Corkman’s film inspired by iconic Sir Henry’s club

An accomplished young filmmaker from Cork is making waves with his latest project.

Michael Antonio Keane’s short film, Into The Silence, captures the essence of the 1990s rave scene, drawing inspiration from the legendary Sir Henry’s nightclub.

Keane, 21, has been consistently creating impressive work over the years, and this latest venture reflects his deep connection to Cork’s vibrant nightlife.

The film, which focuses on Bastien, a young DJ who turns to his love of music following a tragedy, was shot in Dublin, but Keane says Cork was very much his focus when he was creating the film’s look and feel.

“I took a great deal of inspiration from a nightclub that used to run in Cork called Sir Henry’s,” he said.

Situated in South Main Street, its heyday was in the 1990s and it closed in 2003, shortly before Keane was born.

“I remember looking at a lot of found footage that would have been recorded on camcorders through VHS, and taking note of the low ceilings, the packed, sweaty rooms, and in the rave scenes, we’ve really tried to replicate it as best possible within our own world,” he explained.

Keane says that he leaned into his own life to write the script.

“A lot of it comes from my own experiences with growth and grief and using creativity as a tool for fuelling you as an artist. I thought it was essential for us to make the rave its own living, breathing character in the film.

“Through making our own original music, we were able to really give that character its own sense of dimension.”

The Cobh filmmaker is heading into his final year of film studies at IADT’s National Film School. He says he has always been drawn to house music, but as it was before his time, he had to research its origins.

“I always had a desire to discover where house music originated from. I remember stumbling across documentary archives and footage on YouTube. I started doing research and learned that it came from Chicago and Detroit. It originated there and then made its way over to the UK, where it finally made its way across to Ireland.”

Keane also says he is interested in the community aspect of raves and how the scene brought young people together.

“I was very interested in the idea of huge groups of people gathering in warehouses, disused farms, and old factories, and how they were all joined together as one and united.

“I found that really interesting, particularly because it was during such a chaotic and difficult time for youth.”

The young film-maker’s previous work has seen him be nominated for best director at the RTÉ Ireland’s Young Filmmaker of the Year Awards, and he was selected to showcase at The All-American High School Film Festival, which saw Keane and three other young Irish filmmakers head to New York, where their films were played at the iconic AMC Theater in Times Square.

He is regarded for his eye for detail and for capturing a sense of time and place, much of which he credits to research.

Keane said of Into The Silence: “Everyone on this production did a lot of work rehearsing the dance moves and getting everything as close to the 1990s as we could get it.

“It’s quite difficult not having lived through the 1990s to make a film about it, but I felt that I could take as much inspiration as I could, and then build my own world within that, through my love of house music.”

Keane tackled the challenge of capturing the energy of a rave with a small cast, making it look like a packed house on a bustling club night.

Once again, he drew inspiration from Sir Henry’s, effectively setting the scene.

“In the early stages of it, I wanted to go for a warehouse setting, but then we opted for more of an underground vibe.

“As students and emerging filmmakers, we don’t have access to a crowd of 100 people. We had just under 30 for the rave scenes, so we had to pre-plan where and when to reposition the crowd throughout our shoot and when to swap their outfits.

“It allowed us to create something similar to what would have been seen at Sir Henry’s, the people up on the stage all gathered around the DJ, tightly packed together.”

Keane wasn’t the only Corkonian involved in the project. Ruth Hayes, from East Cork, plays the main character’s mum, and several of the crew members are also from Cork.

Keane says it makes it extra special to have people from home involved.

“We had quite a few people from Cork involved in the project, which is always lovely.

“Cork had one of the biggest house music scenes in Ireland during the late 1980s and early 1990s. It’s so rich in history, and it was only in the pre-production stages that I began to discover just how much history there was, and how many people moved to Cork to experience that.

“I would love to explore the world more and film in Cork. It has so much to offer with locations, characters, and crew, so I do hope that I can shoot at home and hopefully explore the world of house and rave.”

The film, which had its premiere at the iconic Windmill Lane Recording Studios in Dublin, is set to tour the festival circuit.

“We were fortunate to bring Into The Silence into a venue that has a rich history of music,” said Keane.

“The Rolling Stones and U2 have recorded there. It was a wonderful experience, and now we get to bring the film to festivals around the country.”