Acting Related - The MySite.Actor Podcast

Despite starting this podcast at the start of the pandemic during the first lockdown, I’ve kind of stayed away from too much Covid-19 discussion for two reasons, firstly I figured there would be plenty of podcasts revolving around that particular subject, and secondly I wanted to try and focus on more positive topics wherever possible.

But in this episode we do chat a bit about Covid and lockdown—for very good reasons that still kept things positive.

Film and documentary maker Ciara Hyland aired TWO powerful documentaries on television in the last couple of months, despite everything going on. Both were affected by Covid, but in very different ways.

74 Days: The Hunger Strike Of Terence MacSwiney was actually shot during the first Covid lockdown, and even though Cogadh Ar Mhná - A War on Women? was completed before lockdown, it still ended up impacted by Covid in quite an unexpected way.

​Cogadh Ar Mhná - A War on Women? is a new Irish language documentary that blows up the myth that sexual violence against women didn’t happen during the War of Independence and the Civil War and tells for the first time in their own words some of the stories of women who were victims of it.

74 Days: The Hunger Strike Of Terence MacSwiney uses contemporary science insights alongside the original medical notes recorded during MacSwiney’s hunger strike to recreate the story of the last 74 days of his life.

We chat about both these projects, as well as:

• How Ciara works dramatic reconstructions into a documentary most effectively
• Ciara’s desire to work more with actors, and her future plans to do so
• Making art outside what are perceived as the main industry centers
• The importance of a trusting and intimate set in making great art

Be sure and check out Ciara’s website at www.ciarahyland.com, and if you would like to connect with her directly you can find or on Twitter at @CiHyland.

Do let me know what you thought of the episode by connecting with me on Twitter (frankiep).

Also, I would love it if you thought of just one person that you think might enjoy this episode and pass it on to them.

And finally, if you’re looking for a quick, easy and affordable actor’s website check out www.mysite.actor.

So this episode I don’t have a guest, it’s just me, and I’m going to share with you 6 simple tips for using Twitter effectively as an actor.

This year, I am making some changes to how I interact with my smartphone.

I want to make at least a small dent in the time I spend on it, and I want to use it more consciously.

I’ve turned off notifications for everything except calls, texts, and one or two messaging apps.

I want to choose when I log into social media, rather than being pulled in by the endless pinging sounds on my phone.

And I want to reduce the time I spend mindlessly scrolling social media.

So I thought I would share the tips I’ve picked up over the years to use Twitter more effectively, and more purposefully, as an actor.

In my OTHER job I’m a digital marketer, so as well as my own personal experience of making Twitter a better environment for myself as an actor, these tips are also infused with some basic marketing know-how.

Oh, hey, I almost forgot to wish you a Happy New Year.

It’s not been the most optimistic of beginnings, in fact it feels a bit like the starter pistol sounded and we faceplanted.

Which reminds me, the other reason there’s no guest this episode is that I just did not feel ready to engage with the outside world in time to organise a guest.

Anyone else in that kind of mood?

Despite that, I remain optimistic that we can make 2021 a good year.

Tweet me and let me know how you’re doing.

Sometimes as an actor it can feel as though our fate lies in the hands of others, with a lot of us still buying into this notion that we have to wait for the phone to ring in order to work. One way to take back control of your career is to make your own work.

Actor, writer, and voiceover artist Jody O’Neill has done an amazing job of making her own work right from the very beginning of her acting career. And in February 2020 Jody had a play co-produced by The Abbey which she wrote and performed in.

There’s no doubt that making your own work can be an incredibly rewarding process, but it is also a huge amount of...well, work. It often requires that you take on a multitude of roles such as writer, producer and marketing person as well as actor.

“When I think about making my own work, on all of them I have this memory of getting to a point where I don’t have time to walk anymore, so I just run everywhere because that’s how you can maximise your time”

If you decide to make your own work you will probably want to avoid maxing out your mother’s credit card or having your apartment burgled like Jody did, but there are also loads of positive insights here to be gleaned from Jody’s experiences.

Earlier this year Jody wrote and performed in ‘What I (Don’t) Know About Autism’ which was co-produced with the Abbey Theatre in association with The Everyman and Mermaid County Wicklow Arts Centre and you can learn more about the play on www.aboutautism.ie.

Jody has also written a web series, called ‘Cocooned’ which is being produced by Graffiti Theatre Company and performed by Amaya Gillespie, you can check out episode 1 on their YouTube channel.

Please remember to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you normally listen, and if you enjoyed this episode please share it.

And if you’d like to connect with me I’m on Twitter as Frankiep.

Thanks for listening!

Almost exactly a year ago I headed to the stunningly gorgeous Riverstown House to shoot some reconstruction scenes for a docuseries about Ireland’s Greatest Loves.

I depicted Yeats, opposite Ciara Fitzgerald as Maud Gonne.

It was freezing, with snow and rain forcing us to grab the outdoor shots during brief gaps in the weather—not that you’d know it from the footage as those gaps then tended to be absolutely beautiful.

Freezing, but beautiful.

We were able to work relatively quickly indoors, with the decor at Riverstown House providing the perfect backdrop as we moved from room to room to represent different locations.

It was a great, supportive crew, with Patrick O’Shea (or Paddy as I will refer to him from now on) directing and Rupert McCarthy Morogh as DOP.

I knew I was in good hands, having worked with Paddy and Rupert previously,

That series, Scéalta Grá na hÉireann, has been airing on TG4 over the last few weeks and the final episode airs on Wednesday the 17th of February 2021.

Given that today is Valentine’s Day I thought Paddy would make the perfect guest this month to chat about the series.

Paddy is an award winning director with two features under his belt, a drama and a documentary. He has also directed multiple short films, also in both drama and documentary form. We had a great chat about Scéalta Grá na hÉireann, and Paddy very generously shared some invaluable tips he has picked up while being involved in the marketing and PR of his work.

We chatted about some of the things you have to be aware of to increase your chances of getting into the media.

And the importance of raising awareness and contextualising your work for your audience—regardless of how uncomfortable it might feel blowing your own trumpet (that’s a real saying right? It’s not just something my dad says...?).

I also asked Paddy about his choice to stay in Cork and make work from here, and he made some excellent points about how that choice enables him to make work he might not be able to otherwise.

You can check out Paddy’s IMDb here, connect with him on Twitter or Instagram, and view some of his work on his website Southernman Films.

Scéalta Grá na hÉireann was produced by Bo Media, and you can see it on the TG4 Player (at the time of posting at least).

As always, let me know what you think of the episode on Twitter (@frankiep) and if you want a quick, easy and affordable actor’s website check out www.mysite.actor.

Continuing the chat with director Shaun O’ Connor, in part one we chatted about making his first feature on a budget of about €300 and how taking an acting class changed his approach to directing, and now we move on to:

• His latest award winning short A White Horse
• How he finds actors for his projects
• The importance of not filtering your enthusiasm when networking