Producer James Flynn, partnered with producer Juanita Wilson in Octagon Films Ltd., recalls, “The story was brought to us in 1999 by Christian O’Reilly, who worked in the Centre for Independent Living (CIL) in Dublin in the mid-1990s. At CIL, he worked closely with Dermot Walsh, a man who has cerebral palsy, in the campaign for personal assistance funding and equality for people with disabilities in society.”

Wilson adds, “We immediately empathized with the compelling idea of a character who has to learn how to live in the outside world for the first time after 24 years of being institutionalized. We knew it had the potential to be a funny, moving, and uplifting story which challenged our preconceptions on every level.”

O’Reilly remembers, “I had applied to work part-time at the Center for Independent Living (CIL), not quite knowing what sort of job it would be. When I met activist Martin Naughton it was the first time I saw ‘independent living’ in action. Martin’s personal assistant facilitated his everyday and working life – from lifting the cup of tea to his lips to drink, to driving his van, to assisting Martin with the practical things of day-to-day life. Martin was the employer; he was in charge, and he decided what he wanted to do and when. That is the key to true independent living.

“The great thing about the funding provided to the CIL was that 29 people with disabilities were now able to do many of the things that non-disabled people take for granted, all because they had funding for personal assistants. Their drive and determination made me realize that there was a story here that could make a marvelous film.” The Octagon partners agreed, and optioned O’Reilly’s story idea.

Wilson reflects, “What emerged was a very strong story about two characters who find it in themselves to overcome adversity. It’s not an issue-driven film about prejudice or social exclusion. The heart of the story is about taking risks – challenging expectations, falling in love, finding friendship – and ultimately accepting yourself and finding your place in the world.”

Co-producer Catherine Tiernan, head of production and development at Octagon, had worked with people with disabilities and warmed to the script immediately. She states,“This is a story about personalities, approaching a subject that a lot of people do not engage with and, indeed, shy away from.” Further developing the story and ideas, the producers approached screenwriter and novelist Jeffrey Caine to take on the material. Caine introduced new ideas, including the “buddy” element, redefined the main characters, restructured the story, and provided the themes of friendship and liberation.He notes,“The producers were keen to portray the challenges of disability while also telling an affecting human story – one which just happens to be located in Dublin but which has universal appeal.

“Michael’s significant speech impairment means that nobody hither to has managed to decipher him or guess the complexity of his mind. When Rory – unfulfilled, iconoclastic, angry – enters Carrigmore and understands him, it’s a revelation to Michael. Later, whenSiobhán enters the picture, a more complex set of inter-relationships develops.”

By March 2003, Caine’s screenplay had come together,and the producers approached Damien O’Donnell, their first choice to direct. He soon came aboard. “Film-making is a truly collaborative process,” says Wilson. “We knew that Damien would be a terrific navigator for the team.”

Flynn adds, “Damien is great at bringing out the humor in a story. That makes it more accessible to an audience, enabling them to open their eyes and enjoy a good story well-told. He also creates a real live energy on the set. Damien and the actors had a great chemistry from day one of the rehearsals, and that continued throughout the shoot.”O’Donnell says, “I read the script and I heard Rory’s voice and saw Michael’s journey and the lads’ friendship. So my immediate instinct was to do this film, which to me is about liberation. Michael’s feelings are internalized, but he wears his vulnerability on his sleeve. Rory has this hard shell, and is full of rebellion and violent energy that has no outlet until he becomes friends with Michael.”

With the director committed, the producers went to the Cannes International Film Festival to announce the project and secure funds forthe movie. Flynn recalls, “As soon as we got back from Cannes, Working Title Films invited us over to meet them in London. Rachael Prior [head of Development at WT², Working Title’s division dedicated to new U.K. talent and lower-budgeted films] had read the script, loved it and passed it onto [WT² head] Natascha Wharton, who had the same reaction. They set up a meeting among us, them, and [Working Title co-chairs] Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner.

“The next morning at 8:30, Tim Bevan rang me and said ‘If that other 40% you’ve got stacks up (we had Irish and U.K. tax funding and production support from the Irish Film Board), we’ll dothe other 60%. You need to stop chasing piece meal money and go and make your movie.’ And that was it – it worked out as a productive partnership.”

Wilson states, “Working Title/WT²’s commitment to the story was wonderful, and they gave us great support during production. It’s encouraging to know that such experienced producers are not afraid of taking on challenging subjects– and believe they can be made accessible to a large audience.”

The demanding lead roles of Rory and Michael would require total dedication and commitment from two actors in their early 20s, andO’Donnell and casting director Wendy Brazington saw many contenders. O’Donnell comments, “90% of getting the film right is in the casting. Steven Robertson had never done a film before but Wendy had seen him on stage and was really impressed. As soon as I met him and he read for the role, I knew immediately that he was right for the part of Michael.

“Rory was much more difficult to cast; it was a challenge in that he can be an annoying bastard at times – butthat’s also what makes him special. James McAvoy had just done Bright Young Things with Stephen Fry, which Wendy had worked on. He has such a strong presence onscreen, a very raw, powerful talent. He’s perfect as Rory, able to express the rebel spirit but also the vulnerability behind the bravado.”

For the role of Siobhán, an actress was needed to portray a young woman who has everything going for her yet is not exactly sure where she wants to go. Wilson states, “We had all been impressed with Romola Garai’s previous work. She manages to combine a strong and fun-loving spirit with a certain innocence, making Siobhán very charming. There is no doubt in anyone’s mind why the two boys fall in love with her.”

