Ciarán Hinds, the Oscar- and BAFTA-nominated Northern Irish actor and star of films such as Belfast and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, has joined as an executive producer on the Oscar-nominated short film Three Keenings.
Oliver McGoldrick’s debut short story, Three Keenings, has been described as “a darkly lyrical exploration of grief, performance, and forgotten rituals of mourning.” The film premiered at the 2024 Venice Film Festival’s Orizzonti Short Film Competition and won the Tiernan McBride Award for Best Short Drama at the Galway Film Read, before qualifying for the 2026 Academy Awards.
Hines joins fellow executive producers Bill and Kumi Martin and IFTA-winning actor Barry Ward (“That They May Face the Rising Sun,” “Bad Sisters”).
The film, set at a rural funeral in Northern Ireland, follows a struggling actor who takes on the role of a professional mourner. As he moves from wake to wake, receiving rewards and offering his sorrows, the emotional distance he had been clinging to begins to dissolve. The film centers on the historical practice of hired mourning called “keening,” an almost forgotten Gaelic-Celtic tradition, but reimagined through a modern lens.
Led by BAFTA-winning actor Seamus O’Hara (House of Guinness, Irish Goodbye), the film also stars Ciaran Hinds’ sister Caitriona Hinds, as well as a talented ensemble from Northern Ireland including Sean Kearns, Carol Moore, Niall Cusack and Olivia Nash.
“‘Three Keenings’ is Oliver McGoldrick’s beautifully constructed, simply told and superbly shot short film about an Irish funeral service. Sarcastic and extremely witty, it has the perfect balance of humor and pathos, and is anchored by a strong performance from Seamus O’Hara.”
Director Ward added, “To me, this is an amazing short film with warmth, humanity, and a mixture of humor and pathos. This is an impressively solid piece of work that is well beyond the filmmakers’ years, and I’m really looking forward to seeing what this team creates next.”
McGoldrick said: “I’m thrilled that Ciaran and Barry are joining us as executive producers. Their presence in the Irish creative world is hugely important and I’ve grown up with their work, so it’s an inspiration to me that they’ve built their careers working with some of the defining filmmakers of this era.”
Three Keenings was developed through the New York University Tisch Program in collaboration with a global creative team including Swiss cinematographer Gianna Badiari, production designer Marianne Auvine Gould (UK/France), and producers Natalie Lemplakowski (Canada/US), Chloe Langton (Northern Ireland) and Cade Featherstone (UK). The film has been acquired by Canal+ and is currently being shown on Aer Lingus flights.
