Frank Berry
Directing
Biography
Frank Berry is an Irish writer-director, known for his socially conscious dramas focused on marginalised characters. Berry started out his career teaching filmmaking at Colaiste Dhulaigh, where he had previously studied. Whilst working part time in the college, he began his professional career in filmmaking. In 2014, he released his debut feature film "I Used to Live Here," for which he received the Best Irish First Feature Award at the Galway Film Fleadh as well as an IFTA nomination for Best Film. Berry firmly established himself as one of Ireland’s most exciting writer-director prospects with the release of the acclaimed prison drama "Michael Inside" (2017). Described as 'powerful, moving and brilliantly acted' by the Sunday Independent, and as 'fierce, unsentimental and engrossing' by The Guardian, the film went on to win Best Film at the Irish Film and Drama Awards and garnered Berry his first IFTA nomination in the Best Director category.
Known For
Aisha lives at a centre for asylum-seekers in Ireland in a state of ongoing uncertainty. Having fled Nigeria after a violent gang murdered members of her family, she is desperately trying to find some degree of permanency, where she and her mother can be reunited and live without fear. As she navigates the complex legal system to seek settlement in Ireland, she sparks an unlikely friendship with Conor, a new guard at the centre. A former prisoner, Conor’s life experience and calming presence resonate with Aisha, allowing for a tentative romance to begin. But the bond between the pair comes under strain as the threat of deportation looms ever larger.
Aisha
Based on the true story of Catherine Coreless's discovery of the mass grave of approximately 800 infants and young children found on the site of the former Mother and Baby Home in Tuam, Co. Galway.
The Lost Children of Tuam
An 18-year-old man, living on a Dublin housing estate with his grandfather, is caught holding drugs for his friend's older brother and sentenced to 3 months in prison.
Michael Inside
Music teacher Ron Cooney has been working in the Republic of Ireland's only high-rise housing estate for fifteen years. During this time he has seen the area undergo a dramatic transformation, including the demolition of six of it's seven tower blocks. Ron's ambition is to create a 'world class' collection of music for his talented students to play and write lyrics for. This music will challenge the negative views many still hold of the area - views that have the potential to hold his students back, and undermine the aims of the Ballymun Music Programme.
Ballymun Lullaby
A short documentary charting the trials, tribulations and hopes of an opera cast and crew as they attempt to stage a lavish production of The Magic Flute.
Into the Light: The Making of an Opera
Short film by Frank Berry. Premise unknown.
The Black Suit
Amy Keane, a thirteen-year-old trying to cope with the death of her mother and the reappearance of her father's ex-girlfriend, experiences the temptation of suicide after witnessing the outpouring of love for a local suicide victim.
I Used to Live Here
Short film by Frank Berry. Premise unknown.
Fanatic
Short film by Frank Berry. Premise unknown.
Boat Racing
A classic romantic comedy that interweaves three stories revealing that, no matter how much time passes, sometimes two people are meant to be together forever.