Interview with Michael Colgan

Interview with Alan Moloney



Beckett on Film was the brainchild of Michael Colgan, the artistic director of the Gate Theatre, Dublin. All the films in the series are produced by Michael Colgan and Alan Maloney for RTÉ, Channel 4 and the Irish Film Board.

Michael Colgan

Born in Dublin, Michael Colgan was educated at Trinity College. On graduating, he joined the Abbey Theatre, where he directed a number of productions. In 1978 he became manager of the Dublin Theatre Festival. From 1980 to 1983 he was artistic director of the Dublin Theatre Festival and at the end of 1983 he was appointed artistic director of the Gate Theatre.

In 1986 Michael co-funded Little Bird Productions, a film company based in Dublin and London, which has produced many television dramas and feature films. In 1998, with Alan Moloney, he formed Blue Angel Films specifically to produce the Beckett on Film Project.

In 1991 Michael produced the Beckett festival, in which the Gate presented all 19 of Samuel Beckett's stage plays over a three-week period. The festival was presented again at the Lincoln Center, New York, in 1996, once more to huge acclaim. His productions of Beckett plays have also been seen in Chicago, Toronto and the Melbourne Festival. At the Melbourne Festival the Gate's presentations won the prestigious Critics' Award. In September of last year, Michael presented the third Beckett Festival at the Barbican in London, which was the biggest ever celebration of the life and work of any writer of our times. He has written and lectured extensively on Beckett throughout the world.

Michael has also presented two Pinter festivals in association with Harold Pinter.

In 1996 Michael received the Eamonn Andrews Award for excellence in the National Entertainment Awards and in 1999 he won the People of the Year Award.

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Alan Moloney

Alan Moloney started his career in production in 1985 initially as a researcher and subsequently as a producer. During this period he worked with networks such as RTÉ, Channel 4, Channel 10 (Australia) and the BBC. In 1993 he teamed up with Tim Palmer to form Parallel Film Productions Limited. Since then Alan has produced The Signal Box, Where Do I Begin, and Boys and Men. He was co-producer of The Last of the High Kings and is executive producer of Ballykissangel.

In 1998 Alan was executive producer of two hugely successful mini-series– Falling for a Dancer and Amongst Women. Both were Parallel Films productions for the BBC, RTÉ and the Irish Film Board. In 1999, along with Tim Palmer, he produced A Love Divided and was executive producer of DDU, adetective drame series.

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