Saoirse Ronan pictured filming in Enniscorthy with local extras, Ben Kavanagh and Conor Sinnott

‘BROOKLYN’, which was partly filmed in Enniscorthy last year, has secured the biggest deal from the Sundance Film Festival.
The bidding for the movie, based on local writer Colm Toibin’s hit novel and starring Saoirse Ronan, sparked interest from a number of studios including the Weinstein Co., Focus Features and Roadside.
Eventually, it was sold to Fox Searchlight for a huge $9 million.
The movie, directed by John Crowley and also starring Domhnall Gleeson, Julie Walters and Jim Broadbent, premiered Monday night last and received a standing ovation, a rarity at this year’s festival.
Bidding took place overnight, reaching mid-seven figures by morning. By mid-afternoon, the high bid was over $8 million.
By the end, the deal had settled in the $9 million range and included U.S. rights plus some international territories as well.
The deal looks set to be one of the richest ever made at Sundance. Searchlight has been involved in some record-breaking Sundance deals before, including one in the $10 million range for ‘Little Miss Sunshine’ back in 2006.
‘Brooklyn”s success at the festival has created strong Oscars buzz, with American media writing rave reviews and describing it as a cross between ‘An Education’ and ‘In America’.
The film is set in 1950s Ireland and centers on a young woman (Ronan) trapped in between two men and two countries, testing her commitment to true love and her duty to her home country.
Fox Searchlight Pictures Presidents Stephen Gilula and Nancy Utley commented: “We were overwhelmed by this epic film – the impeccable direction, the flawless attention to detail and Saoirse’s heartbreaking performance of Eilis’ emotional journey. This film is the kind of classic love story that audiences yearn for and is so often missing from today’s world.
“We could not be more thrilled to have Searchlight as the home for Brooklyn. They are as passionate about the film as we, John and Nick are and their pedigree is a perfect fit.”
The film is due for release later this year.

Full Brooklyn coverage by Niamh Devereux in this week’s Echo.