Crime flick by Dublin filmmaker returns to cinemas

Dublin filmmaker Robbie Walsh released his film SPLIT back in 2016, and the film has secured a week long re-release at Movies@Swords.

Running from Friday, June 30th with a daily showtime of 6.40pm, this is cinephiles’ chance to see a crime film with a distinctly Dublin twist.

We spoke to writer, director and star of the film Robbie Walsh about the film’s highbrow influences, the plaudits the film has received, and how exactly an actor directs themself.

Walsh’s CV has seen him appear in everything from Love/Hate, Fair City and Cardboard Gangsters, and his varied CV has informed him whenever he steps behind the camera

“In short, almost every film I’ve watched, I have learned from, whether it’s how not to do something or a part in a film be it a performance or a shot I find inspiring,” he said.

Walsh is well-versed in his auteurs, citing Scorsese, Fellini, Loach and Kazan among his influences and has noted Cool Hand Luke as his favourite film.

The inspiration for SPLIT comes from off the beaten track, with the seminal Belgian thriller Man Eats Dog highlighted by Walsh as a major influence on the film.

While Walsh pointed to more obvious frames of references such as Modern Family or The Office for his film, he said the homage to Man Bites Dog was also borne out of the limited resources afforded to indie filmmakers.

Walsh said “I didn’t have a lot of money to make SPLIT but I wanted to do something different with an Irish film and also address the rising nonchalant way younger gangs were behaving.

“When I first made SPLIT people said “they wouldn’t film themselves”  but now with easy access to high-end camera phones, all we see are people recording themselves committing serious crimes,” and that informed the film’s stylistic choice.

The likes of Orson Welles, Clint Eastwood, and more recently Bradley Cooper have directed themselves while also starring in their own films, and Walsh said the feat of directing himself in his own film is down to his hard-working crew.

“I was lucky to have a tight crew and very little time so when I made a decision I had to go with it.  It was exhilarating at times and other times hard because you always question what decisions you made at the end of each day.”

Filmmaker Robbie Walsh

In having total control of his performance, Walsh came away from the experience with more insight into how a film is made, saying “in the edit when you watch the footage back, you will always be surprised at what worked and what completely fell flat, but if you want to make films and get ahead in this industry, these are the challenges you have to overcome.”

Walsh noted that the film has received support both at home and abroad, playing in Odeon, Cineworld as well as screening at different international film festivals, but all this time later Walsh remarked that the film is getting a re-release more people are starting to “get” the film now.

Since dabbling in the world of on-screen crime, Walsh turned his attentions to a drama called The Letters which is set against the backdrop of the cervical check scandal.

By his own admission, the film is a “very heavy drama” but contains “stellar” performances, with the film appearing on the IFTA longlist along with Oscar-winning film Belfast and this year’s Oscar nominee An Cailín Ciúin.

The film received a screening at the Vatican, and received a nomination for Best Film at Mirabile Dictu, the International Catholic Film Festival.

In speaking to Walsh there is a genuine sense that he has studied the classics, but very much wants to advance Irish indie filmmaking to the levels of his idols.