a number of projects that do appeal. We wouldn’t just take on a project for the sake of it. And we know the area that we want to get involved in which is drama, drama features, docu-drama and documentaries.’
On that note, what’s next for you and John Kelleher Media?
‘I’m not sure exactly what’s next but I certainly hope that we will be doing a sequel to ‘The Guarantee’ down the road – which would be called ‘The Bailout’. Colin Murphy is currently writing a play for the Fishamble, the new play company and we are in conversation with him and with them about another film.’
‘The Guarantee’ is currently in Irish cinemas after being released on October 30th. Read IFTN’s interview with ‘The Guarantee’ director Ian Power here.
