Peter Coonan believes Irish men do "not openly talk enough" about their mental health struggles and hopes new Irish drama, King Frankie, shows that there is "light at the end of the tunnel".
The upcoming feature debut of writer-director Dermot Malone, which is set for release in cinemas nationwide on Friday, 11 October, is billed as "a Celtic Tiger tale you've never seen before".
The synopsis for King Frankie reads: "Frankie (Coonan) is a Dublin taxi driver, who runs his own taxi firm.
"On the day of his father's removal, he comes face to face with something that happened ten years ago, and the first thing that he must do is forgive himself."
"I suppose the story is of redemption. We find the later Frankie dealing with his father's death and the outcome of the fallout that happened ten years previously and he's still carrying some of the trauma of those events.
"The younger Frankie was living the high life and flew too close to the sun and got greedy and lost the meaning of what life was about."
Coonan explained how he was in "quite an intense period of work" while shooting King Frankie and said returning to Dublin to film the second half of the film was demanding.
"It was a period where I had a lot of work in a row. I did a lot of stage productions and then I did that film, and then another film subsequently after.
"I was in quite an intense period of work, so shooting the second half of that at home in Dublin was quite daunting. You'd just get into bed after when you got home.
"You're living the character and you're trying to understand someone who is dealing with all of this guilt, shame and pent-up trauma that hasn't been dealt with.
"Then once your past comes to visit you - or something happens - it just ignites it all again and it culminates in this moment of sheer panic".
Coonan hopes the message of the movie resonates with Irish men and they learn that "there's always the chance of a second chance".
"One thing we take from this is the idea that when something happens, and you do hit rock bottom or everything around you is seemingly falling apart and you have no one to talk to....
"I think what the story is saying in some parts is that there is always a chance at redemption, there's always the chance of a second chance. There's always this opportunity to grow and share your feelings with others.
"I think definitely with men, and certainly in Ireland, we just do not openly talk enough about where we're at or what struggles we may be having.
"I think if a small percentage of people watching a movie like this realise that there is light at the end of the tunnel, that would be a positive outcome."
The cast of King Frankie also includes Conor MacNeill (The Sixth Commandment), Ruairí O'Connor (The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It), Lynn Rafferty (Taken Down), Olivia Caffrey (Trivia), Ally Ní Chiaráin (Calm with Horses), Owen Roe (Michael Collins), and rapper Rejjie Snow in his acting debut.
King Frankie is in cinemas from Friday, 11 October.
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