Latest news with #FastnetFilmFestival
Telegraph
05-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
The offbeat Irish town that's become a magnet for the A-list
Here's a setting fit for a blockbuster. An Irish paint-box coloured town, teetering on the edge of West Cork 's dramatic coastline, where Fastnet Lighthouse winks out in Roaringwater Bay, and all around are huge skies, hazy horizons and, beyond, the wild Atlantic – nothing between here and New York. This is the tiny medieval town of Schull, where there may not be a cinema, but there is a film festival. Green-lit – as we say in the biz – in 2009, the Fastnet Film Festival now sees more than 533 short films from 47 different countries compete each year for a share in the generous prize fund of €45,000 (£38,000). All are welcome, and there can be few lovelier places to blow out the cobwebs and celebrate creative collaboration on a truly local scale. Flying from Stansted to Cork two weeks ago for the 2025 iteration, I found myself sitting next to Grace and Tim, a couple travelling towards a romantic weekend in Ireland. They'd chosen the perfect out-of-season destination, a place with spring sunshine, silk-soft air, heart-stopping vistas and that impossibly green patchwork of landscapes. What they hadn't bargained for, however, was the added bonus of a quirky five-day film festival, during which almost every butcher, baker, candlestick maker – well, church hall, restaurant, school, pub, bar and hotel ballroom, at least – shows short films of between 10 and 20 minutes. Grace and Tim were in for a treat. Never one to miss an opening-night party, I spent my first evening raising a glass to the week ahead at Schull's free event, held in the town's hilltop convent; then, the following morning, I hightailed it along the quayside for a ferry crossing to the Irish-speaking Cape Clear Island. In these warm southerly waters, whales, dolphins and leatherback turtles all make regular appearances, and the iconic Fastnet Rock Lighthouse – of Shipping Forecast fame – rears up amongst the megalithic standing stones. It was not for these natural delights that I'd come, however, but rather for the festival's 'Irish Language Day' event. A 40-minute walk up lanes banked with wild flowers brought me to the showing of haunting Gothic horror film Fréwaka, in a big hall on the hilltop; a screening made all the more powerful by the 5,000-year-old religious history of Ireland's earliest Christian saints, right here on Cape Clear Island. The trail back down to the harbour included stops at various venues showing Irish-language short films with subtitles, as well as a bowl of superlative leek and potato soup at Cotters Bar, and a tasting at Cape Clear Gin Distillery, where the spirit was as delicious as the honeysuckle and sea-tinged air I drank in deeply as I trotted back to the ferry, half convinced I was now fluent in Irish. If there is one sound more lyrical than that of spoken Irish, however, it's the melody of Irish fiddles. In the gathering dusk, I headed to Schull's Holy Trinity Church to watch my first of the festival's offerings, 'From a Forest to a Fiddle', a documentary on legendary luthier Jim McKillop. Exquisite in its intricate detail, the film spanned a six-month period as he crafted a traditional instrument, until it produced notes as pitch-perfect as the accompanying live performance from Zoe Conway and John McIntyre. If ever there was a soul-stirring show to tug on the heart strings, this was it. In just two days I caught 23 of the 35 short films: a powerful and mesmerising mix of stories covering everything from Ireland's first women's national football team to an Italian tale of two playful boys throwing stones from an overpass and the subsequent tragedy that overwhelmed them. Each work was testament to the fact that big subjects – salt, soil, the morning-after pill – distilled into this less-is-more format so often make for truly epic movies. But it wasn't just the spectacular surrounds and stellar stories which made it such a special week – it was the community of cheery volunteers, the clutch of screen-acting and film-making masterclasses which I dipped into between screenings, its showcase for unknown film-makers, and – of course – its sprinkling of stardust. Saoirse Ronan, Paul Mescal and Steve Coogan are amongst the festival's patrons, while the likes of Barry Keoghan (his electrifying performance in Calm with Horses a reminder of his rise from indie beginnings to global acclaim), Rebecca Miller (there with a documentary about her father, Arthur) and Ronan Day-Lewis (son of Daniel, who came to chat about his feature debut) were also in town, as were Derry Girls ' Nicola Coughlan and Domhnall Gleeson. The week culminated in the fabulous Festival Awards (free entry, all welcome), after which we rolled happily down to the cosy high-street Townhouse – my adopted local. And then, as only the luck of the Irish could have it – while I chomped down seafood chowder and pint of Murphys – who should appear but my flight companions, Grace and Tim. They were, just as I'd predicted, having a whale of a time, and already enthusing about returning the following year. And who could blame them? Combine beautiful landscapes, Irish hospitality, famous faces and a spot of creative magic, and good craic will always follow. Essentials
