Cast & Crew
Claire Rushbrook | MAGS
Claire Rushbrook is a highly regarded English actress celebrated for her diverse roles across film, television, and stage. She gained prominence with her role in Mike Leigh's critically acclaimed film "Secrets & Lies" (1996). Since then, she's delivered memorable performances in "My Mad Fat Diary," for which she received a BAFTA nomination, and "Home Fires." Her versatility shines in films like "Spider-Man: Far From Home" (2019) and "Enola Holmes" (2020). Her praised performance in "Ali & Ava" (2021) earned her a BIFA nomination. Notable TV roles include appearances in "Doctor Who", "Wilderness", "Inside Number 9", and "Sherwood." Claire's work spans dramatic and genre-based narratives, highlighting her talent and dedication to her craft.
For more details, visit her IMDb page.
Ebimie Anthony | HANA
Ebimie Anthony graduated from Bow Street Academy in 2023. Since graduating she has worked on a variety of projects, most recently John Carney’s upcoming feature POWER BALLAD, for Treasure Entertainment opposite Paul Rudd. Other recent projects include THE COUSIN, directed by Stevie Russell for RTÉ’s STORYLAND, OBITUARY (Hulu/RTÉ) and CLEAN SWEEP (RTÉ). Ebimie is presently shooting on a new Channel 5 series in a leading role.
Geraldine McAlinden | ANN
Geraldine is an IFTA-nominated actress, and a director, writer, and producer with Alchemy 8 Productions. Her acting credits include the multi-award-winning Irish independent feature film "Verdigris," "The Last Rifleman," "Ordinary Love," and "The Secret Scripture."
Her TV credits include "Bad Sisters," "Maryland," "Bloodlands," "Blood," "Red Rock," "Striking Out," and "Miss Scarlett and the Duke." Her theatre credits include "The 24 Hour Play" at the Abbey, "The F-Word," "Beyond Therapy," and "Philadelphia, Here I Come!"
Geraldine's play "Knowing" was selected as part of Fishamble's Tiny Plays for Ireland in 2013, and her short film "Being Human" was produced by Smashing Times International Centre for the Arts and Equality in 2021. She was a finalist in the Wild Atlantic Pitching Competition at the Galway Film Fleadh in 2023 with her feature film script "Slippery Slopes."
In 2024, she obtained a First Class Honours Masters Degree in Screenwriting for Film and Television from IADT and was selected as part of X-Pollinator.
Natalie Britton | MARTINA
Natalie is an award winning actor and producer from Dublin, Ireland. She trained professionally at ALRA Drama School in London before moving to Los Angeles where she worked for many years. Natalie has appeared in many feature films & network TV series. Some of her most notable credits include NCIS:LA (CBS) Maxine (Channel 5 / Netflix) Quantum Leap (NBC) & Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO). Current acting work includes the role of Susannah in Channel 5's upcoming series The Au-Pair and two short films "TURNAROUND" and "MEDICINAL" both premiering at Galway Film Fleadh July 2024. She is also an experienced VO artist, having recorded various projects for Disney, Amazon, O'Briens Fine Wine and many more. Natalie holds Irish, Canadian and US citizenship and splits her time between Dublin and L.A. She is a member of SAG AFTRA and Irish Equity and is represented in Ireland by Susannah Norris.
Maria Tropnikova | DALIA
Maria is a Russian-Romanian actress based in Dublin.
Screen credits include Fantastic Films’ “Breeders” directed by Suri Grennell; Lucy in Portside Pictures short film “Lessons from the Heart”; Polina in the feature film “Life on Mercury” directed by Mathieu Constantin and produced by John Kelly of Clap ‘n Load Studios; Masha in “Not Alone” directed by Alina Aparina (Tooba); The Wife in “Bitches 2.0” directed by Diana Maksimova and Nikita Malkov; and Bar Girl in “The Golf Explorers”, a pilot directed by Jim Kreutzer and David Spitzer (Wind Chill Media Group).
