JIMMY’S HALL, written by Paul Laverty, directed by Ken Loach and produced by Rebecca O’Brien, starts principal photography on August 8th. The film will shoot for seven weeks in Counties Leitrim and Sligo and will be released in 2014.
The cast features Barry Ward in the title role and Simone Kirby plays the female lead. The ensemble includes Jim Norton (Water for Elephants, Hidden Agenda), Brían O’Byrne (Mildred Pierce), Andrew Scott (Sherlock Holmes), Sorcha Fox, Aisling Franciosi, Karl Geary, Denise Gough, Aileen Henry, Seamus Hughes, Martin Lucey, Francis Magee, Conor McDermottroe, Mikel Murfi and Shane O’Brien.
In 1921 Jimmy Gralton's sin was to build a dance hall on a rural crossroads in Ireland where young people could come to learn, to argue, to dream... but above all to dance and have fun. Jimmy's Hall celebrates the spirit of these free thinkers. The film is set in 1932 and follows events when Jimmy returned from a decade in New York and re-opened the hall. The film is freely inspired by Jimmy’s life and turbulent times.
Barry Ward is best known for his theatre work (The Plough and the Stars; Translations, both performed at The Abbey Theatre, Dublin) and Simone Kirby is known for her Irish television appearances (Pure Mule, RTE) and her London and Off-Broadway theatre performances (Dancing at Lughnasa; Molly Sweeney).
