Write a commentA group of young film makers are producing a film based on the Reavey Brother killings in Whitecross in January 1976.
The crew which include John Reavey, a nephew of the victims, met while at Ravensbourne University in London. They have all worked with each other on different projects to date but never as a team.
On 4 January 1976 Anthony, John Martin and Brian Reavey, three brothers of eight, were sitting at home watching TV when three masked gunmen broke in and opened fire on them. John and Brian were killed straight away, while Anthony managed to escape to the bedroom and take cover under a bed. He was shot several times and left for dead. After searching the house the gunmen found no one else and left. Moments later, badly wounded Anthony, crawled to a neighbours house nearby to seek help. Anthony died 26 days later in hospital of a brain haemorrhage.
The film will tell the story of the night leading up to the killings, the night of the killings and the devastating aftermath that they caused.
John Reavey, a nephew of the brothers is writing and directing the production and this month the team launched a crowdfunding campaign to help make the project happen.
The funding sits presently at £15,000, already three times their initial goal. Because of the massive support the team have decided to give 50% of all donations over £5K to charity Peaceful Futures South Armagh. Eugene Reavey a brother of the three is a Trustee of the charity.
Speaking on the challenge John said "This film is massively important for the community of Whitecross, as well as surrounding areas such as Newry and Armagh to name a few. I’ve grown up hearing so much about stories from this time era, whether that be through the television, the paper or people in the area. I think it’s an area which people my age often lack education on, so I’d love to think that this film could help someone understand a bit more.
"I’ve been very fortunate to have an incredible team on board from the beginning. Since I’ve first pitched the idea, they have all helped to carve the story into what it is now. The story itself is a peace story. There are characters from different religious backgrounds to ensure the audience are allowed to make their own mind up, and that this film isn’t biased in any way. We're basing the story as close as we can to the reality, and we’ve received feedback from locals themselves. These are the people who knew the boys, their backgrounds, what they were like. I want to make sure I do these boys proud making the piece, as well as every single person who may have been impacted from it."
Close friend Jamie Tarr has worked on other short films with John and he will be producing the film, a story that he passionately believes needs to be told.
Commenting Jamie said “From the moment when John first pitched this film to me I knew I wanted to work on this film. I instantly became in love with the story and idea. I find the story of the Reavey’s Brothers to be such an important story that needs to be told. Before taking this project on I had no idea about the true effect that The Troubles had. I know so many people my age or people who live outside of Ireland that have no idea about The Troubles. This is something that I believe people need to be educated on, and telling it through the form of a film is going to be the most impactful."
Jamie continued "When selecting our crew me and John wanted to make sure we had the best professionals we could get, but also people who believed in the story and our goal. I can confidently say that we’ve found the best crew we could hope for, I’m so excited and proud to be able to work with such an extraordinary group of professionals. The amazing support that this film has received on social media and particularly our GoFundMe page, shows that people want this story to be told. I want to take this opportunity to thank anyone who has shared or contributed to our crowdfunding, it’s because of this support that this film is even possible, so thank you.”
Jordi Estape Montserrat who will be writing the script along with John said "John has put together an amazing crew to tell a borderless story of peace and love. It is such a brave decision to explore your cultural roots and understand why we are in this world. So happy to be writing this alongside him. I I hope to bring the best to this piece and make a change for the NI community."
Another member of the team Director of Photography, Natasha Duursma is also looking forward to the challenge “When John asked me to be the cinematographer for this story, I was honoured to be part of a team that will help tell Johns family's personal story. It has been great location scouting so far and seeing the area of Whitecross. It has helped me get into a the creative mindset and make this story as cinematic as possible.”
Production Designer, Jimmy Van Twest added "Working on such a personal project has really brought the passion out of the whole crew. Doing a period piece is always a challenge to set design but we've all been putting in a lot of hard work to make sure it serves the story well! The support we've received on the project has been unbelievable and we can't wait to begin filming!”
The crew is completed with Production Manager Oliver Hill and the film is being made with the full blessing of the Reavey family.
You can support the project at WWW.GOFUNDME.COM or to check out more information on the ambitious production go to /WWW.REAVEYBROTHERSFILM.COM
