Newbridge native talks about filming Dating Amber which is getting rave reviews

A new Irish film set in Kildare and directed by a Newbridge native is getting rave reviews after becoming available on Amazon Prime in recent days.

Dating Amber is the story of Eddie and Amber, both secondary school students who are gay. They decide to fake a relationship to withstand the taunts of schoolmates.

Directed by David Freyne, who grew up in Newbridge, the film stars Fionn O'Shea as Eddie and Lola Petticrew as Amber.
The cast includes well known actors such as comic Sharon Horgan, Barry Ward and Ian O'Reilly.
Another local interest is promising actor Evan O'Conner, who plays the scene-stealing younger brother of Eddie.
Evan is currently a student in Newbridge College but has been hailed as a "great talent" by Freyne.
The movie features many scenes of Kildare such as the sweeping Curragh Plains.

Freyne described the film as a "love letter to Kildare, growing up and coming of age".

Freyne, who grew up in The Village off the Green Road in Newbridge, said: "We were incredibly lucky to get access to both the Curragh plains and the barracks.
"The film is set there so the thought of having to recreate it somewhere else would have been terrible.
"And I truly think the Curragh is a hidden jewel in Ireland's crown. The vastness of it was made for cinema."

Dating Amber several nostalgic cultural references such as Féile t-shirts and Oasis and Pulp songs in the soundtrack,
The film also has political and social undercurrents relating to the legalising homosexuality in 1993 and the 1995 divorce referendum and its potential impact for Eddie’s warring parents.
Freyne hopes that the movie will hit cinema screens and it's likely people that view it on Amazon Prime TVs or laptops may want the big screen experience.
Speaking about a cinema date, he said: "Well with Covid19, it's hard to tell but hopefully in October. But to have the opportunity to make the film a Prime Original for people to enjoy now is just incredible. And the response has been so amazing so I can't imagine a better release."
Dating Amber is director David Freyne’s latest offering since 2018’s The Cured.

Freyne, who is based in London, said he has been using the limitations of the Covid-19 lockdown to work his way new scripts.
He explained: "Like most people I'm eating way too much and watching far too much news.
"But I'm lucky to live near a forest for long dog walks. And I'm writing some new scripts. I count myself very lucky."

Reviews 

The reviews have been warm and generous so far with Film Ireland saying that Freyne "has crafted a special film to be immensely proud of".

The Irish independent said Dating Amber is one of the most touching and hilarious Irish films I've seen which RTE said that as a document of an already-bygone age Dating Amber will stand the test of time. The Irish Times said the young leading actors displayed perfectly aligned performances.

Fionn O’Shea, who recently starred as Marianne’s boyfriend Jamie in BBC Three’s teen drama Normal People, takes on the role of Eddie. Fionn is also known for roles in Handsome Devil, Innocent and Roy.

The cast, made up of young and experienced actors, works seamlessly and is the secret ingredient in the movie.

Fionn O’Shea, who recently starred as Marianne’s boyfriend Jamie in teen drama Normal People and is also known for roles in Handsome Devil, Innocent and Roy.
Lola Petticrew (Amber) is best known for roles in A Bump Along the Way and My Left Nut.
Barry Ward has recently been seen as Mike Collins in White Lines - the husband of Laura Haddock’s character, Zoe.
You may also know him from roles in Save Me, Britannia, The Capture and The Fall.
Sharon Horgan is very well known former role in Catastrophe alongside Rob Delaney, This Way Up with Aisling Bea and Military Wives alongside Kristin Scott Thomas.
Simone Kirby who plays Jill has been seen in Peaky Blinders, Resistance and Rebellion.

Dating Amber is Freyne's first feature film since The Cued in 2017.
That film starred Rory Dungan, Rachel O'Kane, Ellen Page and Tom Vaughan-Lawlor.
The film was screened in the Special Presentations section at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival.

Freyne told RTE that he really wanted to make a 'coming of age' film personal to him but it was difficult to secure funding for Dating Amber.

He explained "I really wanted to make that kind of film that I wished I had growing up, something that has a hopeful message, a hopeful ending. It's ultimately about these two kids who end up becoming best friends and shaping who they are to become."

"So we tried to make it a couple of years ago and kind of failed and then after a first feature it was easier, you get a lot of "nos particularly when dealing with gay characters and a lot of the nos you get is that its either too funny for a gay film - which you are actually told by financiers - or that we already have a gay film, which I think is a quota which is incredibly enraging." He said.

Discussing what he was up against Freyne explained: "I think people are used to a gay film that has to be Oscar-baity with an A-list star playing gay and that's the worthy films that get made, if you want to make something that is a really mainstream, funny gay film. It's very, very tricky because there are just not many of them."

The success of Dating Amber will surely open more doors for Freyne in the future.