WELCOME TO HATCH PICTURES
HATCH PICTURES IS A FILM PRODUCTION COMPANY, BASED IN THE WEST OF IRELAND.
Hatch Pictures was established in 2018, by Simone Kirby and Fergal McElherron. Both working as actors but with an increasing interest in writing, producing and directing their own work. Their first short film, 'Clean' was written by Fergal, produced by Simone, and directed by Garry Cooper. Since then they have been busy writing and branching out into Music Videos, Script editing, Audio plays and Voiceover.
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CLEFT
Stage play CLEFT was written by Fergal McElherron, directed by Lynne Parker, and produced by Rough Magic, in association with Glór, Galway International Arts Festival and Kilkenny Arts Festival. It played to packed houses during its 2019 run, and received fantastic reviews.
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During the pandemic, along with Rough Magic and sound designer, Joe Hunt, Hatch Pictures reworked the play so audiences could access it as an Audio piece. Listen below for free.
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"Sister act is a tour de force that crackles with dramatic tension."
"McElherron’s emotive and poetic script" Irish Times
McElherron, an actor himself, has written two fantastic roles for the actors to inhabit. Business Post
"Cleft is a powerful evocation of family ties and family guilt, and its final image will stay with you long after the curtain call" Business Post
"an unnerving performance by Simone Kirby" The Times
With her buoyant energy, Layden toasts Caireen’s limited life with a glass half-full
"Kirby’s Fea is unwaveringly remote and her haunted demeanour evokes an uncanny sense of the inevitable as the production moves towards its finish." Irish Times
"Kirby and Layden give superb contrasting performances. Director Lynne Parker follows the story's grim path with an icy control." Irish Independent
FILM
An everyday scenario. Two people sitting together, in an ordinary place, getting on with their unremarkable, mundane tasks.
But sometimes life is not so ordinary. And the person sitting next to you is not as innocuous as you may think.
CLEAN is our debut film. Shot on film, over 6 hours in one location in London. Written by Fergal McElherron, Directed by Garry Cooper and Produced by Simone Kirby. In 2019 it was selected for the prestigious Galway Film Fleadh; The Irish Film Festa in Rome; The Irish Film Festival in Moscow and The London Irish St.Patricks Film Festival.
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For more information on Clean please visit our Facebook page.
WHITE DIAMOND
WHITE DIAMOND is a music video for Irish band , Indian. As part of their release of White Diamond we were asked if we could create a simple music video, without a budget, at short notice. The song evokes a sadness and loss that inspired the idea for the video. A woman on a bus, in the middle of the day in her work clothes. But, we begin to realise that she is drunk, and upset, trying to get through to someone on the phone. We wanted the audience to feel like it could be someone sitting across from them, someone that makes you wonder what their story is.
IN DEVELOPMENT
flutterbye
Written by Fergal McElherron, FLUTTERBYE is a story about grief and denial. A beautiful, heart aching look at a fathers refusal to face his pain. It has been selected for development through Engine Shorts Scheme, 2023.
OTHER WORK
We were asked by FireSafe to help create an online course in fire safety, and to make a promotional video for the company's new website. Firstly we edited the scripts to create a flow to each module, and then we recorded the voice over from our studio. We provided feedback on each module as the graphic design came in, to make sure it was coherent, engaging and educational, before finalising the sound design and sound edit. Once the website had been created we were able to make the Promotional Video. Take a look.
CHOPPED LIVER
A spiteful tick in the next of kin box results in Tom being made responsible for his antagonistic neighbour's body. As the costs mount Tom's options dwindle until his sister Paula finds the solution.
Prodigal
When Michael Duffy's elderly father dies, all medical evidence points towards a heart attack. But Detective Aidan Murray has his suspicions and an old score to settle. His stubborn pursuit of Michael reveals that they have more in common than he thinks.
Fergal McElherron
Simone Kirby
Simone has been working in the industry as an actress for over 20 years. For Hatch Pictures Simone has produced CLEAN, short film BLISS, and created the Promotional Video for FIRESAFE .
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As a writer Simone has just completed her first feature film for Screen Ireland, and her first stage play for Glór Theatre.
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As a co-Writer and co-Producer, along with Oonagh McLaughlin, Simone brought MIND YOUR FINGERS to the Dublin Fringe Festival where they won The Jayne Snow Award. She was a co-Writer and performer on the RTE comedy MEET YOUR NEIGHBOURS with PJ Gallagher.
Fergal has been an actor and writer for 25 years. Most recently, as a writer,his stage play CLEFT , premiered in 2019,produced by Rough Magic and Glór, and his short film 'CLEAN' was selected for the Galway Film Fleadh, amongst others.
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Previous writing work includes radio plays PRODIGAL, starring Domhnall Gleeson, CHOPPED LIVER, starring Charlene McKenna, and IN THE BLINK OF AN EYE, all produced by RTE Radio Drama. His first stage play, TO HAVE AND TO HOLD, produced by Kabosh Theatre Co, earned him a nomination for The Stewart Parker Award.
