Children – a poetry film
The poem ‘Children’ was first published in 1990 when it was written for a volume of poems, Thistledown, produced in aid of UNICEF by the Dedalus Press. Since then ‘Children’ has had a number of incarnations in anthologies and other publications. This new film version, with accompanying music by the author, is something of an […]
Jingle Bells, a version
Christmas is not an easy time for many, particularly those feeling the absence of loved ones. This version of Jingle Bells is for them.
First Lesson
On school daze, great teachers, and making sense of the past. WHY DO POETS WRITE so much about the past? Surely there’s enough going on now to occupy us? I’ll come right out and say it at the start: I have little time for nostalgia, for the idea that the past was a better place than […]
Way of Peace
How small events can change the course of our lives This is a poem I wrote thirty years ago, give or take. I like to think I’d do it better today, but it still contains something that was a lesson to me then, and still speaks to me now. Back in the 1970s, like a lot of […]
Immigrants Open Shops: A Poetry Film
Immigrants Open Shops is a short film about a truth that I missed for many years, until it was pointed out to me by my friend, the Iraqi poet, Sargon Boulus. Contrary to the fears, and often the fear-mongering in some communities, immigration has many benefits: bringing new energy, new talent and new perspectives, and […]
The Inverse Wave: A Poetry Film
The power of lovers to find each other in the world, and, even in hard times, to make the world bearable for each other, is something to celebrate. The Inverse Wave is a poetry film about recording, noise cancellation – oh yes, and love. Poem, music and film by Pat Boran. Entirely made from StoryBlocks […]
Lost and Found: A Poetry Film
First published in 2001 in As the Hand, the Glove, Lost and Found is a poem about waste, sustainability and recycling – and about the gifts given to us by those who came before. It was prompted by my late father’s habit of accumulating all kinds of things, in case they might someday come in […]
The Mistake: A Poetry Film
A mistake in childhood may prove to be a lens through which the past is more clearly visible. A poetry film by Pat Boran. With thanks to the Linenhall Arts Centre, Castlebar, for its support. THE MISTAKE One power-cut storm night, almost fifty years ago, I set a dancing candle down beside a drape, and […]
Greek Vase: A Poetry Film
Greek Vase looks at a beautiful work of art and sees in it an image of the casual violence of our own time. A poetry film by Pat Boran.
The Statues of Emo Court: A Poetry Film
Recorded in the grounds of Emo Court, Co. Laois, Ireland, The Statues of Emo Court celebrates patience, resilience and the turning of the seasons, finding inspiration in the statues of one of Ireland’s most celebrated Big Houses at Emo Court, not far from my native Portlaoise. The poem was commissioned by Dunamaise Arts Centre, and […]