Director of Irish short film says being on Oscars shortlist is 'surreal'

James Cox

The director of an Irish short film that has made the shortlist for the Oscars has described the honour as "surreal".

Room Taken "shares a beautiful and fairytale-like story of a newly-arrived migrant in Dublin who, in a desperate need for a place to stay, finds an unexpected answer to his temporary homelessness when he takes refuge in the home of an elderly blind woman without her knowledge. As these two strangers coexist, a touching and unexpended bond forms between them".

Director TJ O'Grady Peyton told BreakingNews.ie: "We noticed things that were happening in Ireland that were culturally relevant and unique experiences that people were having for the first time, compared to other countries like France and Germany, other major countries where it's been happening for a while.

"We allowed it to inform this story, it wasn't the original intention, but it was important subject matter to tackle and also relevant for our character. If the lead character was Irish he would be less isolated, have more people to turn to, and this felt like a way of telling the story in a way that felt believable."

Room Taken has been shortlisted to be considered for the 2025 Oscars after winning Best Short Film at the 2024 Cleveland International Film Festival (CIFF).

Mr O'Grady Peyton said it is "the stuff of dreams".

While the story involving the lead characters Isaac and Victoria starts in bad circumstances, Mr O'Grady said it is a story about "human connection".

"The whole human connection storyline was important for the hopeful feeling at the end. It showed how you could be culturally divided, a different age, ethnicity, different in many ways but we're still living on the same island and we can get on.

"It can be a divisise subject matter [immigration] for many, but we were trying to make something that was a little bit emphatetic and hopeful.

"We had two endings in mind and we shot them both, we were wondering which one would play better in the edit. We tinkered with both endings and felt quite strongly that the hopeful ending was the better one.

"The more ambiguois ending didn't seem as strong of a resolution I'm glad we picked the one we did."

Colin Farrell served as an executive producer for Room Taken, and Mr O'Grady Peyton said the actor was a huge help.

"It was unreal. I've no doubt Colin coming on board has had a major influence on us getting to the shortlist. He's helped us reach a bigger audience. He's been so generous, kind and articulate and helped us in so many ways, so we're very appreciative. It's a surreal thing."

Mr O'Grady Peyton was full of praise for the film's leads, Bríd Brennan and Gabriel Adewusi.

It was a breakthrough film performance for Adewusi.

"He went to Bow Street [acting school] and he was in the Sean O'Casey trilogy in the Abbey Theatre recently. He's one to watch, he's a likeable, charismatic character. It was great to see him flourish and thrive with this script and story. So much of it rested on people liking him, following his journey and rooting for him, because he does something quite wrong at the beginning, but Gabriel really pulled it off."

He added: "The goal was to tell a story about these people in challenging situations, it wasn't to make anything too political, but by focusing on this intimate story of two people, it speaks about larger things.

"That is satisfying for audeince members. They see these two people living relatable lives but then they can reflect about the bigger things going on in society."

Mr O'Grady Peyton said the success of Room Taken is a testament to everyone who worked on the film.

"This is a small production, to be at that stage is wild. Screen Ireland funded it, Vico Films produced it, and it's great to see Irish cinema performing at that level.

"There are other short-listed films from Ireland, and hopefully we get there."

Room Taken is currently available to stream via YouTube channel Omeleto which showcases award-winning short films.