amount of time. Honestly the amount of work that people did in a couple of weeks was just unbelievable. To pull that together from essentially from the final table script read to screen in 66 days into cinemas I don't think has been done before. I really don't think that it's ever been done before with a film in Ireland that it's gone, in two months, from being a table read to being in cinemas. And it looks like it cost €2 million to make, and again it's because a lot of people donated their time. A lot of people were really sound in knowing that we really didn't have a budget and just going with it for the sake of the story, the sake of the film, and knowing that they were working with people who were professionals. I think that's the good thing with the Feature Film School. We work with the actors and the actors are student graduate actors, but everyone making the film is an industry professional and Promenade Post are a huge post-production company and Matthew Toman from Bankhouse, even though he's Feature Film School, is producing it. So it's kind of a passion project for everyone involved so that's why I think the level looks so good.
Daniel: Promenade did a great job with the post-production.
Karen: I wish that we had done a documentary on the making of it.
At what stage were you when they announced the date of the referendum?
Daniel: I think it was just before we started shooting. I actually remember where I was when it happened.
Karen: Even when we had the table read I don't think it had been announced. So I think that we had maybe just started filming.
Daniel: It was no later than the first week of filming.
Karen: Because of the different shots and there were so many locations involved, we kind of shot for two weeks and then was a gap for a week and then there were a few more days. So I'd say we'd just started when the referendum was announced and after that it was just "Oh God, let's just try get it out".
Was it always the intention to have it out before the referendum?
Daniel: Not at the very beginning.
Karen: We didn't know when it was going to be announced, or if it was going to be announced. So we just said that we would make it. Our intention was just to make the film and see what to do then. We just had to get it made first. Then in the middle of it we thought this is going well and maybe we could do this, maybe we could pull it off and think that it would add value of some sort to the conversation.Just for people to make up their own minds.
Daniel: The table read was the really big turning point for that. Once the Promenade guys were there and the people involved, and everybody saw the calibre of the actors reading the script then we all thought let's go for this, let's make it happen.
Karen: I think that we should mention that Sarah Morris was the acting coach in the school. She really helped them as well. This was a big project to take on.
You have Tara Flynn in the film. Was there a temptation to get any of the other prominent Yes campaigners in?
Karen: I think with Tara what people forget is that she is an actress and she's really good. And she's a comedian as well. And of course Tara is obviously involved as a Repeal activist but it was more that we were trying to get somebody who was a sympathetic character for the counsellor and Tara has been vocal about her own story. And also she's just a really good actress.
Daniel: She offered a really warm presence that's very vital for what Tara the character needs in that moment. She was amazing.
Karen: We also have Carol O'Reilly from Red Rock, who just plays a little role as Hazel, and it's nice to have a few familiar faces with the student actors as well. Because you have people who are professional actors and it's nice that you have that mix. I think that our actors then can actually learn from them.
Daniel: Vanessa and Shauna were just buzzing after the scene with Tara Flynn. I think that gave them a lot of confidence that they could be up there with established actors.
Finally, do you think that people will see it as a Yes film?
Karen: I think that the film will speak for itself, so I think that when people watch it that they'll make up their own minds.
CinÉireann / May 2018 45