Irish Independent
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Welcome to the Cannes of Cork! Triona McCarthy on what it's like to have Barry Keoghan, Paul Mescal and Saoirse Ronan bringing star power to her hometown
Since 2009, the Fastnet Film Festival has attracted a steady stream of A-listers to Schull and local Triona McCarthy shares the sense of magic, opportunity and excitement that now exists in the village Yesterday at 21:30 As a child growing up in West Cork, I could never have dreamed that Hollywood stars would one day visit my hometown of Schull. Today, I still have to pinch myself when I see A-listers like Paul Mescal, Saoirse Ronan and, last weekend, Barry Keoghan, Nicola Coughlan, Bill Pullman and Domhnall Gleeson walking around. Schull is the place I still call home; we live in Dublin during the school term and then it's straight home for the holidays. Growing up here, Hollywood was a very distant, almost mythical, place to me – our tiny village didn't even have a cinema! I was 12 before I went to the cinema for the first time. My aunties, Marie and Gráinne, came on a visit from the UK and brought us to see Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom half an hour away in Bantry.
Irish Independent
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Welcome to the Cannes of Cork! Triona McCarthy on what it's like to have Paul Mescal, Barry Keoghan and Saoirse Ronan bringing star power to her hometown
Since 2009, the Fastnet Film Festival has attracted a steady stream of A-listers to Schull and local Triona McCarthy shares the sense of magic, opportunity and excitement that now exists in the village Today at 21:30 As a child growing up in West Cork, I could never have dreamed that Hollywood stars would one day visit my hometown of Schull. Today, I still have to pinch myself when I see A-listers like Paul Mescal, Saoirse Ronan and, last weekend, Barry Keoghan, Nicola Coughlan, Bill Pullman and Domhnall Gleeson walking around. Schull is the place I still call home; we live in Dublin during the school term and then it's straight home for the holidays. Growing up here, Hollywood was a very distant, almost mythical, place to me – our tiny village didn't even have a cinema! I was 12 before I went to the cinema for the first time. My aunties, Marie and Gráinne, came on a visit from the UK and brought us to see Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom half an hour away in Bantry.
Daily Mail
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Barry Keoghan reveals he was so nervous meeting Ringo Starr that he couldn't look him in the eye - as he attends 'Beatles Bootcamp' to prepare for biopic role as the drummer
Barry Keoghan has revealed he was so nervous meeting Ringo Starr that he couldn't look him in the eye as he prepares to play him in the upcoming Beatles biopic. Gladiator II hunk Paul Mescal will play Paul McCartney, Harris Dickinson will play John Lennon, Barry will star as Ringo Starr and Joseph Quinn will play George Harrison in the films about The Fab Four. And to prepare for the role they have all been attending a 'Beatles Bootcamp' for the past 16 weeks, with Barry, 32, learning drumming and even meeting Ringo himself. Speaking at the Fastnet Film Festival in Ireland this week Barry said of the encounter with the icon, 84,: 'I sat opposite him and I could not look at him because I was nervous and his wife Barbara was there and she said, 'You can look at him.' 'Every time I looked at him I saw myself in his glasses. I said to him: 'I am not coming here to quiz you. I am coming to find out what made you and how the contrast was going back to Liverpool after Beatlemania.' From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the Daily Mail's new Showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. 'We can all do imitation but I wanted to know where it came from. He was so on the money.' He also described his current Beatles Bootcamp as an 'absolute joy' where he has been practising the 'walk and accent' of Ringo. Barry explained: 'It's a place of failing, a place of learning and trying. That's the process I'm in now. It's a playground for me.' 'The drumming is going great. I've been doing it for like six, seven months. I've got blisters on my hands now.' In April director Sam Mendes revealed that all four films — called The Beatles: A Four-Film Cinematic Event — will come out in the same month, as he introduced his four leading stars. Each of the movies will focus on one of the members of the band. According to the director, Sony's film boss Tom Rothman dubbed the films 'the first binge-able theatrical experience'. 'We're not just making one film about the Beatles — we're making four,' Mendes announced. 