*Photograph: Gerard O’Neill
TOWNS in Clare have untapped potential as a location for films, a Newmarket-on-Fergus based freelance director has said.
Montpelier born John Haugh (AON) who is contesting the local elections in the Shannon Municipal District has worked as an assistant director on television productions such as Game of Thrones, Vikings and Hidden Assets since completing a masters degree in 2007.
Clare’s potential as a location for shooting films has not been capitalised on, he maintained. Within the Shannon MD, he pointed to the “distinctive” landmarks of Bunratty Castle and Dromoland Castle as potential locations. “We should be looking at what JP McManus has done in Adare as a model. The local businesses in the town of Adare are thriving alongside the success of Adare Manor,” Haugh stated.
He continued, “Even closer to home, if we took inspiration from Sixmilebridge native, the late Brendan O’Regan, without whom Shannon wouldn’t exist as it does. O’Regan was a visionary who strived for better, bolder ideas, constantly pushing the boundaries”.
Haugh said, “O’Regan recognised the need for vision and persistence, O’Regan himself stated ‘If you’re involved in developing an important idea, you have to let it possess you. If you keep knocking on the door, the door will open. You’ll get there, not particularly with your own abilities, but with others that you gather around you’,”.
Shannon Airport remains “a huge asset to the Mid-West region”, he noted. “Imagine how much the region could develop if there was a light rail system linking to Ennis and Limerick”.
