The lively rom-com Inlaws and Outlawsin which the late Cork City actor Michael Twomey appears in a starring role, is a locally produced 90-minute movie filmed for the most part in the region.
Up to 300 people are expected to attend the premiere in Dunmanway, for which only a handful of tickets remains, and which will also feature live music.
Pascal Scott, who plays the eccentric farmer in The Young Offenders, has a cameo role in the movie, which follows the twin stories of a young woman from West Cork who wishes to marry a poor man despite her wealthy father’s disapproval, and a ruthless criminal gang on the trail of a substantial amount of missing money.
“Both stories collide, and the tale is both funny and exciting,” says Bantry-based film-maker Brendan Hayes, who wrote, directed, and produced the film.
Inlaws and Outlaws features an exciting car chase through Dunmanway which took three days to shoot.
Interest in the film is high — more than half of the 30-strong cast is from the town, Hayes’ birthplace.
“This is my third film project, along with several documentaries, but this is the one I have most enjoyed making to date — it’s been great fun from start to finish and the cast and crew were more like a family than anything else,” he said.
The movie, which he refers to both as a “no-budget film,” and a film that was made on a “budget of faith”, was partially funded by Hayes.
However, he said the project could never have been completed without the huge support of residents, churches, and businesses in West Cork, primarily in the town of Dunmanway, who donated everything from wedding ensembles and the use of a Rolls Royce to flower arrangements and venues of all kinds.
“I am hugely grateful for all the support I got throughout the making of this film,” said Hayes. “The people of Dunmanway and West Cork have my undying gratitude.”
Although work started on Inlaws and Outlaws in 2016, it is only being released now, primarily due to a lack of funding. Hayes is currently working on a political comedy-drama.