From Page to Screen: Eamon Little on Adapting John McGahern’s “That They May Face the Rising Sun”
Screenwriter Eamon Little reflects on the extraordinary journey of bringing John McGahern’s final novel, “That They May Face the Rising Sun,” to life on the screen alongside director Pat Collins.
Eamon’s connection to the book began at the Cúirt Festival in 2002. Witnessing the first public reading of the opening pages sparked a deep appreciation for McGahern’s work. What started as a simple introduction to a rural community evolved into a profound influence on Little’s own writing journey.
A few years later, Little found himself collaborating with Pat Collins on a documentary about John McGahern. This privilege allowed him to spend time with the author, gaining intimate insights into his writing process and literary vision. Little’s admiration for McGahern only deepened as he immersed himself in his work.
A decade later, fate intervened. When Collins approached Little about adapting “That They May Face the Rising Sun,” a dream project materialized. The shared passion for McGahern’s writing became a driving force for this ambitious adaptation.
“I think that all bad writing is judgement and statement and that all good writing, in some way or other, is suggestion. Because you leave the characters alone and through the suggestions and the images, their completed life is in the reader’s mind… and consequently, there are as many versions of the novel as it has readers.” – John McGahern
True to McGahern’s philosophy, Little and Collins aimed to create a film that encouraged viewer participation and interpretation. The narrative unfolded organically, allowing the characters and their environment to speak for themselves.
During the screenplay development process, which spanned seven drafts, they sought to distill the essence of the novel onto the screen, carefully selecting moments that resonated with McGahern’s broader themes and vision.
Looking back, Eamon Little expresses immense gratitude for the experience. He acknowledges the extraordinary talent assembled for the film, crediting them with bringing his and Pat Collins’ vision to life.
Listen: Filmmaker Pat Collins talks to RTÉ Arena
Eight years of hard work culminated in a beautifully realized film that honors the spirit and legacy of John McGahern’s masterpiece.
“By the end of writing a novel you could easily write a sequel, because you know the characters so well you could put them into any situation and know how they’d behave” was another memorable utterance of John’s, and that was true of writing the screenplay too. – Eamon Little
Watch: That They May Face The Rising Sun wins Best Film at the IFTAs
“That They May Face The Rising Sun” is on RTÉ One on St. Stephen’s Night, December 27th, at 9.20pm. Don’t miss out on this powerful cinematic adaptation.
SEO Optimization:
- Keywords: “That They May Face the Rising Sun”, John McGahern, Eamon Little, Pat Collins, RTÉ One, book adaptation, film review, Irish film
- Title: Captures the essence of the article and includes relevant keywords.
- Headings: Subheadings break up text and highlight key points.
- Paragraph Structure: Short, concise paragraphs improve readability.
- Image Alt Text: Descriptive alt text helps search engines understand image content.
- Quoted Text: Quotes from the source material add credibility and interest.
- Call-to-action: Encourages readers to watch the film.
This restructured and optimized article is now more likely to be found by readers searching for information about “That They May Face the Rising Sun” or related topics.
The post John McGahern’s “The Last Lecture” for the Big Screen appeared first on Archynewsy.