Poet's short movie for Schull film festival

A SEVEN-MINUTE video that captures some of the magic of living in West Cork will be featured in the line-up for the Corona Fastnet Short Film Festival.

Poet, Seamus Hogan, is front and centre in the video by Ambiguous Fiddle – a film company based in Clonakilty – but he is just one of three translators featured in the short.

In sunny shots outside Ina Daly’s Bar in Ballydehob, as well as bar-side chats, Seamus explains how the book Rilke – 30 New Translations came into being.

The film short Translating Rilke opens with Paul Ó Colmáin introducing this important work by Seamus Hogan, Sean O’Mahony and Ailin Becker.

The three collaborated over a three-year period on the project, which was brought out in book form by The Eblana Press, headed by Sinead Brophy.

Seamus’s love of the poetry of Rilke began when he lived in the iconic bookshop, Shakespeare & Co in Paris, which was run by the legendary George Whitman.

It was at a German class for beginners in Ballydehob that Seamus attempted to learn German so he could better appreciate the works of Rilke in the original.

He quickly realised that his German would never be adequate to the task so he hijacked the class containing Sean and Ailin.

Once a week for the next three years, the trio met in Seamus’s home and gave birth to the book, which was published last year.

The subject will be reprised at the Corona Fastnet Short Film Festival which takes place in the seaside town of Schull in May.

Meanwhile, Seamus, Sean and Ailin will be guests of Shakespeare & Co in Paris on Wednesday, March 16th next to share their new book at a special event celebrating translations.