'Perhaps this is a chance to understand them a little more deeply.' 'The Beatles changed my understanding of music,' Mendes added. 'I've been trying to make a movie about them for years.' 'I'm honored to be telling the story of the greatest rock band of all time, and excited to challenge the notion of what constitutes a trip to the movies,' the filmmaker shared back in 2024, as per People. The movies are being made by Sony Pictures and Sam's Neal Street Productions company. Mendes explained that he pitched the idea of making four films about the group last year and wowed Sony executives Rothman and Elizabeth Gabler with his plans. The Skyfall filmmaker told Deadline earlier this year: 'We went out to Los Angeles just before Christmas to pitch the project, and it's fair to say we were met with universal enthusiasm.' 'The reason Sony stood out from competing offers was down to Tom and Elizabeth's passion for the idea, and commitment to propelling these films theatrically in an innovative and exciting way.' Barry has risen to huge stardom in the last few years with roles in Saltburn and The Banshees of Inisherin. It comes after Barry revealed he is 'forever grateful' to his driver Niall for taking him to rehab during a time of struggle. The actor opened up about the special bond he shares with Niall, who got on a plane with him to make sure he got to a rehabilitation facility in England. Barry described his current Beatles Bootcamp as an 'absolute joy' where he has been practising the 'walk and accent' of Ringo Barry told Hollywood Authentic: 'Niall literally drove me and put me on a plane himself, came with me and brought me to the rehab in England. 'I went back to visit. It was nice to see the staff again, and for them to see the change in me. 'They were quite emotional about it. I'm forever grateful. When I say that Niall is the best, I mean it, because no one else put me on the plane, by the hand, literally got on the plane with me.' Barry also shared his family's experience with rehab, including his mother – who died from heroin addiction 20 years ago – and his brother, who has also been in treatment.
Scottish Sun
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Scottish Sun
Barry Keoghan reveals why he can't look Ringo Starr in the eye as he attends ‘Beatles Bootcamp' to prepare for biopic
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) ACTOR Barry Keoghan has revealed he has spent the past three months in a 'Beatles bootcamp' ahead of playing Ringo Starr in a film series on the Fab Four. The 32-year-old said he has been practising how the drummer walks, talks and plays to take on the role. 3 Barry Keoghan has spent the past three months in a 'Beatles bootcamp' to prepare for the role of Ringo Starr Credit: AFP 3 Barry is playing Ringo in the four upcoming Beatles biopics Credit: Getty He expects to be working on the four films for 15 months — with co-stars Paul Mescal, Joseph Quinn and Harris Dickinson. Barry said: 'We've been in full camp for like 16 or 17 weeks now. "It's just an absolute joy. The camp is like bootcamp and it's a place where you have time and you try things. 'For Ringo, you get to approach the walk, the accent, play around with the face. READ MORE ON Barry Keoghan Lover man Barry Keoghan dating history: Meet the star's exes, including Sabrina Carpenter "It's a place of failing, a place of learning and trying. That's the process I'm in now. It's a playground for me.' Barry, speaking at the Fastnet Film Festival near Cork, Ireland, added: 'The drumming is going great. "I've been doing it for like six, seven months. I've got blisters on my hands now.' He also met 84-year-old Ringo, saying: 'He gave me so much ammunition to go forward. 'I sat opposite him and I could not look at him because I was nervous and his wife Barbara was there and she said, 'You can look at him.' 'Every time I looked at him I saw myself in his glasses. I said to him: 'I am not coming here to quiz you. I am coming to find out what made you and how the contrast was going back to Liverpool after Beatlemania.' Barry Keoghan hints he's reunited with girlfriend Sabrina Carpenter after dropping major clue at Paris Fashion Week 'We can all do imitation but I wanted to know where it came from. He was so on the money. 'My approach to The Beatles movie is entirely different to anything I have ever done. 'Being sober has now allowed me artistically to go down a constructive way and kind of bring back emotions and control. Rather than be erratic. There is a whole new approach to it.' Director Sam Mendes helped pick Saltburn star Barry for the role, along with Normal People's Mescal as Paul McCartney, Stranger Things star Joseph as George Harrison, and up-and-coming actor Harris as John Lennon. The biopics are expected to be released in 2028. 3 Paul Mescal will play Paul McCartney, Joseph Quinn is George Harrison and Harris Dickinson is John Lennon Credit: AFP Unlock even more award-winning articles as The Sun launches brand new membership programme - Sun Club.
