My Life in Culture: Media and Communication Studies lecturer Dr. Susan Liddy

The last thing I saw and loved was… Anatomy of a Fall and just recently Ripley on Netflix which I found stylish and intriguing. I love going to the cinema and I want to see cinema-going thrive, but I grew up in two-channel land so it still seems like a minor miracle that we have so much viewing choice in our own homes with just a flick of the remote.

The book I keep coming back to… I don’t come back to any book! I love crime fiction and devour it. Val McDermid Jane Casey, Jo Spain, Steve Cavanag – the list is long!

I find inspiration in… being around vibrant, positive (often creative) people. The team at Catalyst International Film Festival and the board members of Women in Film and Television Ireland are friends as well as colleagues. I always feel more upbeat after spending time with them. Shared vision and shared sense of humour.

My favourite film is… I associate Rebecca with cosy Christmas holiday afternoons and so I revisit it from time to time. I loved Ali & Ava, Nomadland, Promising Young Woman, An Cailín Ciúin. I have lots of favourites, for all kinds of different reasons. Too many to mention.

My career highlight is… there are two – finishing my PhD and going to the graduation ceremony in Lancaster University, walking on air. The relief, my life could finally restart! In recent times, being elected President of Women in Film and Television International. It came out of the blue and took me by surprise, in a good way.

The song I listen to get in the zone is… this will be horrific to most people but I don’t listen to music much and I don’t really have any favourites!

The last series I recommended was… Sally Wainwright’s Happy Valley, to someone who had missed it completely. I think I like pretty much everything Wainwright has done on the small screen. I also recommended Beef and The Bear – Ayo Edebiri is superb.

I never leave the house without… phone, cards, keys and Kindle. If I’m delayed or end up waiting for anyone, I’m less likely to get irritated if I have my Kindle and an endless supply of books to hand!

The performance I still think about is… the pram scene with Michelle Williams and Casey Affleck in Manchester by the Sea is understated and heartbreaking. And at the other end of the scale, Bríd Ní Neachtain’s wonderfully droll performance as Mrs O’Riordan in The Banshees of Inisherin.

The best advice I’ve ever gotten… keep going, no matter what. One foot in front of the other and facing in the right direction.

The film that means the most to me is…. Planes Trains and Automobiles was one of the first ‘grown-up’ films I ever watched with my grandson, Milo. We still revisit it once in a while and it always makes us laugh.

My favourite thing about the Catalyst International Film Festival is… the people I meet along the way. Catalyst seems to bring out the best in the industry. Whether it’s individual practitioners or organisations, we mostly experience support, goodwill and a belief that change is possible and many people want to play their part.

The most challenging thing about working in film is… the often-precarious nature of the work and the opportunities. Screenwriters and filmmakers need to be resilient, tenacious and ever-hopeful that this project will be the one that breaks through. How they keep going, sometimes in the face of multiple rejections, is a source of constant amazement and respect.

If I wasn’t a lecturer, I would be… a screenwriter or an actor. Maybe it’s no surprise that a lot of my work – both academic and voluntary – revolves around the screen industries in some shape or form!

The magic of film to me is… getting lost in other worlds and walking in the shoes of others. That priceless connection with humanity. And depending on your mood or what you need emotionally at any given time, there’s a film out there waiting to transport you literally anywhere.

Imagery courtesy of Dr. Susan Liddy