What I’m Doing in Ireland in February

It’s funny how things turn out. Years ago I tried to get a film made that was set in Ireland, but it didn’t work out. Then I created a film set in Scotland that will be released. When I was done with that film, suddenly Ireland was calling me!

I received an email from a gentleman (Barry O’Donoghue is his name – no question at all as to where he’s from!) at IADT – The Institute of Art Design and Technology in Dublin – asking me if I would have a little time to spare to fly over and talk about story. Let’s see—a little time to spare for a trip to a place I’ve always wanted to visit and talk about one of my favorite subjects, and, better yet, they’ll pay for the flight? Well, that’s a no-brainer!

After some back and forth about dates, it comes down to this: I leave today and will spend two weeks talking to hundreds of students and professionals from both IADT, Barley Films and speaking on a couple of panels for IADT and two other universities. I’ll talk about story, storyboarding, scripts, directing, pitching, inspiration and instinct… and whatever else might come up.

Not only am I excited to see such a beautiful country, but I’m thrilled and honored that they have invited me to speak.

And on top of all that, Barry has offered to have me shown around on the couple days I’ll have off… if I like “wild coastlines and ancient history!” I think they’ve done their research well.

Now comes the hard part – living up to expectations! If you’ll be attending any of these events, please make a point of introducing yourself while you’re there. I can’t wait to get there!

If you’ll excuse me, I need to finish packing—always the hardest part of any trip, right?

Image by catsper via Creative Commons