Text size

Brendan Gleeson brushes up his cúpla focal for Irish movie remake

April 15, 2014

IRISH animation ‘Song of the Sea’ is soon to be remade As Gaeilge and actor Brendan Gleeson is expected to lead the cast again for the translated version of the film.

Makers of the Cartoon Saloon production are hoping to premiere it on TG4 at the end of the year and have asked the cast, which includes Fionnula Flanagan, Pat Shortt and Moone Boy actor David Rawle, to re-record their lines in the native tongue. “We are hoping to do it in June and so far they’ve all said they will if they can,” producer Paul Young told the Irish Independent. “We’re making all the calls at the moment, so it just depends on everyone’s schedule and timing.”

A former school teacher, 58-year-old Gleeson has insisted he is keen to put his language skills to the test and read out his lines in Irish. ‘Song of the Sea’ takes inspiration from the mythological Selkies of Irish folklore who live as seals in the sea but become humans on land.

The film, the second from ‘The Secret of Kells’ director Tomm Moore, follows the main character Ben and his little sister Saoirse, who embark on a fantastic journey across a fading world of ancient legend and magic in an attempt to return to their home by the sea.

The feature has already been picked up by distributors in Europe, as well as landing a deal with GKIDS in the US. Gleeson and his co-stars recorded their parts last year. It has been a busy time for Dublin-born Gleeson, who is well known for his work in hit films such as ‘Harry Potter’, ‘Gangs of New York’ and ‘Braveheart’.

He recently completed principal photography on ‘In The Heart of The Sea’ opposite Cillian Murphy and Chris Hemsworth and also filmed the pilot of HBO’s ‘The Money’, directed by David Milch.

 

www.independent.ie