How did "Liam" happen?
Jimmy McGovern said he was writing a script for me that turned out to be "Liam". I read it and thought it was great. It reminded me of my childhood, even though mine was very middle class.
You've a reputation for working closely with writers.
Writing is gold dust and you can simply raid those riches. Writing is very dynamic, good dialogue can be very sexy.
The film catches the cruelty of religion as well as more positive aspects.
One could say of course that it was very humane. I originally talked to Brendan Gleason about playing the priest and he said, "Look, the priests I know do good as well." Also, if there is little opportunity or future then religion can be an opiate. It is a very complicated issue and I hope the film reflects an ambiguity about religion.
For all the important issues in "Liam" there are certainly some very humorous moments.
The problem was stopping Jimmy going for the jokes. He has a tremendous sense of humour and would shamelessly go for the jokes each and every time.
You work with a very good cast.
Ian Hart is a wonderful actor. Talented, dedicated, and serious about his work. Claire Hackett was just a stroke of luck. The kids are good too.
Any favourite moments?
I love the scene where Liam's mother and father are about to make love. I went back and re-shot it. Everybody said "why are you re-shooting it?", until they saw the rushes and then agreed they were wonderful.
You seem to veer between personal projects and studio fare.
You can't lose your independence of mind and to be fair, the Americans give me an easy ride. They take one look and think give him whatever he wants - but not too much money - because he's never going to do what he's told. I also recognize that you have good days and bad days and I had a lot of good days on "Liam".
