“A lot of the time, growing up, we didn’t really feel seen”: Robert Higgins and Patrick McGivney on Lakelands

Lakelands, from Robert Higgins and Patrick McGivney, follows the story of a young Gaelic footballer who struggles to find his identity in a small Irish town after a night out results in a career-ending injury. The Upcoming had a lovely chat with the filmmakers about how their own personal experiences informed the script and authenticity of the storytelling, the challenges and highlights of bringing the specifics of everyday life in Ireland to screen, and the universal themes of toxic masculinity, mental health and finding yourself despite the constraints imposed by the society you grow up in, which their movie ponders over with nuance and compassion.

Sarah Bradbury

Lakelands is released in UK cinemas on 5^th May 2023. Read our review here.

Watch the trailer for Lakelands here: