‘Fair City’ actor Tommy O’Neill and 'Shameless' and 'Roy' star Paddy C. Courtney head up the cast of micro-budget feature ‘The O’Brien’s’, which is currently shooting in Co Galway.
Written by Slaine Kelly and Emmett Hughes – who also star in the feature – the Irish production also features former ‘Fair City’ star Caroline Rothwell, who played Linda O’Hanlon on the soap.
Produced by Kelly and Hughes' film company, Saoirse Films, the feature has been privately funded. Richard Waters (Lovely Dinner) is directing.
Now in the second week of a three-week shoot in Headford, Co Galway, ‘The O’Brien’s’ tells the story of a scattered family who travel back to their hometown in the west of Ireland on hearing that their father has some serious news. Not only having to contend with being back home, each family member also has their own personal dilemma to deal with.
Richard Kearney is producing alongside Ciara Byrne and Alison Scarff. David Laird is the director of photography and is shooting the feature on a DSLR camera. Rowan Moore is the art director, while Scarff is also doubling as production manager.
Director Waters will also cut the feature with all post-production set to be handled in-house by Walters and his team.
Speaking to IFTN, producer Kearney said that the shoot was “shaping up nicely” and praised the local community in Co Galway. He added: “Even though there isn’t much of a budget, we’re making every penny count and the locals here in Headford have really got behind the production. We’re using a local shop and a big old country house and some of the locations we’re shooting in are just so scenic. It’s going to look great.”
Additional cast include Liam McMahon (Titanic: Blood and Steel), Kelly Blaise (The
Inside), Lochlainn O’Mearáin (Ros na Rún) and Amber Jean Rowan (What Richard Did).
Saoirse Films are planning to release ‘The O’Brien’s’ next year in time for the film festival market.
