Northern Ireland Film Ordinary Love To Have Its World Premiere At Toronto International Film Festival
Date Posted: July 23, 2019
It has been announced today that Lisa Barros D’Sa and Glenn Leyburn’s Ordinary Love will have its world premiere at the prestigious Toronto International Film Festival. Filmed entirely on location in Northern Ireland with funding from Northern Ireland Screen, Ordinary Love will be presented at a gala screening on Sunday 8th September. Academy Award nominees Lesley Manville (Phantom Thread) and Liam Neeson (Schindler’s List) star as an everyday couple with an extraordinary love, who must find the humour and grace to face a year of adversity.
Ordinary Love is the third feature from the directing duo following the critically acclaimed Good Vibrations (2012) and Cherrybomb (2009).
Joan (Manville) and Tom (Neeson) have been married for many years. There is an ease to their relationship which only comes from spending a lifetime together and a depth of love which expresses itself through tenderness and humour in equal part. When Joan is unexpectedly diagnosed with breast cancer, the course of her treatment shines a light on their relationship as they are faced with the challenges that lie ahead and the prospect of what might happen if something were to happen to Joan. Ordinary Love is a story about love, survival and the epic questions life throws at each and every one of us.
Directors Lisa Barros D’Sa and Glenn Leyburn said: “We are thrilled and honoured to be premiering Ordinary Love with a Gala Screening at TIFF. Our film is a celebration of love, its beauty and pain, its small moments and great challenges. We look forward so much to sharing it with an audience for the first time at this wonderful festival.”
Ordinary Love was written by award-winning Irish playwright, Owen McCafferty. It is a Canderblinks Films and Out of Orbit production, produced by the BAFTA award-winner and BFI Vision Awardee, Brian J. Falconer for Out of Orbit, David Holmes for Canderblinks Films and Piers Tempest for Tempo Productions.
Producer Brian J. Falconer said; “Today’s news is incredible! For Ordinary Love to have a Gala World Premier at TIFF 2019 is really as good as it gets.”
Richard Williams, Chief Executive of Northern Ireland Screen, said; “We are thrilled to hear that Ordinary Love will premiere at one of the most important film festivals in the world, and we offer our huge congratulations to Lisa, Glenn, Owen, Brian, David and everyone involved. Being selected for a gala screening at Toronto is real testament to the world-class talent working in the industry here in Northern Ireland. Ordinary Love tells a beautiful story of love and survival that we can all relate to, the audience at Toronto is in for a real treat.”
Ordinary Love has been financed by the BFI, awarding National Lottery funding and Northern Ireland Screen in association with Head Gear Films, Metrol Technology and Kreo Films. Bankside Films is handling international sales.
Executive producers are Natascha Wharton for the BFI, Stephen Kelliher for Bankside Films, Jo Bamford for Tempo Productions, Phil Hunt and Compton Ross for Head Gear Films/Metrol Technology and Mark Huffam.
Toronto International Film Festival runs from 5-15 September.
