Scríobhann Anne Heffernan, léiritheoir An Grá Ciúin, faoin bhfís a bhí ann don scannán a bheidh le taispeáint don chéad uair ar TG4 ar an Satharn, 26 Meán Fómhair ag 9.30pm
An Grá Ciúin started with a simple observation: the powerful intimacy of Deaf communication.
A touch to get someone's attention. Unwavering eye contact. Whole-body communication. Being absolutely present. Communicating through Irish Sign Language (ISL) demands a level of attention and connection that we had rarely seen replicated in the hearing world. And when that communication happens between two people who love each other, there is a beautiful romance to it.
We wanted to make a love story - not a film about love with Deaf characters placed inside it, but a film where Deaf communication, Deaf experience and Deaf lives were at the very heart of the storytelling.
An Grá Ciúin, released in cinemas as A Quiet Love, was born: a feature documentary featuring three Deaf couples sharing their remarkable love stories in Irish Sign Language.
John and Agnes's decades-long love story blossomed against the backdrop of the Troubles. Seán, a Deaf boxer, and his hearing partner Deyanna face an impossible decision that could change their lives. And mothers, Michelle and Kathy, navigate raising Deaf and hearing daughters following an emotional IVF journey.
Is ceiliúradh scannánaíochta, le fuaimdhreach tumtha, é An Grá Ciúin (A Quiet Love) ar an teacht aniar, ar chaidreamh agus ar an ngrá buan. Is é seo an chéad fhadscannán a rinneadh in Éirinn i dTeanga Chomharthaíochta na hÉireann, agus é á léiriú ag foireann ar a raibh daoine bodhra agus daoine nach bhfuil bodhar agus á stiúradh ag Garry Keane.
The film grew out of a relationship that had already developed over many years. Director Garry Keane (In the Shadow of Beirut, GAZA) and producers Seán Herlihy and Anne Heffernan had previously worked together on television documentaries about the Deaf experience. We had seen first-hand the remarkable stories that existed within the Deaf community, and how rarely they reached a broad audience.
Cé go gcuireann An Grá Ciúin saol agus eispéiris na mBodhar i gcroílár na scéalaíochta, baineann na téamaí linn ar fad. Ní le haon phobal amháin, ach linn ar fad, a bhaineann eispéiris ar nós grá, an teaghlach, tuismitheoireacht, féiniúlacht, muintearas nó cruachás agus na cinntí a dhéanaimid ar mhaithe leis na daoine a bhfuil cion againn orthu.
Garry was struck by the power and visual beauty of sign language - an entirely different cinematic language and storytelling experience. We began to see the possibilities of telling Deaf stories not as stories on the margins, but as stories that could connect with everyone.
It was over coffee with John and Agnes that the intimacy of their communication sparked the original idea for the film. Agnes is Protestant; John is Catholic. Growing up in the North of Ireland in the 1960s, when Catholic and Protestant children attended separate schools, they would almost certainly never have met - except that there was one Deaf school in the region. Their love survived decades of conflict and prejudice, as well as the determination of their own families to keep them apart.
Their story also reveals a little-seen aspect of life during the Troubles: what it meant to be Deaf in a conflict zone. In the film, John and Agnes speak powerfully about the dangers they faced and their own brushes with death. Their story part of a history of Ireland that has rarely been told from a Deaf perspective.
Insítear ar An Grá Ciúinscéalta grá iontacha agus corraitheacha triúr lánúineacha atá bodhar: caidreamh nár ceadaíodh ach a mhair na deicheanna de bhlianta idir lánúin Bhodhar, Chaitliceach agus Protastúnach, le linn na dTrioblóidí i dTuaisceart Éireann, lánúin chomhghnéis as Corcaigh agus Béal Feirste atá ag dul i ngleic le bheith ina dtuismitheoirí ag páistí atá bodhar agus páistí nach bhfuil, agus dornálaí bodhar agus a pháirtí nach bhfuil bodhar as Baile Átha Cliath atá ag tabhairt aghaidh ar rogha a chuirfidh athrú ó bhun ar an saol.
We wanted to show the breadth of Deaf lives and relationships. Throughout the film, we see Deyanna's unwavering support as Seán wrestles with the possibility of surgically removing his cochlear implant to pursue his dream of becoming a professional boxer, even if that means losing the ability to hear his family.
Kathy and Michelle are navigating parenthood together, raising both Deaf and hearing children. When they fell in love, it was illegal for them to marry in Ireland. Their story speaks to a changing Ireland, and to their hopes for the future their daughters will inherit.
"We've found that audiences find something in each of the characters' stories to relate to," says producer Anne Heffernan. "Each of the love stories is profoundly moving and ultimately uplifting. Who doesn't love a good love story?"
For producer Seán Herlihy, the film was also deeply personal. A Deaf sign language user himself, Seán is Ireland's first Deaf film producer.
"When I was growing up, I never saw people like me on TV or at the cinema - people who shared my language or had the same experiences. When eventually representations of Deaf people did start to appear in the media, they were often stories about Deaf people rather than by Deaf people, and didn't reflect what it is really like to be Deaf. With this film, I wanted to change that."
From the outset, Seán and Anne were determined that the film would create meaningful opportunities for members of the Deaf community in an industry that has historically been closed to them. With support from Screen Ireland, Coimisiúin na Meán, TG4 and access funding from Reach Deaf Services, 32 Deaf cast and crew helped bring An Grá Ciúin to life. That Deaf-led approach was central to the film's authenticity, but it also shaped its form.
We made a conscious decision not to voice over the Deaf contributors. Instead, we wanted audiences to experience ISL as a language in its own right. Creative subtitles move within the frame and are carefully timed to emphasise the conversational flow of signing, allowing viewers to follow the translation while still engaging with the expressions and signs of the cast.
The film is accompanied by a beautiful score from composer Stephen Shannon and an immersive soundscape that guides audiences through the diverse sonic landscapes of our contributors. Together, the visual language of ISL, the creative subtitles, music and sound create a unique viewing experience. One audience member described it as "an hour and a half of meditation".
Ahead of its television premiere on TG4 this Saturday, An Grá Ciúin has had a remarkable international festival journey. Since its world premiere at the Oscar-qualifying Doc Edge Film Festival in New Zealand, it has been an official selection at 25 festivals across five continents, receiving awards including a Global Production Award in Cannes, the Audience Award for Best Documentary at the San Diego International Film Festival and the Celtic Media Award for Best Feature Documentary.
But the moments that have stayed with us most are the reactions from audiences.
We have been blown away by how emotional the experience has been for people who have seen the film at festivals and in cinemas. Many were moved to tears and we heard that a 93 year old Deaf man travelled 3 hours to see the film – it was his first time to set foot in a cinema and he loved it! Moments like that have made us realise that the film is not only telling stories that audiences may never have encountered before, but inviting them to experience communication, connection and intimacy in a different way.
With An Grá Ciúin we wanted viewers to slow down. To watch people communicate. To look at their faces. To notice the pauses, the touch, the eye contact and the extraordinary amount of feeling contained in a conversation without a spoken word. Most of all, we wanted Deaf audiences to see their language, their lives and their stories given the space and attention they deserve - and for hearing audiences to discover that, although the way these couples communicate may be unfamiliar, the things they are communicating about are not.
Love, after all, needs no translation.
An Grá Ciúin will have its TV premiere on TG4 this Saturday 26th September at 9:30pm
