A Canadian-born filmmaker, raised in America but with family roots in Lisnaskea, has revealed plans to potentially make a film in Fermanagh.
Speaking to The Impartial Reporter from his uncle’s home, Daniel Hanna described his deep connection to the area as wide windows framed the Lisnaskea countryside behind him. His words echoed the backdrop of farmland and rolling green hills curving into the horizon, reflecting both his heritage and creative vision.
Filmmaker Daniel Hanna(Image: John McVitty)
“We used to come [to Fermanagh] a lot when we where kids, every other summer and then the older you get the less often you come back,” Daniel told this newspaper.
“I spent a lot of summers here out at the farm and just around Lisnaskea and Enniskillen.
He added: “It’s been about 10 years since I have been back, I love being back here, the people and the landscape and driving back into Lisnaskea feels like coming home in a way.”
The Toronto-born, Arkansas-raised filmmaker has won many awards, among them the Academy Nicholl Fellowship in 2021 recognising his screenwriting. However, his love for the cinematic arts stems from childhood.
“I made my first film right after high school when I was 17 but I went to grad school in 2008,” he said.
Daniel has been working as a professional filmmaker for 15 years and has lived in Los Angeles for almost 20 years.
Describing where his love of visual storytelling originated, he said: “I always loved writing, as a kid I wrote a novel but never did anything with it because I was like 10 years old.
“But I’ve always liked storytelling and creating. I started watching different movies and it just felt like that was a medium which was exciting and collaborative.”
Daniel continued: “Every movie needs something different but I’m always trying to look for something that doesn’t feel false.
“For me it’s about trying to capture something that feels spontaneous because I think that is something film does. It’s one specific moment captured in time and I want the style to reflect that and make you feel that as much as possible being there and experiencing it.”
Stills from Daniel Hanna’s latest film, Succubus.(Image: Succubus (2024))
Among his extensive film and writing credits, his latest film, Succubus, marks his foray into the horror genre as writer and director.
“I feel like in horror, you can tell any kind of story, you can deal with any kind of subject matter,” he said.
Highlighting the creative freedom the horror genre provides, Daniel added: “People accept a lot more flourishes and style that might get in the way of a standard drama.”
(Image: Succubus (2024))
(Image: Succubus (2024))
The narrative of Succubus focuses on a new father struggling with a failing marriage and emotional insecurities who joins a dating app “only to swipe right” on what might be an inhuman presence.
“He matches with this woman but something is wrong, and he starts going down this dark rabbit hole, it gets weirder and weirder,” Daniel told this newspaper.
Describing the narrative themes, he added: “It’s a metaphor for things like internet addiction, it could be our fascination with not living in the real world and the dark things that are out there.
“The isolation [of the internet] … you’re sort of alone but connected at the same time.”
(Image: Succubus (2024))
(Image: Succubus (2024))
While Daniel has written and directed much of his filmography in America, he revealed potential future plans to bring a production home to Northern Ireland.
He said: “So we are looking at exploring something that would be a folk horror tale that would be test in the 1850s famine time.”
Daniel has been researching folklore and fairy tales that stem from the island of Ireland’s history and heritage, translating these narratives for the big screen.
“There’s one that deals with a man of famine, a figure that curses you if you don’t give him something.
He continued: “It would be really fun and I’d love to do something here [in Ireland] and there is a lot of opportunity here. I’m just always very interested in language and how people speak.
“In the US there’s all these different ways people talk in accents and here is similar and I would love exploring all that.”
While nothing has been set in stone for production, Daniel highlighted the potential for filming due to his personal ties to Fermanagh.
“I’m not sure yet but it’s always good to do something were somebody has a home base. I have a home base here [Lisnaskea], my producer has a home base in Donegal,” he explained.
Reflecting on his filmmaking journey, Daniel said: “Everyone has got their own unique journey in getting there or getting something made or advancing.
“When you look back, I’m not quite sure how I got here but it has been a good experience, it’s an adventure really.”
If you are interested in keeping with Daniel’s work visit, https://tinyurl.com/bdzksv3k
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source uk.news.yahoo.com ’
