In the Irish provinces, is communication between people really still so strained?
Very strained. If you study the anthropology of small Irish communities, from the 1970s onwards, what strikes you is the inability to talk about experiences, to help each other through verbal exchange and to openly accept outsiders. Essentially, their attitude is a defensive one, related also to the history of the Irish people. On the contrary, in the cities, people obviously communicate much more freely, just as they do in other European urban centres. So nobody is really to blame for what happens to Josie. No, that’s right. There are no heroes and no guilty parties. It’s the situation itself which, in a sense, determines the outcome and perhaps that’s what I wanted to explore. The film is doing well in Ireland, probably because it gives an accurate depiction of the national “mentality”, even if the film’s stance is a critical one. And perhaps it can go some way towards helping people change. How did you choose the lead actor? Pat Shortt is a very popular comic actor in Ireland, espec
