A host of Irish and International Talent to Star in Five New Irish Feature Films
The Irish film and television industry will finish what has been a busy year on a high, with five feature films in production starring a host in Irish and international talent. Up and coming feature films include ‘Albert Nobbs' ‘Stella Days' ‘Earthbound', ‘Citadel' and an Irish comedy ‘Grabbers' which between them will star Glenn Close (Fatal Attraction, Dangerous Liaisons ), Martin Sheen, Amy Huberman (The Clinic), Jonathan Rhys Meyers (The Tudors), Ruth Bradley (Love & Hate), and Stephen Rea (Ondine) to name but a few.Multi Oscar nominee Glenn Close, Jonathan Rhys Meyer and Janet McTeer (Into the Storm) are set to arrive in Ireland this month to film the new Irish co-production ALBERT NOBBS which will begin shooting on December 13th. ALBERT NOBBS, written by Close and John Banville tells a witty story of a woman pretending to be a man in order to survive ultra-conservative 19th century Ireland. The film is to be directed by Rodrigo Garcia and is produced by Steven Spielberg's longtime co-producer Bonnie Curtis (Jurassic Park: The Lost World, Saving Private Ryan, Minority Report), Glenn Close, Julie Lynn (Nine Lives, Mother and Child) and Alan Moloney (Intermission, Breakfast on Pluto) with funding from Bord Scannán na hÉireann/the Irish Film Board (IFB).
STELLA DAYS stars Martin Sheen (The West Wing), along with Irish talent Amy Huberman, Marcella Plunkett (Swansong: Story of Occi Byrne) and Stephen Rea (Breakfast on Pluto) and is currently in production until December 7th. The film is a comedy drama set in rural Ireland in the 1950s where a local priest attempts to set up a local cinema in order to tackle a fundraising challenge and is directed by Emmy Award nominated Thaddeus O'Sullivan (Into the Storm, December Bride). Antoine O'Flathartha wrote the script and filming will take place in Co. Tipperary. STELLA DAYS is being produced by Newgrange Pictures (Kings) and is funded by the IFB, BAI, RTÉ and the Norwegian Film Institute.
EARTHBOUND is the debut feature film of Alan Brennan (Shapes) and is currently in production in Dublin and Wicklow. The film is a contemporary comedy about a man who just wants an ordinary life: a job he doesn't hate, a place to call home and a nice girl to settle down with. He is just like the rest of us...except he's an alien. The film is produced by Ripple World and Paper Dreams with funding from the IFB.
The final projects CITADEL and GRABBERS are set to begin production towards the end of the month. CITADEL stars Aneurin Barnard and James Cosmo (The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe) and will film on location in Scotland and Ireland with more cast to be announced shortly. CITADEL tells the story of single father Tommy Cowley, a man inflicted with chronic agoraphobia since the day his wife was attacked and he was unable to protect her. The film is produced by Blinder Films and Sigma Films in Scotland with funding from the IFB and Creative Scotland.
GRABBERS is a comic horror film starring Richard Coyle and Ruth Bradley in the lead roles. The film is written by Irish writer, Kevin Lehane, directed by Jon Wright (Tormented) and will film on location in Donegal and in Northern Ireland. GRABBERS is a co-production between Samson Film (Once) and Forward Films (Tormented), with funding from the IFB, the UK Film Council, High Treason and Sony UK with international sales being handled by Salt.