"If anyone had felt minded to hand out a prize for the most enthusiastically received picture, Ballymun Lullaby would have been a hands-down winner" - The Irish Times ( relating to The Jameson Dublin International Film Festival, Feb)
"Heartwarming" - Film Ireland
"Wonderful" - Newstalk
It's great to see all of the above written about a film.
Even better when you know the guy who made it.
For two years in college, I had the great honour to have Frank Berry, the director of Ballymun Lullaby, as my film production tutor.
For different people, success in film obviously has different meanings. Some people may say fame. Some people may say riches. As a matter of fact, I say the fundamental success for a filmmaker, is actually making a film. And whatever happens after it's made, is beyond control. Sure,.. There are other goals to achieve, other kinds of successes, and they can be achieved at any time, at any age. Ya just need a little luck, a little more talent, and a lot more work.
You have to start somewhere.
And so you start small. You use your da's cheap camera and you make your first 5 minute film with your friends as actors and your grandad as a mean-looking extra. Everyone gets exhausted, but sheer enthusiasm ( the kind only a child can have) sees everyone through.
After a while,you go to film school and you make short films, with actors looking for a break. People looking to make a splash in the industry just the same as you do. People working hard to achieve it.
You'll get exhausted. And You'll NEED enthusiasm. The kind only a child can have. And a filmmaker.
You'll have to work hard. If you get knocked back, if YOU don't like your film, you have to pick yourself up, dust yourself down, and say " Next time, I'll be better".
You have to learn.
And over time, your films change. In quality, in content and in hundreds of other ways.
But there is one thing that never changes.
Nothing can describe the feeling of seeing your film up there on screen for the first time.
After the days, weeks or even months of hard work are done, when you see all the ideas and creativity actually coming to life on the screen, you realise why it's so worth it. It's such a thrill to create something; to know that without you, it doesn't exist. And it's the same feeling no matter if you're a 13 year old kid or if you're a 23 year old graduate.
Or even if you're an 81 ( Yes, Eighty One!! ) year old Clint Eastwood.
Without the filmmaker, there is no film. And therefore film in itself, is the great success of the filmmaker.
And, as the old adage goes, success breeds success. With each film made, anything can happen. Family screenings in the living room turn into festival screenings around the world.... Cinema screenings around the world..... walks on red carpets..... and most importantly, opportunity to make more films. More successes.
Each one bigger and better than the last.
As a person looking to achieve success in the film industry at some stage in my life, It's so encouraging to see Frank, a person I admire and respect, achieving these things with his documentary feature "Ballymun Lullaby". It's won awards,the most important of which was the prestigious Directors Finders Series 2011, which is facilitated by the Screen Directors Guild of Ireland in conjunction with the Directors Guild of America, and designed to help filmmakers achieve distribution in the United States of America. So it's kind of a big deal!
It's also appeared in festivals worldwide, from the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival to the New York City Documentary Festival, and from 16th December it's going to be screening in both the IFI in Temple Bar and Cineworld, right in the centre of Dublin. In fact after the 7pm screening on the 16th of Dec in the IFI, the man himself will be there for a Q & A.
I'm definitely going to be in the audience that night, and I strongly encourage anyone else with an interest in film and storytelling to follow suit. It's great to see an Irish film making waves in the industry, and I can't stress how purely inspirational it is to see a mentor being the man responsible for it.
Something like this is exactly what I want to be responsible for someday too.
Rather than write anything about the film itself, I'll just include a link to the trailer. It tells you all you really need to know about what the film is.
I can't watch it without smiling.
More info here...
http://www.ballymunlullabythefilm.com/
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