A chance meeting with an addict... my brother
This bizarre event led to a dark comedy on Dublin’s mean streets
‘A rollercoaster ride through the city’
WRITER and actor Emmet Kirwan once stumbled on his drug-addicted brother on the streets of London.
That incredible coincidence, on a day trip for an audition, sparked the idea for his new movie, Dublin Oldschool, released this week.
The film tells the story of up-and-coming DJ, Jason, played by Emmet, who bumps into his brother over a drug-fuelled weekend.
‘The heart of the story is about two brothers, one is a homeless heroin addict who has been away from Dublin for about three years and has been estranged from his younger brother who is a wannabe DJ,’ says Emmet.
‘It’s set over the course of a bank holiday weekend.’
He says: ‘There are two trajectories, one on the road to recovery and the other on the road to destruction.’
It is based on an acclaimed play, of the same title that Emmet wrote which travelled to London’s National Theatre, and he co-wrote the movie with director Dave Tynan.
‘The play was a complete work of fiction, but there was a singular incident where I did find my brother on the streets of London,’ says Emmet. ‘He was addicted but he is fine now. It’s not autobiographical at all, it’s just kind of that singular incident where I found someone and wondered what would happen if you kept on meeting a person over the course of the weekend. I would call it a comedy with heart. It’s a dark comedy in the way a lot of Irish comedy is. Me and my brother’s sense of humour would be dark.’ His brother has fully recovered and is a family man back in Dublin.
By sheer coincidence, their meeting took place on the day of the 9/11 attacks.
Emmet flew to London for an audition, met his brother in Piccadilly by chance and they spent hours chatting. Adam And Paul actor Mark O’Halloran is also in the film with Sarah Greene, Seana Kerslake and Red Rock’s Stephen Jones and Leah Minto.
‘It depicts the city as is, because a lot of the time Dublin is like a village,’ says Emmet. ‘The play was a kind of rollercoaster ride through the city and what would happen. There are fantastical elements in the film as well. It’s Dublin with a bit of magic and realism.
‘The city is a third character. It’s all shot on location in the city. ‘Every place is real. ‘We shot in Grogan’s, all around the Liberties, Temple Bar, Essex Street, and we crossed Grattan Bridge.’