Joe Lawlor is a writer, director, and producer who runs the production company Desperate Optimists with his partner Christine Molloy. Their unique directorial style is characterised by long single-takes, slow-moving, atmospheric camera-work, and subtle, authentic performances. Desperate Optimists have produced a number of films focusing on community, casting real-life members of the community instead of professional actors. Together, Joe and Christine have produced a number of award-winning films, including Who Killed Brown Owl, Joy, and the feature-length Helen, and their films have been screened at a large number of festivals all over the world.

This talk followed a screening of Civic Life, a collection of 7 short films made by Desperate Optimists that focused on the relationship between community groups, local people, and the environments in which they live and work. In this video Joe discusses his background, filmmaking techniques, and his reasons for featuring local people rather than professional actors in his community-based films.

Related Links:
Desperate Optimists
Civic Life - Guardian Review
Helen - The Independant Review

 

Posted on Fri 6 May 2011.

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