QUESTION#1: What excited you the most when making this film?: Being able to tell a story that is so close to my musician heart and my Irish nationality; it's one I'm (often painfully) aware people outside of Northern Ireland don't know much about. The events in my own upbringing that partly inspired me to write the script still strongly shape the person and creative I am today. It was really exciting to help tell a key part of joint Irish and UK history in a way I hadn't seen done before in a short film - through music!

QUESTION#2: What was the most significant film you've seen AT THE THEATER in 2024, and how did it influence your filmmaking?: Confession time: I haven't watched a feature film in at the theatre in 2024! But I did watch a short film called 'Jasteece' ( 'Justice' in English) at a film festival that powerfully depicted the horrific injustices of the Greek legal system that aren't widely known about outside Greece itself. It influenced me to keep making films of my own that tell stories I believe not enough people are aware of and should know more about.

QUESTION#3: What's an obvious and not-so-obvious question someone might ask about your film?: An obvious question would be how I managed to create the soundtrack (because I suspect viewers would quickly assume the actors weren't actually singing/playing the instruments). The answer is: a long time with many steps and a stroke of luck when my former violin teacher (who was the body double for the fiddle player character) was able to teach the actor how to convincingly mime playing the violin in the 10minutes before the relevant scenes were shot! He single handedly saved the film!
A not-so-obvious question might be why the genres of jazz and Irish traditional music were central to the film's story. Be prepared for an Irish history lesson in response!

QUESTION#4: A magic movie genie is giving you an unlimited budget for your next production! However, you're only allowed to use it on either "above line" or "below line" resouces. Which do you choose and why?: Below line for sure. As a composer myself, I know that having a decent budget solely for a film's score opens up so many more sonic possibilities and elevates the music to new heights. Having unlimited potential for both that and every other technical aspect of a film would create a true spectacle onscreen that would struggle to be matched.

QUESTION#5: What is it about your current movie that will influence your next film?: Using music as a central focus of the film's narrative. As cliche as it sounds, music really is a universal language and can be effectively used to tell stories and depict concepts in more expansive and intricate ways than a script by itself is sometimes capable of.

Social media tags to share with our readers: Instagram accounts: @rebeccadohertymusic.film @cantilenapictures , Twitter: @RebeccaD_99

5Q's w/: Rebecca Doherty "Music to Die For" Director, Writer, Producer