TY student, Rory Glynn, not only reviews the film but also writes about the visit that Film Director, Nick Kelly, made to the TY English class in mid-December.
"The Drummer and The Keeper", Director Nick Kelly holds a Questions & Answers sesson with TY students
By Rory Glynn
Last month, TY students were lucky to receive a visit from Nick Kelly, the director of Irish film "The Drummer And The Keeper", as part of their Film Studies module. The film, which follows a drummer with Bi-Polar disorder who forms an unlikely friendship with a goalkeeper who has Asperger’s syndrome, won Best Feature Film at the Irish Film London Awards, while one of its stars, Jacob McCarthy also won for his performance.
The director discussed what had inspired him to make the film, how he cast its two leads, and the process of the movie’s production. Afterwards, there was a Q&A session where students could ask questions about the filmmaking process, and advice on the short films they are working on as part of an English project. “Use quality sound” he advised, explaining how audiences are often far less forgiving of an audio error than a visual one (and with good reason).
On the subject of making the film, Kelly talked about how it took only 20 days to shoot, and 4 years overall to complete on a limited budget of €350,000, awarded by the Irish Film Board.
Student’s Review Of Film:
The Drummer And The Keeper may not necessarily be the most realistic movie ever made, but it doesn’t have to be. It’s still a charming, funny and heartfelt feel-good drama with strong lead performances from Dermot Murphy and Jacob McCarthy.
RATING: 8/10
The 1st years completed a zombie lab today where they used their scientific methods and thinking to identify patient zero from the zombie suspects. Using measuring skills, pH, observation skills and much more they successfully identified the source of the outbreak!
Read more →
The TY Horticulture class were out in the Autumn sunshine planting Spring bulbs using the chaos planting method. This is when a multitude of different spring bulbs (Hyacinths, Daffodils, Tulips, Crocuses, Narcissi) are mixed together and randomly planted so that we have a mixture of flowers and patterns emerging in the spring. It mimics nature and so is more enticing to pollinators and native insects that need the food in Spring.
Stratford is celebrating Maths Week 2026 (12th - 18th October) with daily activities around the school, at breaktimes and in Maths classes! The tutor-time daily quiz is proving to be extremely competitive as each form group tries to solve it and then run to find Ms Matthews in order to win the box of chocolates!
Read more →
