Interview with actress Eva Birthistle, director of Kathleen Is Here

Eva Birthistle was among the protagonists of the acclaimed television series Bad Sisters, which received excellent critical acclaim. Can you tell us about Ursula's role in the plot dynamics? Do you have an anecdote to share with Bad Sisters fans, experienced on set during filming?

My character Ursula in "Bad Sisters" is a great character. She's one of five sisters in the series. She's trying to get rid of someone who's blackmailing her while having an extramarital affair, and she ends up agreeing with her sisters to find a solution. In the second season, the story picks up a few years later, with her in a less than optimal situation, on the fringes of the family. She's self-medicating, her marriage has failed. Then she finds herself involved in another terrible mess with her sisters, trying to find herself. So yes, the second season is full of facets and plot twists.

In 2004, you starred in Ae Fond Kiss..., directed by Ken Loach. What memory do you have of the role of Roisin, how was it being directed by Ken Loach? Which earned you a nomination for Best Actress at the British Independent Film Award and the win of the Shooting Stars Award and the London Film Critics Circle Award.

"Ae Fond Kiss" was a wonderful experience. It was my first big film in the UK. I'm a big fan of Ken Loach, and he's an extraordinary man and a wonderful director. He has a very specific way of working, different from any other director I've ever worked with. Very friendly and caring, but also very proactive and unpredictable. A truly unique experience.

At the Irish Film Festa, which takes place in Rome, you were awarded for the feature film you directed and wrote titled Kathleen Is Here. What inspired you to make the film Kathleen Is Here?

"Kathleen is Here" is a project I started developing 10 years ago, a real labor of love. The story is different from how it ended up becoming. I wanted to direct for a long time. I started by writing a couple of short films, hoping to be able to direct them and thus enter the world of directing. I started writing a screenplay for a feature film. It evolved over the years, meanwhile I had my two children. I came across the diary of a young American adult who was in the foster care system and was telling her story publicly. I was very affected by it. I delved into that area, what happens when young adults leave the care system and are expected to face the world. This is what put me on the path of the story that became "Kathleen is Here". It was an incredible and extraordinary experience, very special for me.

Irish cinema has made a significant contribution to art and boasts a great tradition. Recently, it was "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri" by Martin McDonagh that achieved great critical success. How much are your characters tied to the Irish tradition? Who inspired you in your career as an actress, screenwriter, and director?

You mentioned "Three Manifesters" by Martin McDonagh, but his most recent work is actually "The Banshees of Inisherin". However, I understand what you mean by the question. His work is fantastic and always very inspiring. But I think lately Irish cinema has been generally very inspiring, reaching a new level and a much wider audience. In recent years, films like "An Cailín Ciúin" have been particularly inspiring.

What will be the next projects of actress and director Eva Birthistle?

I've just finished acting in a film called "No Ordinary Heist", about the bank robbery that took place in Northern Ireland in 2004, with Anna Hardwick and Eddie Marsan. I'm very excited about this. I'm writing my next feature film and I'm very excited about this too. I hope to act again, maybe towards the end of the year, we'll see. I'm trying to organize everything and in the meantime, I'm enjoying the moment.