Well I have to say I am totally delighted to have won the Best Actress category for “Covies” at the Underground Cinema Awards this year. It was a fantastic night and superbly put together down to the fine details by Dave and all the Underground team. This year marks the first Underground Awards and with Labour party leader Eamonn Gilmore speaking on the night, I felt he hit the nail on the head saying that this is the first of many years of success for Underground and what a privilege to have been part of the first one.
The Underground team have already begun the process to kick off next years monthly screenings, and the films which were presented throughout this past year will continue to tour the UK and Ireland meaning an even wider audience will gain access to view these amazing independent short films.
In the run up to the Awards night David Byrne from Underground and I did a radio interview with Richie Beirne for “Arena” RTE’s flagship Culture/entertainment/ Arts programme. You can listen to the radio interview here:
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I haven’t any of the official photos from the night yet so here is just a snapshot of me on the night!!
Once again I’m a little slow off the mark to write on this but I’m delighted to have received a “Best Actress” nomination for Covies from Underground Cinema, which I’ve previously written about, and would like to update here on the upcoming events.
As I’ve mentioned before Underground Cinema is a monthly screening of short films held in Dun Laoghaire. Over the past year Underground has screened 100 Short Irish Films, 16 Documentaries, 11 Music Videos and 5 Animated Films. Now that the screening year has come to a close Underground is facing into the exciting time of the Underground Film Festival and Awards Night.
Nominations Night took place at the beginning of August and nominations were announced for categories primarily for work on independent short Irish films. Included in the nominations night was the list of the 30 short films which have been selected for screening at the Underground Film Festival which will take place in the Screen Cinema, D’Olier Street on September 16th & 17th at 7.30pm nightly. Following the Film Festival, on the 18th September, the Awards night will be held in the Fitzpatrick Castle Hotel in Killiney.
I have to say I was thrilled to hear I’d received the nomination and I’m really looking forward to attending the awards night in September. Another great piece of news is that my first project “Waiting Room” on which I co-directed, wrote and acted in has been selected to play along with Covies at the Underground Film Festival on the Friday night… brilliant!!
Well, there you have it! Head along to The Screen cinema on 16th and 17th September for a unique cinema experience and support the independent film makers of Ireland.
Hey Everyone,
Recently I mentioned that I’ve been working on a sci-fi short film “Effigy Road”. Well, the director of the film, Rob Kelly, has put together a teaser trailer from the footage taken so far. This project is still in production with some ongoing filming taking place in Carlow town which should be wrapped over the next couple of weeks.
But for now thanks for reading and please enjoy this teaser:
Blogged by Sarah on April 14th, 2010 in Uncategorized
For a while now I’ve been meaning to write about a newish venture and great new asset to the Independent Filmmakers of Ireland, Underground Cinema, developed and co-ordinated by Dave Byrne. Dave has successfully run Bluemoon Theatre Company for many years and I came to know him when I had the pleasure of working on one of their productions in 2008.
Last year however, Dave changed course from the theatre company with the introduction of his new project, a monthly screening night in the Kingston Hotel Dun Laoghaire for Irish Short films, Underground Cinema. The idea behind Underground is to air the many wonderful independent Irish Shorts shot throughout the year that very often don’t get the screening time they deserve. Dave has opened the doors to anything which is sent to him, stating that any genre or convention is welcome. Over the months the screenings have also stretched to cover music videos and the occasional feature film. Another great aspect of Underground Cinema is that these monthly screenings will culminate into a nominations night in the Kingston Hotel, the Underground Film Festival in the IMC Dun Laoghaire and the Underground Cinema Awards (Black Tie Event) in Fitzpatricks Castle Hotel Killiney in September.
The whole project is ambitious to say the least and has so far had a well deserved great reaction, but this project has legs and is expanding all the time with Daves further introductions:
Underground TV (a live online showing of films with the director available for live chat afterwards)
Underground Cinema Roadshow (screenings held to a wider audience in venues throughout Ireland and the UK)
Underground Cinema Movie Marquee (a film tent appearing at various summer festivals)
Underground Cinema Movie Workshops (delivering valuable workshops in many aspects of film making)
I’m sure I’ll be writing more over the coming months about the exciting development of Underground Cinema but of course there’s much more to read about on the official Underground Cinema website and you can keep updated with the events by following on Facebook and Twitter.
It would seem auditioning with no voice isn’t such a bad thing after all. I was in a bit of a panic this week with three auditions to get to and a voice that just wasn’t co-operating. But here we are with my second role secured for the week. It’s a short film titled Guerrilla to be shot by Dunsany Productions on location in Navan, Dublin and Dundalk. It’s a futuristic war movie and judging by the size of the gun I held in audition it’s going to be an eventful shooting experience.
I will play the female lead of Jacky. She is a soldier totally dedicated to the cause she fights. She has found herself on opposite sides to a former lover, Donelly, also the father of her young son. She’s hated him ever since he left her because she was pregnant, however when presented with the situation to let him live or die what will be the outcome? (Ohhhhh suspense!)
Should begin with costume and promo shots next week and shooting week after that. I’m sure I’ll have plenty of updates as we get closer and shooting begins so stay posted.
As a founding member of The Core Dublin, I am absolutely delighted to announce the nomination for Best Costume in The Irish Times Theatre Awards for Director Rodrigo Rodrigues in our production of The Trojan Women. I played both the roles of Athena and Helen and over the course of our lengthy rehearsal period I was involved with Rodrigo in the construction of my costume. Rodrigo believes costume construction is a valid input into the creation of a character. Rodrigo worked with each actor to develop his costume ideas and defined his technique in every detail, right down to the sound a costume makes.. as he always says “the sound the costume makes is part of the script!”
