Donnybrook Production Services

I’m excited to say that the prep work for “Sufferance”, Eventide Production’s follow-up to the 2007 horror short “Of Darkness”, has been going extremely well thus far.  I’ve met up with Director Gary Irwin & Producer Jason Contino on several occasions, and things are moving along nicely.  It will be nice to take a trip down horror lane again, as the genre was very friendly and receptive to ‘OD’.  The short witnessed an impressive amount of success at horror fest’s nationwide, and ended up with a distribution deal through FEARnet…not bad for a modestly budgeted short film.

“Sufferance” falls into the ever popular ‘infection film’ genre, but with a very unique take…it’s a solid script, and I’m eager for the journey of bringing it to the big screen to continue to ramp up in the months to come.  Amazon.com has their own distinctive list of films that fall in to this genre, so check it out if you’re a fan.  It will be fun to see “Sufferance” on this and other lists someday…fans of this genre are rabid (no pun intended), so appealing to these masses will be a worthy & rewarding challenge!

For those of you that like angry Irish music (or friendly Irish music), feel free to pay a visit to the official Donnybrook Productions station on Pandora.  If you do a quick search for “Donny Brook”, you should find it with relative ease.  The initial framework for this station is based solely on my own selfish acoustic preferences and/or rudimentary research…any omissions are inadvertent and can be blamed on my haste to get the station up & running.  Anyone looking to offer thoughts on possible additions/subtractions can do so by dropping me a line at opinions@donnybrookproductions.com, the catchall for feedback.

As it stands now, a visit to the station will offer up the Gaelic harmonies of such acts as “Thin Lizzy”, “The Thrills”, “My Bloody Valentine”, “Virgin Prunes”, & “The Dubliners”…just to name a few.  And if these mainstream bands don’t tickle your fancy, you’ll also be able to tune in to a lesser known group that hail from the Emerald Isle as well…they go by U2, & you may have heard of them (perhaps on college radio or the likes)!

At any rate enjoy…& if you do manage to drop by be sure and let me know what you think.  I’d love for the station to have a sampling of melodic DNA from folks besides myself.

An interesting little tidbit, which some of you may know, but the Philadelphia Phillies are quite the sustaining club.  Established in 1883, the Fightin’s are the oldest, continuous one-name/one-city franchise in all of professional sports…now that’s quite an impressive claim.  And like their MLB namesake, the CoBL has a similar work ethic, and strives to adhere to a matched sense of continuity.

A recent example of this is a small victory for the City’s filmmaker community, which benefited by the renewal of the ever-so-helpful Film Tax Credit for at least one more year.  This was in large part due to the constant lobbying efforts of the Pennsylvania Film Industry Association (PaFIA).  The Association has worked tirelessly over the past 18+ months to be a unified voice for the Film & Video Production Industry in PA.  And while the victory was no doubt an impressive milestone, PaFIA’s efforts are a constant uphill struggle as they work to impact policy making in Harrisburg on the film community’s behalf.  To help in the effort, you can think about an annual membership…by doing so, you will become a part of the collective effort.  The Association has set the goal of reaching 1500 members this year, and currently sit at roughly the 65% mark, so help push them over the edge and join the effort today!

So, it would seem that the Fightin Phil’s aren’t the only thing in the CoBL gaining nationwide momentum & buzz these days.  Add to the list of noteworthy Philly-based fodder two indie features set to hit theaters across the continental US this month!

First up is Writer/Director Ben Hickernell’s “Lebanon, PA”, which premieres at the Ritz @ the Bourse this Friday.  Produced by Ben & Jason Contino, ‘Lebanon’ is a true indie, and a terrific character study.  Starring Josh Hopkins, Samantha Mathis, & newcomer Rachel Kitson, the film will benefit from a well crafted platform release that will look to build on audience buzz.  For a full overview of the current release schedule, check out the film’s official site.

Also set to hit theaters on May 20 is Writer/Director Sean Kirkpatrick’s gritty action drama “Cost of a Soul”.  Produced by Sean and Edward J. Eberwine III, ‘Cost’ is a down & dirty tale of two Iraqi War veterans who return to the streets of their youth in North Philly, only to find it’s tougher to make a go of it back home than it was on foreign soil.  “Cost of a Soul” is partnering with Rouge & AMC Theaters, and hits theaters at the end of the month.

Perhaps it’s just been my singular experience, but I’ve always found the production world to be a bit of a fracas…for one reason or another.  Whether figuratively, in terms of competing egos or temperaments, or on one of those really interesting set days in the literal sense.  Either way, when it came time to brand a moniker for my freelance adventures, Donnybrook had been kicking around in my head for a while already and just sorta stuck.   Branding a DBA is tricky business, and only time will tell if the name puts up as much of a fight for itself as the Irish hood it’s derived from…but nevertheless it’s where I landed with it all.

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So here it is folks, the online home for all things Donnybrook Productions.  Donnybrook is the dba of choice for the freelance production adventures of Paul Irwin.  The site is home to those exploits, as well as the production blog & other inspired offerings.  Check back when you’re in the neighborhood, as hopefully the site will tender up enough motivations to become part of your weekly online routine.

Feel free to offer your collective opinions, suggestions, and even contributions should you feel so inspired…we’ll put ‘em to good use, promise.  Feedback regarding the site, blog, etc can be sent to opinions@donnybrookproductions.com, so thanks in advance for yours.