Projects

Synopsis

When Belfast boys Mo Chara and his friends Scud Murphy and Cerebral Palsy come into a young greyhound as payment for a favour done for hooky bookie J.P. McCallion, it's a dream come true. Owning their own dog is surely going to end a run of bad luck that's lasted since they placed their very first bets. But Cerebus is a greyhound with a mind of his own and until they have worked out the not-so-complex doggy psychology behind what makes him run, they're mired in a losing streak that's a mile wide. Deep in debt to the ruthless McCallion, sworn enemies of gypsies they have ripped off, for the boys everything's at stake at the most important event in the dog-racing calendar - the Clonmel meet - if only they and c]Cerbeus can get there in one piece.   A comedy of underdogs coming good without the aid of wisdom, guile or any natural or unnatural advantage whatsoever, proving that if you're not smart enough to recognise when you're beaten, you might actually end up winning.

Synopsis

An intimate portrait of a psychiatric patient tormented by the relentless clanging of the hospital bell.

Synopsis

Man Dancin' is a ganster movie with a difference. After being detained at Her Majesty's pleasure, Jimmy Kerrigan returns to his family home in a tough Glaswegian estate.   It's only been a few years but the Glasgow that he knew has changed, and more importantly to those who knew him, so has Jimmy Kerrigan - dramatically. Sparks fly when the new hits the old and the events that follow will soon change Kerrigan, his friends and his world forever.

Synopsis

'Summer wouldn't be summer without matsuri. Unless you see it, you don't believe what it is like.' This documentary is a unique comparison of traditional Japanese and English fairs. It observes why both fairs have survived for generations and why they still attract people despite oppressive heat or pouring rain.

Synopsis

Two childhood friends, Darren and Gary, re-unite for the funeral of an old acquaintance. Gary boasts of the life he's made in London in the four years since he's moved on. Darren is still living in the same town they're from. It doesn't take long before the timid and easily led Darren, drawn in by his charasmatic friend, finds himself in trouble as the pair check out their old haunts, mates and ex-girlfriends.

Synopsis

A collaboration with poet and broadcaster Ian McMillan reflecting on his recent trip to Russia - a short visual poem. A combination of studio set photography, animation and motion graphics illuminate this thoughtful meditation on the notions of travel and identity.

Synopsis

In the summer of 1970, Belfast's lines of division were still being drawn. Two young boys from 'up the road' and 'over the bridge' escape the confines of a city overshadowed by hatred and fear by becoming their heroes, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Together they swear an oath to be blood brothers for life and flee an imploding city for the freedom of the Australian outback.

Synopsis

The countdown is on - in 7 days' time Britain converts to the Euro. It's the biggest opportunity the criminal world has ever had. Billions of sterling head for the incinerator. When a railway heist goes wrong and an enormous bag of money falls from the sky into the hands of Damian and Anthony, there's only one thing to do - spend it like there's no tomorrow.   But how can a 7 and 9 year-old hope to spend a quarter of a million quid a week? Anthony's black market operations bring hyper-inflation to the school playground and Damian wants to help the poor, but they're in short supply. Oh, and the train robbers want their money back.   Will they manage to spend the money before it's worthless. Will the school authorities discover what's going on? Or will the robbers get there first?

Synopsis

Eadweard Muybridge was born in Kingston-upon-Thames in 1830. He spent much of his working life in America as a pioneer of photography, only returning to his birthplace at the end of his life.   Mining for Muybridge is a film portrait inspired by the life and work of this most extraordinary man.

Synopsis

Like an alien spacecraft landed on a poisoned wasteland, the Millenium Dome makes a fitting tribute to the works of New Labour. Taking the dome as a potent architectural symbol of the new millennium, MM is a meditation upon time reflecting the changing landscape in London's East End.

Synopsis

Heathcote, a young English officer, arrives on the Island where Napoleon is being held prisoner. His mission is to keep a close watch on his military idol. Lowe, the new Governor of the island, has just arrived too and rules the island like a prison. Napoleon's valet and childhood friend, Cipriani, waits on this little world. The microcosm of the French court stands united in continuing to treat Napoleon with the utmost respect.   An escape plot is hatched by an American Pirate and the former Grande Armee general. They plan to carry the Emperor away from Saint Helena on board the mythical Flying Dutchman and it becomes increasingly clear to Heathcote that Napoleon has a plan. Heathcote remembers the day when he lost Napoleon who galloped off across Deadwood Plain. He now realises that this allowed Napoleon to calculate the time needed to reach the coast. Everything for the escape goes as planned but, at the last minute, Napoleon seems to change his mind. Napoleon's rescuers are killed in the course of a bloody battle.   We see Napoleon on his deathbed clearly finding some comfort in the priest at his side. In front of Napoleon's coffin, Heathcote gathers together the threads of the story and realises that Napoleon's only chance of leaving the island was to stop being the Emperor. Cipriani laid down his life so that Napoleon could live an ordinary life at last. Heathcote likes to think that this return to a simple and anonymous life is the finest proof of Napoleon's tactical genius.

Synopsis

A suspenseful and emotionally charged three minute thriller about a seven-year-old girl, who attempts to save her mother from a monster. But soon discovers the hard hitting truth of the adult world.