Sarah Carroll as Helen of Troy, Gerard Byrne as Menelaus
A little more about how we got there:
Way back in October 2008 I responded to an add posted by Brazilian born actor/director Rodrigo Rodrigues. The add was calling for actors for an unspecified project, but it interested me so I applied. Approximately 10 actors were invited to the first meeting where Rodrigo discussed his ideas to produce something fantastic. It was vague to say the least, but I liked what I heard, I could visualise Rodrigos ideas and I felt I understood what he wanted to achieve. So here, in the basement room of Filmbase,The Core Dublin finely opened with a group of 10 actors under Rodrigo’s Direction.
“I attempted to create a group called THE CORE without success numerous times in Dublin. After meeting with Phyllis Carthy and Sarah Carroll it became possible when they believed in my form of art. Actors came and went and then Linda Teehan arrived. I’m so PROUD OFF THESE GIRLS “ (says Rodrigo Rodrigues)
Over the next year we met every Sunday for workshops. Rodrigo wanted an idea to evolve over time, he felt sometimes in Ireland the process of getting an idea to stage was too rushed. We took our time, exploring new ideas and techniques. Rodrigo used elements of Japanese dance and theatre forms such as Butoh (from Kazuo Ohno and Yoshito Ohno), Kabuki and marching. Long discussions occurred about life, politics, art, religion and the current situation of the world. From these discussions Rodrigo gradually formed his ideas and after observing the actors workshops, exercises, reactions, he came to the decision to put on a production of an ancient Greek tragedy, The Trojan Women. Our group, over the weeks had whittled down to just 3 actor members and our Director Rodrigo so we then held auditions for additional actors to fill the chorus and male roles in the play. We were also delighted to welcome actor/director Alan King (Waiting for Ikea) to the project.
The visuals of our production were of the utmost importance to Rodrigo. We spent far longer working on these elements then running lines. Rodrigo insisted on actors being involved in the construction of their own costumes and rehearsing in them from the very early stages. The costumes were made from recycled clothing, household items, accessories, cardboard or anything we could lay our hands on as long as it was free. Rodrigo had a vision for the costumes from the beginning and each cast member researched ideas to add to the mix.
Of course it was a pleasure working on the production, although it wasn’t without it’s difficulties. Overall, I was involved for over a year before we took to the stage with The Trojan Women in October 2009. It was a lengthy process, one we’re not used to in Ireland and we hit many obstacles which had to be overcome. However, in the end it all came together and we were delighted with the response to our show and sold out most nights in our two week run in Smock Alley Theatre. Of course receiving recognition for all the hard work in the form of a nomination is just music to my ears but truly well deserved by Rodrigo.
The Core Dublin will continue to strive for the highest standards in future projects. We are looking towards projects not only in theatre, but also film and television. Watch this space!!
A little news on the job front! I auditioned a couple of days ago for a feature film, Girl Next Door. I am happy to accept the role of Tania in the feature due to begin shooting in Ireland towards the end of this month. The feature is written and directed by Lorna Fitzsimons. Lorna has worked as a successful photographer and is now moving into the world of film. Tania is a supporting role, she’s a bit of a bitch and should be a fun character to play so I’ll be looking forward to working on the project.
Blogged by Sarah on January 13th, 2010 in Acting, Covies
The wheels are definitely in motion for Covies web series. The first episode is getting great feedback since going live yesterday evening, and the press are picking up on it more by the minute. It’s an exciting time for those of us who invested so much into the project.
Len Collin, the director, was on 2fm with Gerry Ryan this morning for an interview about the show. It was a fantastic bit of advertising for Covies and Gerry kept Len on chatting for a good 20 minutes which is great. Have a listen to the interview in full here.
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As always all the information on Covies, including actor profiles, video “making of” diaries, and the all important episodes can be found on the official site.
I worked on a short film a few weeks ago called Hunting Grizzly, a comedy written and directed by Jeff Doyle, Co-Directed by Donnacha Coffey, and produced by Cathal Nally and Babershop Triplet Productions. I guess it falls into a strand of blue comedy, but to be honest it’s just plain Jeff Doyle humour… kinda have to know him to understand! It was great crack to work on and I’m sure it’ll be ready for screening in the near future and perhaps do the festival rounds, but for now here’s the trailer so you can get a taste of whats to come.
I’d like to tell you all about “Covies”, an online web drama based in Westport, Co. Mayo for which I spent two weeks filming back in September. The series is written and directed by Len Collin and involved the support of the local council, the Chamber, and local businesses such as Destination Westport and The Mayo News. With only a €20K budget everyone involved agreed to work for free with the hope of boosting the town of Westport as a filming destination and hopefully the careers of those involved.The project was a real collaboration, with actors and crew pulling together mainly from Westport and Dublin, but also from London and Galway among other places. I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Westport and have formed a genuine personal love for the town. The project was such a pleasure to work on and made even more enjoyable by the people involved, the stunning scenery, and the amazing weather we were blessed with while there. I even had a day trip to Keem Bay on Achill island which was extra special for me because I spent many summers of my youth there with an aunt who passed away when I was around 12, so it brought back really nice memories for me. Check out some of the production shots in my gallery.
There are 8 weekly episodes with the first episode due to launch on 11.01.10 on the official Covies website.
For further information check out the official blog or articles in The Mayo News:
Well I have to say I am totally delighted to have won the Best Actress category for “Covies” at the Underground Cinema Awards this year. It was a fantastic night and superbly put together down to the fine details by Dave and all the Underground team. This year marks the first Underground Awards and with Labour party leader Eamonn Gilmore speaking on the night, I felt he hit the nail on the head saying that this is the first of many years of success for Underground and what a privilege to have been part of the first one.
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