Love and Savagery Shooting to Begin

Today, in Ballyvaughan on Galway Bay in County Clare, Ireland, principal photography started on the feature Love and Savagery. The film, a co-production between Newfoundland and Quebec with location shooting in Ireland, was written by Des Walsh and is being directed by John N. Smith. The budget is $6.5 million.

The film stars Newfoundland native Allan Hawco and young Irish actress Sarah Greene as the young lovers and features Martha Burns, Sean Panting, Macdara O’Fatharta and Nicholas Campbell.

John N. Smith most recently directed the highly-acclaimed mini-series The Englishman’s Boy with director of photography Pierre Letarte. Writer Des Walsh, Smith and Letarte first collaborated on the international award-winning drama series The Boys of St. Vincent (1992).

Set In 1968, Love and Savagery is a lyrical story of an impossible love. Geologist and poet Michael McCarthy travels from his native Newfoundland to the west coast of Ireland to study the intricate and stunning landscape of The Burren. But the most beautiful thing Michael encounters is Cathleen O’Connell. Although she is about to dedicate her life to the Church, Cathleen is inescapably drawn to Michael. In a community torn between its traditional roots and its aspirations for the future, the growing affection between the stranger and Cathleen is deeply unsettling.

Ten years later they brought their talents to Random Passage. Co-produced by two of Love and Savagery’s producers - Barbara Doran (Newfoundland) and Tristan Orpen Lynch (Ireland), Random Passage played to record audiences on CBC Television and won two Gemini Awards.
Love and Savagery is produced by Barbara Doran (Young Triffie) of Morag Loves Company and Lynne Wilson, Newfoundland and Kevin Tierney (Bon Cop, Bad Cop) of Park Ex Pictures, Quebec with Tristan Orpen Lynch (Proof) of Subotica Entertainment, Ireland as Executive Producer, in association with Telefilm Canada, The Newfoundland and Labrador Film Development Corporation and the Irish Film Board.

The film shoots in Ireland until April 11 and then moves to St. John’s Newfoundland for four additional weeks of filming.