‘Silent Moves’ to première in Ballina

IN CHARACTER?Bernard McDonnell as Hugo The Bashful in ‘Silent Moves’.

‘Silent Moves’ to première in Ballina

Ciara Moynihan

‘Silent Moves’, a film by Western Care’s Ridgepool Training Centre and ScannΡn Technologies, will be launched at Ballina Arts Centre this Friday, November 28, at 7pm. Emily Logan,  Chief Commissioner, Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, will officially perform the launch of the film, which will have a longer showing in the venue in 2015.
Ignite is a new platform designed to generate Ireland’s most ambitious showcasing of talent from people with disabilities, led by international and Irish artists and performers with disabilities. Projects are taking place here in Mayo, as well as in Cork and Galway. ‘Silent Moves’ is the culmination of the Ignite Mayo project, which started last January.  
A stop-motion animation film project, ‘Silent Moves’ was created by Irish visual artist Aideen Barry in collaboration with dance artist and choreographer Emma O’Kane.
Melding together mime, music and movement with new green-screen technologies and the latest animation techniques, the film was shot on location around Ballina and features scenes taking place in the Ballina Manor Hotel, Heffernans’ Supermarket (Ardnaree) and the Tom Ruane Park, as well as on the streets and riverbank of the town. The film is also inspired by the classic silent movies of the 1930s, the era of Buster Keaton, Clara Bow and Charlie Chaplin.
“I’m very proud to be taking part in the film,” said Michael Durkan, who plays the part of Vincent the Villain in the film, while Emma O’Donnell said: “I love being involved. I’m very happy in front of the camera.” Una O’Malley, who plays ‘Mother’ in the film, also enjoyed the experience. “It’s a dream come true. I always wanted to be an actor,” she said.
“Without the use of words or sounds, silent movies make us splutter with laughter, break our hearts, win them over again, and take us through a world of chaos to a moment of pure charm, without once uttering a word,” Aideen Barry explained. “The world is silent for all of us, for we process each of our everyday experiences, our heartbreaks, our joys ultimately on our own, in our own silent world, in our minds.
“Our silent moving image works take as starting points what it is to be a person, what it feels to be in love, what it feels to be bashful, what it feels to be hurt … Through movement and gesture we have tried to encapsulate our experiences in front of the camera.”
A beautiful, high-quality, accessible publication has also been produced to accompany the film. A limited number of copies of the publication will be available on the night of the launch.

For further information see www.irelandignite.ie or contact Ballina Arts Centre on 096 73593 or ballinaartscentre@gmail.com.