Cork film-maker Pat has season of his work at Triskel

Thu, 16 May, 2024 - 15:34

PAT Collins, a filmmaker from West Cork, is widely known in the industry for his meticulous and thought-provoking documentaries and feature films, writes Cara O’Doherty. However, despite numerous accolades and critical acclaim, he is not a household name, perhaps due to the niche subjects he explores in his films.

Collins’ latest work, That They May Face The Rising Sun, is an award-winning adaptation of John McGahren’s book of that name. The film’s success is finally bringing Collins to the public eye.

For those yet to discover his works or who wish to revisit them on the big screen, the Triskel Cinema selected five of his finest films for its first Pat Collins season. It begins on May 19, and Collins will take part in a Q&A session following the screening of That They May Face The Rising Sun on Monday, May 27.

“It’s lovely to have a season of my films screening at Triskel Arts Centre,” he says. “I’ve been going in and out of that building as an audience member since the mid-1980s and the work that is shown and commissioned there is a vital part of the artistic life in Cork and I’m very glad to be a part of it. I’m very thankful to the film programmer Chris O’Neill and the entire team at Triskel.”

The opening film in the programme is Silence, a documentary about the sound recording journey of Eoghan Mac Giolla Bhride from Berlin to his homeland, Donegal. The film, released in 2012, won the Michael Dwyer Discovery Award at Dublin International Film Festival, which recognises new and emerging filmmakers.

Silence follows Mac Giolla Bhride as he captures the natural sounds of his homeland. It features the sounds of nature, the conversations of locals, and all the non-man-made sounds we hear in rural areas. It is a gentle film, highlighting the power of everyday.

The power of sound in nature is a recurring theme in Collins’ work. Throughout each film, the music of birdsong or the sound of a dog barking will subtly form part of the soundscape. At times, other sounds appear, like the beeping of a car. In 2020, Collins told The Echo that using sounds can be a liberating experience.

It’s the nature of when you’re making documentaries; you’re trying to find a quiet location to interview somebody. If there’s a car passing, everybody says hold on, wait for the car to pass. I decided to let the sounds of everyday remain, and it felt like such a liberating thing.

Song Of Granite, the second film in the series, champions the traditional art of Sean Nós. Handed down from generation to generation, the art of Sean Nós is fast fading, but Collins’ film reminds us of its beauty and importance by telling the story of Joe Heeney, a giant of the Sean Nós tradition. The Galway man’s journey to England, Scotland, and New York in search of work, carrying with him the traditions of Sean Nós, is a poignant reminder of the need to preserve our cultural heritage.

The film combines documentary and drama. It is shot in black and white and told in the Irish language. Artists, including Lisa O’Neill, Damien Dempsey, and Seamus Begley, lend their voices to this beautiful film.

Henry Glassie is a renowned folklorist, and Collins (inset left) brought his work to the fore in 2019 in Henry Glassie: Field Work. Glassie studies the artwork and creative process unique to different regions and cultures. He has written over 60 books and studied people from Ireland to India.

The documentary takes the audience on a journey with Collins, Glassie, and Glassie’s wife, Dr Pravina Shukla, as they embark on their fieldwork. From Brazil, where they spend hours observing the creation of sacred art, to Turkey, where women meticulously craft elaborate carpets, and North Carolina, where music becomes the art of observation, the film immerses the audience in the world of Glassie’s work. It is a reflective piece of filmmaking, one that draws the audience until it becomes almost hypnotic.

With 2021’s The Dance, Collins uses his observational skills to bring us closer to the action until we feel in the centre of something alive. The documentary follows acclaimed choreographer Michael Keegan-Dolan as he devises his latest show, MÁM.

Rooted in Irish history and tradition, MÁM combines contemporary sounds and dance with more traditional elements, creating something powerful and ethereal.

Collins takes us into the rehearsal where Keegan-Dolan has assembled the virtuoso concertina player Cormac Begley, 12 international dancers, and the musical collective Stargaze to West Kerry. We watch the choreographer’s unique process come together. Instead of choreographing in advance, Keegan-Dolan devises the show in collaboration with his dancers.

We witness creativity as ideas are put into motion before our eyes. It is spirited, frenetic, and deeply moving. Collins captures the tiniest movements, building up to a crescendo of movement as the dancers work in unison.

The final film is Collins’ most recent, That They May Face The Rising Sun. Although he has used elements of narrative drama in his documentaries, Rising Sun is his first official feature film.

It is based on the John McGahern best-selling novel and follows Joe (Barry Ward) and Kate Ruttledge (Anna Bederke), a writer and artist who have moved into Joe’s family home in rural Ireland following a stint in London.

The couple become the unofficial guardians of their rural community, looking out for old bachelors Patrick (Lalor Roddy), Johnny (Sean McGinley), and Bill (Brendan Conroy).

Collins captures the essence of life in rural Ireland in a profoundly beautiful film that understands the power of community and the people who live in our rural settings.