Rounding out the cast are three familiar Irish faces: Academy Award winner Brenda Fricker as Eileen, the formidable Carrigmore supervisor who agrees to disagree with Rory; Gerard McSorley (Veronica Guerin) as Michael’s estranged father; and veteran actor Tom Hickey, who, as Wilson notes, “gives [his character of Rory’s father] Con O’Shea a great pathos and charm.”

Cast and filmmakers prepared for Rory O’Shea Was Here by spending time with people with disabilities, and by researching disability issues. O’Donnell and Caine each consulted with individual people with disabilities about the story and characters. They, along with other members of the cast and crew, visited residential and day centers, met with professionals working in the field, and attended medical lectures. O’Donnell muses, “The story that evolved has no distinctly personal origins; rather, it’s a blend of experiences and research. Our film is about two characters whose friendship changes each of them. That’s a universal theme, only in this case it’s set in the context of the lives of people with significant physical disabilities – so we had a big responsibility to get details right. We all worked to ensure that these characters and their situations were accurate– fictionalized, but accurate.

“Everyone involved in making the film spent time meeting people with disabilities and researching disability in order to get a thorough understanding of all the aspects involved. We talked to people about the characters in the script and how they related to them, and how their own experiences related to our story.”

Tiernan adds, “We wanted everyone directly engaged with the subject matter, rather than leaving it all to one expert. At the same time, details like how Michael would brush his teeth had to be just right.”

The research continued once filming began. O’Donnell reports, “Many of our extras were people with disabilities, who were great. They offered advice about the scenes they were in, and got really involved in the whole process.”

Wilson says, “We decided that the cast and each department should research their own areas during pre-production, but then also have access to advice and research resources during production and post-production. Everyone had constant access to a consultant who advised on all kinds of specialist support, the design of sets, the use of language and terminology, and many more details.”

A key advisor to the Rory O’Shea Was Here cast and filmmakers was Maureen Gilbert, an experienced consultant on disability issues (one of seven engaged by the production). She states, “This film is a great opportunity to communicate issues and ideas about people with disabilities in a real and compelling way. Rory and Michael are engaging two lads doing ‘laddish’ things. Non-disabled people have an incomplete understanding of disability. We tend to box off people whom we label as ‘different.’ It makes more sense to see people as people.”

“There is no attempt to over dramatize or romanticize their disability,” agrees Garai. “It’s treated as an aspect of their lives, and the characters develop to the point that disability is in the background.”

But to finesse that transition, the two lead actors had to burrow especially deep into the research and consultations to well-representand incarnate people with disabilities. McAvoy explains, “Every little detail was investigated and informed by very practical research, because it was important for the story we were trying to tell; how would Rory drink his Guinness? How do we get ready for bed?”

Robertson confides, “I spent six weeks constructing the layers of where disability brings you. Spending time with people with disabilities was invaluable. It was a process of osmosis.  Just learning to understand and look at little things from another perspective was so helpful. ”Being Scottish, McAvoy worked out Rory’s Dublinaccent with the aid of voice and dialogue coach Brendan Gunn, who also points out that “actors have to change their physiological system to get another dialect.”

McAvoy was very aware of the physicality of speech. He says, “I do a lot of physical work as an actor. Your accent actually changes your physicality and the way you play a character. On Rory O’Shea Was Here, I held a position in the wheelchair that was often painful – very very still – and that affected the way I spoke. I found that I was licking my lips more than usual, that I had this craving to express. After all the rehearsals and research, I was confident that I understood Rory. All the time we spent on preparations was really worth it.”

Going in another direction, Robertson had to learn a whole new way of communicating, since Michael has a significant speech impairment. Robertson admits, “I practically had to learn a new language. This was a unique role which demanded a lengthy process.”

To play scenes, Garai had to acclimate herself and her character to Michael’s speech pattern. She remembers, “Watching and listening to Steven perform Michael was like learning a language. My ear became attuned. But I also learned from watching James express Rory’s responses to Michael,and how his emotional intensity reveals his thoughts.”

The two lead actors honed in on the give-and-take between their characters. McAvoy notes, “At first impression, Rory comes across as stubborn, a smart aleck, a rebel – basically a pain in the a--. But his relationship with Michael shows that there is a lot more depth to his character.

“For me, what works about the relationship is that Rory is the rebel and Michael is passive/aggressive – but tension is building in him.That contrast establishes the friendship element.”

“That friendship heightens Michael,” says Robertson. “Rory brings Michael forward in life, even as he rages against the dying of the light. The fact that he wants to live so much in the little time that he has, that he desires to make an impact – this zest for life is what wins Michael over. Michael sees beyond the loud guy with the dyed hair.

“Rory bursts the cocoon of Michael’s life; he’s cushioned in a comfort zone, but his contentment is not real. Or maybe he is content, but he is not happy and there is an agitation inside. Rory makes him aware that there are choices.”

Garai notes, “By watching the development of the relationship between Michael and Rory, it becomes clear that to empower someone you have to allow them to be flawed. You have to allow people to be human to accept them. ”Of the characters’ feelings for Siobhán, McAvoy notes, “Rory warns Michael that he will be hurt, yet knows it’s something Michael has to go through as part of learning. In a way, his warning Michael is vocalizing a warning to himself as well. They both have to learn to accept their differences, and that you can’t make the world over to suit you.”

Robertson says, “Michael falls in love with an ideal. This is a new world for him, and he goes on a rollercoaster of experiences and emotions. Rory reminds him that this is life, and that it is good to feel these things – even if it hurts. You have to embrace new feelings, because that means you are alive.”