Headfort House features prominently in new movie

Jordan's Scott's debut feature 'Cracks', which was filmed on location last year at Headfort House in Kells, went on general release in cinemas in Britain and Ireland last week. 'Casino Royale' star Eva Green heads up the cast, with Juno Temple of 'Atonement', Imogen Poots, star of '28 Weeks Later' and Maria Valverde ('La Flaqueza del Bolchevique') also among the names in the credits. 'Cracks' is set in a 1935 girls' boarding school, and follows a girl's unhealthy bond with her teacher 'Miss G'. When the arrival of an exotic and beautiful foreign student threatens the status quo, there are tragic consequences for them all. Headfort House is a real-life boarding school built roughly 200 ago for the Earl of Bective, Thomas Taylour. The facade of the house is now a severe, almost drab grey, built of Ardbraccan limestone in an extremely plain style. The house was designed by the Irish architect George Semple while the interiors were designed by the Scottish architect Robert Adam. Much of the interior remains in very good condition, thanks mainly to the school's occupancy. It remains the only intact Adam interior in Ireland. The school uses the main house and one of the wings. The other wing is used as a self-contained private house. There are around 120 pupils at Headfort School. Ten of the female pupils attending the school during filming in the summer of 2008 were chosen as extras for the film. The movie is co-produced by Dublin's Element Pictures and the UK's Scott Free and Future Films. Killer Films and Industry Entertainment who developed the project also produced. The director, Jordan Scott, is the daughter of producer and director, Ridley Scott. Two 13 year-old Irish girls, Adele McCann and Zoe Carroll, make their acting debuts in the feature. The daughter of actress Marlène Jobert, Eva Green performed in theatre before making her film debut in 'The Dreamers' (2003), which generated controversy over her numerous nude scenes. She achieved greater fame for her parts in 'Kingdom of Heaven', Daniel Craig's debut James Bond film 'Casino Royale', for which she won a BAFTA, and 'The Golden Compass'. Rising star Juno Temple, who played cousin Lola in 'Atonement', is Julien Temple's daughter also appeared in 'Wild Child'. Imogen Poots is an English actress best-known for playing Tammy in the 2007 film '28 Weeks Later'. Her first movie credit was as Young Valerie in the 2005 film 'V for Vendetta'. Poots appears in the BBC drama 'Miss Austen Regrets' and in the American film 'Waking Madison'. Twenty-one year old María Valverde is a Spanish actress who won a Goya award in 2003 for her role in the Manuel Martín Cuenca movie, 'La Flaqueza del Bolchevique'. 'Cracks' had its world premiere at the 34th annual Toronto Film Festival in September. It received financing from the Irish Film Board, Legende, Optimum, Zantos, Pinewood and Future Film.