The love story of a retired couple brings to the surface painful issues from the past of the sea captain and his daughter. The roles of the film are played by three distinguished British actors.
– Right now, the Finnish premiere is the most important target. If the film is successful in Finland, I will be happy, everything else is a bonus on top of that, Härö assures.
In the end, Härö got the idea of \u200b\u200ba love story about a sea bear, which the screenwriters began to develop further.
The difficult relationship between daughter Grace and Howard’s father and the unresolved issues of the past were brought into focus. In the film, it is said that Grace’s depressed mother suffered from her husband’s long trips. The daughter had to take care of her mother against her will, even though she was still a toddler herself.
Housekeeper Annie’s daughters think falling in love is good for their mother. Instead, Grace is unable to accept her father’s new relationship.
– I think that new relationships between elderly parents are not a taboo these days, if things are good within the family. That’s how it is in Annie’s family.
– But, if there are issues not dealt with by the family and a new person enters the family dynamic from outside, then conflicts may arise, says screenwriter Kirsi Vikman.
The actors appreciated the practice
The movie stars well-known faces from the British Isles.
The sea bear is played by Scottish hero actor James Cosmo. In an interview with Yle, he states that his own characters have often been swordsmen on horseback clad in armor. He is known for, among other things, films such as and the hit series Game of Thrones.
– This was really something completely different and that’s why it was so fascinating. I finally got to play something that happens in real life and live with the feelings of love, says Cosmo.
Before shooting the film, Klaus Härö did something that not many directors agree to spend time on. -film’s budget was about four million, large for a Finnish film, small for an international production.
From the sum, Härö saved enough to be able to organize a week’s rehearsal period with the main actors. In the exercises, we didn’t learn lines, but we got to know each other and other people’s ways of working. Trust was built.
In an interview with Yle, all three actors praise the way of working as the best possible. Although time is money in filmmaking, rehearsals do not cost as much as shooting days, as the technical staff does not participate in them.
Regarding children and the elderly
Klaus Härö has made several films from the perspective of children. And now the elderly. He says that he considers it important to defend the right to self-determination of these two groups of people.
– It makes me angry, angry and sad when I see parents talking over their children as if they don’t exist. Sometimes we talk to the elderly as if they were a problem.
– When a person gets to the age where he needs help with his chores, couldn’t respect for the life lived go hand in hand with that, Härö ponders.
Grace, played by Catherine Walker, wants to take care of her father’s affairs, even if by force. He clearly feels that the last moments are at hand to repair the inflamed relations.
Walker says that portraying the traumatized daughter was challenging. Grace is not a pleasant person.
– Grace’s contradictory personality was one of the reasons why this role seemed attractive. He is a bit of a difficult person and hard to like.
– His actions are guided by the pain that springs from within, to which the actor must surrender, explains Walker.
The village that got the role
Director Klaus Härö says that the village where the sea captain and his family live is one of the film’s main characters.
– After the actors and the trust between them, the scenery was the next most important thing. I felt that it had to be part of the structure of this film, Härö says.
Härö traveled with his group on preliminary research trips along the west coast of Ireland, but something was always missing. According to Härö, it felt like riding on the sets of a TV series.
Finally, the group was offered a filming location on the small island of Achill in County Mayo in the West of Ireland.
The island overlooking the open Atlantic fulfilled its mission. It offered the film crew wonderful sunsets, the whisper of the sea, peace.
– There were no advertising lights or any other useless stimuli on the island. Once I was sitting on the beach and staring at the sea. I thought I had been there for twenty minutes, but when I looked at the clock, I realized that four hours had passed while staring, laughs actor James Cosmo.
At times the Atlantic showed its strength, the wind blew so that no voice could be heard, the rain beat against the window and the bumpy roads turned into mudflats. According to Bríd Brennan, once the cars had to be pushed into motion once or twice.