Young actor Ollie West won an IFTA nomination for Best Actor for his big-screen debut, as a troubled teen with a secret in West Cork-set drama The Sparrow, which lands in Irish cinemas this weekend.
Dubliner Ollie started his acting career aged 12 in Dead Centre's Hamnet, a play about the death of Shakespeare’s son - he was nominated for Best Actor for the role at the Irish Times Theatre Awards in 2018.
We asked Ollie for his choice cultural picks...
FILM
I've always been a fan of Wes Anderson so I'll eat up anything he's got but I would still highly recommend these four short Netflix films, The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar, The Swan, The Rat Catcher, and Poison. Each one is a story written by Roald Dahl and has beautiful, hand made set designs with a cool pastel vibe and dynamic scene transitions that make it look like a professional student film. Even if you don't like the stories watch it for the vibesssss.
MUSIC
I've been getting into more older rap songs like One Beer by MF Doom. This tune has been on repeat for me. sampled from a french jazz song called Huit Octobre 1971, so it's got a fancy swing to it.
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BOOK
I would have to recommend The Listeners as it is the only book I have read in the last two years. Shocking, I know. I stayed up till 5 in the morning reading this book. It's about a teacher that starts hearing a very low hum and everyone thinks she's crazy. It gets insanely suspenseful and dramatic. It was probably the fastest I've ever gotten through a book.
TV
I watched this with zero expectations and it ended up being the best show I've watched all year. Blue Eye Samurai is an animated show about a samurai that lives their life in disguise. It is literally the best samurai story I have ever seen, and if you can get past seeing lots of blood you will love it.
GIG
Pants On Fire are a new Dublin-based band that play heavy indie tunes (whatever that is) - they are playing in Whelan's Main Room on the 10th of July, with two very good bands opening for them. It will be a very very lively night (if that is what you're looking for). You just might see me there...
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The last gig I attended was another Dublin-based band, Sarah Brooki in Whelan's Main. She has one of the best voices in the country, with beautiful heartfelt lyrics backed up with an amazing band. Her genre goes from folk to grunge.
ART
A long time family friend, Evan Dow has some amazing sculpture paintings that use slate and paint to invite the viewer to contemplate the interconnectedness of all things.
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PODCAST
Any long bus/train journey I've had in the past few months I put on this Irish podcast called Young Hot Guys. I've been following this Irish comedian on instagram called Tony Cantwell for years now and only recently found out he's in a podcast alongside Shane Daniel Byrne and Killian Sundermann, who are also hilarious. I've laughed out loud on every imaginable mode of transport listening to this podcast.
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TECH
Rating Graph - this one is pretty simple, but I've found it to be very useful for watching TV shows that you don't need to watch chronologically. If you ever want to find out what the best episodes of any show are in a beautiful neat graph, go here.
THE NEXT BIG THING...
This is a no brainer, Irish all-girl band Florence Road. I wouldn't be surprised if they play Aivia Stadium within the next 5/10 years.
The Swallow is in selected cinemas nationwide from Friday, July 5th
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