Premiere of New Irish Drama 'Eliot & Me' on RTÉ This Christmas
This Christmas sees the premiere of a brand new Irish children's adventure drama, Eliot and Me. The hour long Irish TV drama tells the story of 10 year old Lucy who struggles to come to terms with her parents' separation. She rescues a dog, Eliot, from the local dog shelter. It is love at first sight and her life starts to improve. But tragedy strikes when Eliot goes missing and Lucy must undertake a dangerous journey to find him.
Eliot and Me is an optimistic story, about courage in the face of adversity. It's something the whole family can enjoy and also a must see for anyone who has ever loved and lost a dog. Made by Fubar Films with the participation of Bord Scannán na hÉireann / the Irish Film Board in association with RTÉ, Eliot and Me will feature as part of the upcoming RTÉ Two Christmas Schedule.
Fintan Connolly (FLICK) directs his daughter Ella Connolly (WAKE WOOD), IFTA Best Actress winner Renée Weldon (TROUBLE WITH SEX), David Wilmot (THE GUARD), Gerard Mannix Flynn, Vincent McCabe, Des FitzGerald and newcomers Joshua Brown and Lauren Stone.
Connolly developed and co-wrote the script for ‘Eliot and Me' with producer Fiona Bergin. "It was a bit of a family affair', says Connolly "we shot at weekends and school holidays, whenever Ella was free. We cast actors we'd worked with before, like Renée Weldon, David Wilmot and Mannix Flynn. It was a real labour of love. We filmed all over the city, but mainly in Kilmainham.
Describing working with his daughter Ella he said: "After playing a spooky kid in Hammer horror Wake Wood, she wanted to be in a film she could watch. Having worked on that film which was shot in winter and involved prosthetics and special effects, this was relatively straightforward, She dug deep to play this little girl and to give her a vulnerability and strength in keeping with the story. She was a joy to work with. She did everything in a couple of takes. And I'm not just saying that because I'm her dad. It was fun."
The director's talented behind-the-camera team includes cinematographer Owen McPolin (DOCTOR WHO), editor Guy Montgomery (PARKED) and composer Stephen Rennicks (GARAGE). Post production is in EGG.
Twelve year old Ella said about the experience: "There is an awful lot of waiting around making films. It's not nearly as glamorous as people think. One of the good things about ‘Eliot & Me' was working with my dog Eliot. He's completely untrained, he hasn't got a clue, he didn't do anything he was asked. I thought that was hilarious. But he is the best thing in the film.
Eliot and Me will be broadcast on RTÉ Two this Christmas at 9.15am on Thursday 29th December.