Bursting with candid observations of lipstick-wearing, always-swearing, no-nonsense artist and shepherd Orla Barry, this is an intimate and amusing look into the life of an off-the-grid artist.
Synopsis
Bursting with candid observations of lipstick-wearing, always-swearing, no-nonsense artist and shepherd Orla Barry, Notes from Sheepland is an intimate and amusing look into the life of an off-the-grid artist. We discover through her fields, digital diaries, and pedigree sheep how the art is in the doing. Orla Barry is a self-confessed ovine addict. After a decade in sheep husbandry, she’s still wondering what possessed her to start, but yet she wouldn’t want to be anywhere else than in southeast Ireland, running a flock of pedigree Lleyn sheep. Her work navigates the tensions of being both an artist and an eco-farmer in rural Ireland. The sheep may have slowed her art career, but caring for them has been a profound source of inspiration. She escapes the studio by going to the pastures, and escapes the sheep by hiding in her studio. Follow outlier Orla as she floats between these worlds, reflecting upon her primal, poetic, and unpredictable bond with the natural world.
Director: Cara Holmes| Country: Ireland | Running Time: 70 min | Language: English | Rating: 15
Screening Details
- Festival Screening: 14 September 2024
- Premiere: UK Premiere
- Festival Guests: pre-recorded Q&A with filmmaker Cara Holmes
Trailer
About the Filmmaker
Cara Holmes is a film editor and director with a diverse portfolio of feature and short documentaries. Her editing credits include Piano Dreams, Father of the Cyborgs, and Lost in France. She directed Welcome To A Bright White Limbo, which earned a Special Jury mention at Tribeca 2020 and an IFTA for Best Short Film. Her latest film, Notes from Sheepland, won Best Documentary at the 2023 Dublin International Film Festival.