The story of Crosna man Paddy Moran, who fought at Jacob’s Factory in 1916 and was later executed for his role in the War of Independence features in a new series of short films produced by RTÉ
The theme of the series is that every county in Ireland has a connection with the 1916 Rising and in an effort to explore these connections and stories, RTÉ, in partnership with Ireland 2016, embarked on an ambitious project to produce a series of one minute films – one for every county.
The shorts explore the individual connections with the events of 1916 in each county or a particular story around the county’s commemoration of Easter 1916. This initiative is dedicated to allowing each county tells its own story about how it was touched by this momentous turning point in Ireland’s history.
The Roscommon clip, featuring the story of Paddy Moran, can be viewed below
The films, which have been specially commissioned as part of Ireland 2016, the State programme to mark the centenary of the Easter Rising, will be broadcast across RTÉ One and RTÉ2 over the next four months. The films also hit the big screen at 71 cinemas in the Republic of Ireland by way of a 3-week cinema campaign which started on Friday 18 March. They are also available to view on RTÉ Player and on RTÉ’s YouTube channel
Speaking about the films Adrian Lynch, Channel Controller, RTÉ One, said: “We initially commissioned six films for our Road to the Rising series but when we saw how strong the films were we wanted to expand them to include every county in Ireland. Each film is different and gives a unique insight into the counties’ connection to 1916.”
Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht Heather Humphreys said: “These short films provide a very personal and intimate look at how the Rising affected communities right across this country. While the Rising is often seen as a Dublin-based event, the reality is that families from every county were caught up in the dramatic events of Easter Week 1916. These short videos help to tell their story.”