Notes From Sheepland

Cara Holmes / Ireland / 2023 / Czech Premiere / 71 min.

synopsis

While researching the history of women in Irish agriculture, director Cara Holmes met Orla Barry, a queer visual artist and shepherdess. Her life is filled with art and the breeding of sheep, which are equal creatures and a source of inspiration for her. Over the course of a year, we follow Orla's preparation for a breeding competition and her struggle to reconcile her creative exuberance with her daily rural responsibilities. Like its protagonist, the film doesn't dwell on unnecessary rhetoric, paying homage to the Irish landscape, the physically demanding work on the farm and, above all, a woman who moves casually between different worlds.

“I definitely wanted to be playful with the form. Maybe if it was a different fund, I would have been way more structured, but being playful, pushing out the visuals and integrating Orla’s artwork, that was all on the table. I was having a bit of fun in the edit as well, because I work as an editor quite a lot but I don't get a chance to be so fluid or so playful a lot of the time.” – Cara Holmes

Source: Eye For Film

biography

Cara Holmes is an Irish director and editor who works mainly on documentaries and film series. Her short documentary Welcome to a Bright White Limbo (2020), about the award-winning dance performance artist Oona Doherty, has been honoured at several international festivals.