Nishan Chakrabartty
‘Herself’ is an endearing drama directed by Phyllida Lloyd, known for her musical blockbuster, ‘Mamma Mia!’ (2008) and ‘The Iron Lady’ (2011) that earned Meryl Streep an Academy Award for her portrayal of Margaret Thatcher. Unlike her previous films, Phyllida Lloyd ventured into the indie circuit with this low-budget film. Clare Dunne co-wrote and stars as the lead, Sandra, who has two kids and is left homeless when she leaves her husband after being subjected to violent domestic abuse.
The film’s premise is distressing in tone, but as it moves along, it builds into a story of compassion, kindness, and the lionhearted will of Sandra. ‘Herself’ has certain elements of Ken Loach’s social realism. It takes us through the hardships that a woman has to face in a patriarchal society. Nevertheless, it doesn’t portray the story of a victim – it uplifts the narrative and gives the viewers a subject of joy and celebration of community ideals. This particular fact made us look through the filming locations to get a better understanding of the film. Here’s what we found out!
Herself Filming Locations
‘Herself’ is set in Dublin, Ireland, and was shot entirely in Dublin itself in 2019. The story navigates the social realities of the city, especially the housing crisis and extreme property rates that drive the premise of the film. ‘Herself’ was developed with Screen Ireland and BBC Films and was backed by the BFI. Academy Award nominee Ed Guiney (‘The Favourite,’ ‘Room,’ ‘The Lobster’) and BAFTA winner Sharon Horgan also produced the film.
Dublin, Ireland
The capital city of Ireland, Dublin, has many picturesque locales as well as an urban landscape to depict a city containing within itself an old-world charm and modern aura. The filming process of ‘Herself’ continued for five weeks in Dublin, followed by the post-production, which took place in London, England. The filming of the house-building scenes took place in Clontarf, a coastal suburb situated in Northern Dublin.
The other locations were scouted in the Dublin suburbs close to the main city. All the heavy power tools used for filming the house construction were handled carefully, owing to a crisp shoot schedule. In an interview with RTÉ Ireland, Phyllida Lloyd spoke about the filming process in detail. She said, “All of the actors had to learn how to use those pretty lethal-looking power tools and heavy-lifting without damaging themselves. It was a quick shoot, but we were well prepared.”
Read More: Is Herself Based on a True Story?
