FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

IFTA AWARDS 2026

Solitary

In rural Ireland, Brendan, a widowed farmer, lives a quiet life on the edge of a village. When his home is broken into, a growing sense of fear and isolation takes hold. As violence touches the community, and trust in the system fades, Brendan must confront what it means to feel safe, to grow old, and to be truly alone.

Director: Eamonn Murphy
Writer: Eamonn Murphy
Producers: Alan Breslin, Eamonn Murphy

Filmmaker Q&A

Q: What was the genesis of this film, and how did it evolve over the course of development to production and completion?

Eamonn Murphy (Writer/Director): “I knew I wanted to make a film about rural crime way back in 2012 when I was still in college. At the time I couldn't crack the script so I made the decision to leave it in my drawer and revisit every year to see if I could make it work. It wasn't until 2022 when I was in Berlin that I was trying to write something else that I went back to Solitary and I finally found the missing piece I needed to make Solitary work. I think I kept trying to write something that was very Hollywood. Very systematic, almost what's expected of a narrative about an elderly man targeted by a group of criminals. It wasn't until I went back and reworked Brendan's character that everything came together. Brendan by his very nature is the complete anti-thesis of what screenwriting theory teaches us. He's not active, he's not progressing the plot. Instead he's the exact opposite, passive and reserved. Once I figured this out, the next draft of the script came together in about two weeks. The script changed very little after that."

Q: What did you feel was the most fulfilling element of working on this film? 

Eamonn: “I think the most fultilling element to working on the film was watching the actors bringing the characters to life. I've lived with these characters for such a long time that it's really gratifying seeing actors embody the script and place their own interpretation on them. We had a very short rehearsal period, only 3 days for a 22 day shoot. Added to this that we're a totally independent production with only enough time to get one shot per scene. Two if we're lucky. So we really had to focus on those pivotal scenes to make sure we could deliver them on the day."

Q: To what extent was your on-screen talent vital to the success of the film?      

Eamonn: “On-screen talent was absolutely crucial for this film. I knew that I couldn't make this film if I wasn't able to find an actor to play Brendan. We had a very long casting period, almost 14 months. I was looking for something very specific. I was looking for an actor who was able to portray his emotions truthfully but also as a character is always trying to hide his emotions. It proved very hard to find someone who could play that truthfully. But it wasn't until Gerry Herbert walked in to audition that I knew I had found Brendan. He was able to play that internal conflict that I find so captivating. A character who wants to cry for help but is too ashamed to do so. Once we found Gerry then we slowly started to build the cast around him that we felt would best play off his performance."
 

Q: What does it mean to have your work acknowledged by your peers in the Irish film community and showcased at the IFTA Awards?

Eamonn: “We started our festival run at the Galway Film Fleadh winning the Best Irish Independent Feature. We're just back from CamerImage screening in the Director's Debut Competition and Cinematographer's Debut Competition and next month we're in the Ingmar Bergman Debut Competition at the Gothenburg Film Festival. So we've been slowly gaining momentum around Europe with this film picking up accolades and getting some amazing responses but to now bring this film back to Ireland to show our peers in the industry, is a full circle moment."