Crossmaglen – the movie

The producer of the upcoming Hollywood movie entitled ‘Crossmaglen’ says the film will bring the town “out of the shadows” of its history and described the production as being “just as compelling” as the 1992 award-winning movie, ‘In the Name of the Father.’

Speaking to The Examiner, Arianna Eisenberg, owner of Aegis Film Group, explained how the idea for the movie came about and how the people of Crossmaglen and south Armagh can expect to benefit from its creation.

The film is an adaptation of ‘Shamrock Boy, a novel by English author Stuart White, which centres around a fictitious IRA member Dermot McGarvey, who accidentally kills a mother and her two children in a failed gun attack on British troops.  McGarvey is forced to go on the run and the movie follows him through Belfast and south Armagh as he is being hunted by the British Army and his former comrades.

Like it or not, it seems Crossmaglen and its association with the IRA and the Troubles continues to hold sway with filmmakers across the globe.  

Admitting that her initial feeling about using Crossmaglen as the working title of the movie was “a bit derogatory”, Ms Eisenberg said that her reason behind choosing the name is “to bring that area of Ireland out of the shadows”.

In ‘Crossmaglen’, she attempts to tell the stories of people often ignored in mainstream depictions of the North.

“They are people with stories and whether you agree with them or disagree with them, they feel that they’ve got an issue,” she said.  “And the movie really is just about these men, their families and what goes with that.  It’s not an indictment of the IRA and it’s not an indictment of the British.  It’s not something where we’re making any kind of judgement.”

When asked what was the appeal of the story to want to turn it into a film, Ms Eisenberg said White’s novel was “so well written and compelling”, that she immediately saw the potential to turn it into a big screen movie.

“The characters, Joe Biddle, [an SAS soldier] and Dermot McGarvey are just different men at different times in their lives, having such different experiences and being thrown together in this whirlwind of passion and anger and redemption,” she said.   “I just thought it would be an absolutely brilliant film.”

With a budget of around £14 million, the movie will be filmed primarily in Dublin, however some scenes will be shot in Crossmaglen, giving local people the opportunity to be cast as extras in the production.

“Local people will absolutely have the chance to be involved in the movie,” Ms Eisenberg said.   “We’re very excited for that.  It has to have a local feel to it. We’re looking to cast a lot of extras from the area and use a lot of the locations and everything.

“We do hope we’re going to be received well.   We’re not there to slight the area, we’re just there to tell the story,” she added.

Several well-known names have already been signed, including American actress Thora Birch and Oscar-winner Brenda Fricker, along with Irish actors Timothy V Murphy and Tom Archdeacon.

It has yet to be confirmed who will play the lead role of McGarvey but the producer has indicated that Lord of the Rings star, Viggo Mortensen, is expected to be cast in the role.  She also anticipates that English director, Kevin Connor, will be signed to direct the movie.

Filming is expected to begin by September and will last for approximately ten weeks, followed by a post-production period of around six months.

Ms Eisenberg said the production crew would spend this time in the country and said Crossmaglen and south Armagh should expect to be rewarded for its input.

“One of the things we’re really looking forward to doing with this production is bringing money into this area and we would love, at the end of it, to donate for something worthwhile in the Crossmaglen area,” Ms Eisenberg said.  “It’s an area that’s been hit hard.”

Explaining that her company would ideally like to provide young people in the area with opportunities that may not have been afforded to them otherwise, she said that giving back to the community in which they film is as much part of their remit as making the film.

 “When we take out of the community, we give back to the community,” she said.  “We would love to do something along the lines of maybe promoting films, to bring in a new era of filmmakers, writers, directors and set designers and give local kids an opportunity and some place to go where they can become that.  Not only to learn a trade, but to learn a life.  This would be a career that would take them everywhere in the world.  It’s a wonderful legacy and that’s how our entire company has been built.”

In the meantime, budding local actors and actresses should hone their acting skills in preparation of possibly appearing in Crossmaglen – Hollywood style.