‘EADAR-CHLUICH’ : ‘INTERLUDE’ – SIX SHORT GAELIC FILMS LAUNCHED FOR BBC ALBA
Renowned Scots actor Iain Glen leads a stellar cast playing characters in six short Gaelic films titled ‘Eadar-Chluich’ (‘Interlude’) which was launched at a special screening in Glasgow.
Iain Glen, who recently portrayed Otto Frank in the BBC’s adaptation of ‘The Diary of Anne Frank’, is just one of several top Scottish thespians who play non-speaking roles across the mini dramas, which are all based on Gaelic songs. The short films will be broadcast on BBC ALBA.
Produced by independent Glasgow based company Sorbier Productions and funded by MG ALBA, the Gaelic Media Service, the project has been a year in the making and brings stars such as Martin Compston (‘Sweet Sixteen’, ‘True North’), Kate Dickie (‘Red Road’), and Greg McHugh (‘Tank Commander’, ‘Gary’s War’) to the Gaelic channel.
Martin Compston
The six songs were chosen from the vast canon of Gaelic recordings available, and include a bittersweet tale of love between a young man and an older woman, a comedy about a sales transaction gone disastrously wrong, a sinister child abuse storyline where the ghost of a dead mother makes her presence felt and a bold take on a soaring piece of piping composed in 1651, in tribute to King Charles II. The ‘King’ in the new Gaelic film is played by a sharp-suited Gilly Gilchrist, former ‘River City’ baddie Archie Buchanan.
The recordings include traditional performances from iconic Gaelic singers such as Joan Mackenzie and Mary Smith as well as a haunting version of an aria from Donizetti’s ‘L’Elisir d’Amore’, sung by the late Finlay MacNeill.
The dramas are, however, all set in the present day. Since they were scripted entirely without dialogue, the producers were able to cast from the wider pool of acting talent, with no knowledge of the language necessary.
Producer Patsi Mackenzie, who proposed the idea to the funding body MG ALBA, said: “The stories are there already in these remarkable, timeless songs. No new words had to be written, so the casting was a hugely exciting process.
“We were thrilled when actors such as Iain, Martin and Kate showed such enormous enthusiasm for the idea, and the entire cast have delivered stunning performances. The intelligence they brought to the project proves how Gaelic drama can be taken very seriously indeed, if treated in the right way.”
Patsi Mackenzie presented each song to an individual director who was then given free rein to interpret their own “story” from it. The directors were handpicked and have stamped each film with a unique style.
The films have also brought key craft talent to Gaelic, culminating in the Iain Glen short which was directed by top Irish film-maker Aisling Walsh (‘Song for A Raggy Boy’ and the recently released contemporary horror film ‘The Daisy Chain’ starring Samantha Morton).
Aisling Walsh and Iain Glen
Iain Glen plays a homeless alcoholic in Walsh’s ‘song drama’, filmed in the Partick area of Glasgow in January of this year. So convincing was the actor in the role, that members of the public gave him money as he ‘begged’ on the streets.
“Eadar-Chluich” (“Interlude”) will be broadcast weekly on BBC ALBA starting on Wednesday 13 May at 9.55pm.
Eadar-Chluich’ (‘Interlude’) - The Films:
‘Bha Mi Raoir san Taigh–Òsta’ (‘I Spent Last Night in the Tavern’)
Sung by: Mary Smith
Starring: Martin Compston and Therèse Bradley
Director: Eleanor Yule
Broadcast on BBC ALBA on Wednesday 13 May at 9.55pm.
‘A Nighean Nan Geug’ (‘Girl of the Branches’)
Sung by: Joan Mackenzie
Starring: Kate Dickie & Alison Peebles
Director: John MacLaverty
Broadcast on BBC ALBA on Wednesday 20 May at 10.55pm.
‘Fhuair Mi Pòg O Làimh A Rìgh’ (‘I Kissed the Hand of the King’)
Sung by: Margaret Stewart
Piping: Allan MacDonald
Starring: Gilly Gilchrist & Jenny Hulse
Director: Shiona McCubbin
Broadcast on BBC ALBA on Wednesday 27 May at 9.55pm
‘Far An Robh Mi’n Raoir’ (‘About Last Night’)
Sung by: Iain R Douglas
Starring: Siri Rodnes & Ross Kilgour
Director: John MacLaverty
Broadcast on BBC ALBA on Wednesday 3 June at 9.55pm
‘Dh’Èirich Na Deòir’ (‘The Tears Welled’)
Sung by: Finlay MacNeill
Starring: Iain Glen & Lesley Christie
Director: Aisling Walsh
Broadcast on BBC ALBA on Wednesday 10 June at 9.55pm
‘Bàs An Eich’ (‘The Death of the Horse’)
Sung by: John “Hoddan” MacDonald
Starring: Greg McHugh
Director: Marcus Harben
Broadcast on BBC ALBA on Wednesday 17 June at 9.55pm