Aisling Byrne | WRITER & DIRECTOR
Aisling Byrne (she/her) is an award-winning Writer and Director working across theatre, film and television. Her narrative short debut HEADSPACE was longlisted for an Oscar® for Best Live Action Short, winning the Academy-Qualifying Grand Prix at the 67th Cork International Film Festival. The film was selected as Ireland’s Short Film Candidate for the European Film Awards 2023 and screened at multiple international festivals picking up numerous further awards.
Her short film MISREAD was awarded the RTE/ Ardán Short Film Commission, premiered at the 35th Galway Film Fleadh and continues to screen on the festival circuit, recently winning Best Irish Short Film at Catalyst International Film Festival, 2024. In 2023 Aisling was selected to represent Ireland at Screen Talent Europe’s 'Directors Village' residency. Her next film project Turnaround, a Screen Ireland Focus Short is due to premiere at the 36th Galway Film Fleadh featuring Claire Rushbrook in the lead role. Her short documentary film 'The First Drop that Saw the Sky' a collaboration with Shaun Dunne and Dublin City Council Culture Company is also set to premiere at the 36th Galway Film Fleadh. In 2023, Aisling was selected for Screen Ireland’s flagship screenwriter scheme ‘Spotlight’, where she is under commission to write her debut feature. 'The Community'. She collaborates regularly with Dublin based Arcade Film Ltd and currently has a TV Comedy Drama in development with MK1 Productions. Aisling is the founder and Artistic Director of Ireland’s Run of the Mill– an award-winning arts organisation that platforms the work of learning disabled talent, and co-founder of Dublin based theatre collective Talking Shop Ensemble. Recent and upcoming work for theatre includes REAL LIFE for Run of the Mill, premiering June 2024 at Project Arts Centre, THE LAND OF A HUNDRED LITTLE HILLS for Ceol Connected (National Concert Hall/ National Tour 2024), FUTURE TAPESTRY (John Conway and Aisling Byrne) and the multi-award-winning MAKING A MARK by Shaun Dunne (Judges Choice, Dublin Fringe, 2019). Aisling is represented for writing and directing by Jethro Thompson at Curtis Brown agency.
Killian Coyle | PRODUCER
Killian (he/him) is a passionate and detail-oriented Creative Producer, working alongside theatre and film makers between Ireland and the UK. With a focus on socially engaged storytelling, Killian is deeply committed to affecting change and making a difference through his work. He has worked on a diverse range of projects, from short films and site-specific performances to national and international tours, and artist development programs.
Notable recent highlights of Killian's creative producing career include the multi-award winning Oscars 2024 longlisted short film Headspace by Aisling Byrne; This Solution by Shaun Dunne for Dublin Theatre Festival 2023; Good Sex original production at Dublin Theatre Festival 2022, and International Tour to Noorderzon, The Netherlands, and the International Summer Festival Hamburg, Germany in 2023 with Dead Centre; a 9 venue national tour of the award-winning Making A Mark with Talking Shop Ensemble and Run of the Mill; Privilege: The Musical! with Louise White Performance; and the radical interpretation of George Orwell's Animal Farm, Animals, with Louise White Performance for Dublin Theatre Festival 2022.
Killian is a part of Screen Ireland and the National Talent Academies EMERGE programme, which is aimed at a diverse network of new and emerging producers who want to increase their industry knowledge and upskilling, while growing their peer and industry network.
He is also part of the field:arts cohort, a new Creative Production Supports initiative supported by the Arts Council of Ireland that will cultivate growth, sustainability and ambition across the independent contemporary arts sector in Ireland by prioritising the fundamental relationship between the Creative Producer and Artist.
Arcade Film | PRODUCTION COMPANY / DOP & EDITOR
Arcade Film Ltd are an award winning production company.
Dan Keane and Kilian Waters; cinematographers, editors and creative producers with years of experience and success across short film, TV, documentary and video design.
As a company Arcade believe in the creative power of collaboration and our passion is working with established and emerging talent to develop diverse and challenging stories.
Some recent projects include the Screen Ireland funded Focus short Lamb directed by Sinéad O Loughlin, which premiered in competition at the Tribeca Film Festival 2022, the short Headspace by Aisling Byrne which won Grand Prix Best Irish Short and the Short Film Candidate for the European Film Awards 2023 at the Cork International Film Festival 2022 and Is Olc an Ghaoth, a TV drama directed by Tom Sullivan for TG4 which was nominated for the Royal Television Society, Screen Ireland Drama Award 2021.
Cast
Claire Rushbrook MAGS
Ebimie Anthony HANA
Geraldine McAlinden ANN
Natalie Britton MARTINA
Maria Tropnikova DALIA
Crew
WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY Aisling Byrne
PRODUCED BY Killian Coyle
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY Kilian Waters
EDITOR Dan Keane
COMPOSER Stephen Rennicks
PRODUCTION DESIGNER Saoirse O’Shea
COSTUME DESIGNER Sarah Heraughty
HAIR & MAKE UP DESIGNER Claire McCauley
PRODUCTION MANAGER Étáin Nash
1ST AD Clare Cassidy
2ND AD Roisin Little
SCRIPT SUPERVISOR Jennifer Burke
CASTING DIRECTOR Eva-Jane Gaffney
1ST AC Leah O'Toole
2ND AC Simon Fitzpatrick
SOUND RECORDIST Saoirse Connolly
GAFFER Andrej Pacher
ART DEPARTMENT Mark O’Mahony
STILLS PHOTOGRAPHY Shane O’Connor
LOCATIONS MANAGER Eoghan Barrett
LOCATIONS ASSISSTANT Niall Barrett
TRANSPORT Declan Croke
Teresa Connolly
CATERING Kevin Collins for Fields of Skibbereen
PRODUCTION ASSISTANT Toni O’Rourke
PRODUCTION ASSISTANT Rema Hamid
PRODUCTION ASSISTANT Danny McDonald
PRODUCTION ASSISTANT Ava Bendon
CAMERA EQUIPMENT Arcade Film Ltd & Film Equipment Hire
LIGHTING EQUIPMENT Andrej Pacher
PrRODUCTION LAWYER Oisín O’Neill
INSURANCE Media Insurance Brokers
FOR RAYGUN POST PRODUCTION
COLOURIST Leandro Arouca
SOUND MIX Andy Kirwan
ONLINE ASSISTANT Francesca Howlett
POST PRODUCTION SUPERVISOR Ciara Walsh
BACKGROUND TALENT
Joely Grimes
Ava Bendon
Pamela Marshel
Deirdre Ni Challanain
Emma Fitzpatrick
Roisín Mae Fitzpatrick
Lucéa Fitzpatrick
Joseph O'Brien
FOR FÍS ÉIREANN / SCREEN IRELAND
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER Emma Scott
SHORT CO-ORDINATOR Jill McGregor
MARKETING EXECUTIVE Mags O’Sullivan
DIGITAL MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS CO-ORDINATOR Callie Hardy
SPECIAL THANKS
Édaín O’Donnell at West Cork Film Studios
Maxine Christy, Emma Fitzpatrick and all at Celtic Ross Hotel, Rosscarbery
Kate Wycherley and all at Celtic Cottages, Rosscarbery
Forbes Kelly, Aisling O’Leary and all at Revel Café, Clonakilty
The White Family, Owenahincha
Cork County Council
Craig Connolly, Mari Byrne, Toni O’Rourke, Zoe Keane, Joanne Keane, Jill O’Malley, Joely Grimes, Don O’Donovan, Lorcan Murphy, Deirdre Ní Challanain, Garrett O’Mahony, The Bendon Family, Timmie Harrington, Mary Mullen, Keith Potter, Nada Cirjanic, Lara Hickey, Mary O’Mahony
Made with the Support of the Film Group of Unions
Shot on location in West Cork, Ireland