Few Can See

Broadcasters across Ireland and Britain have entered into a blackout strike. The workers are transmitting a programme bringing censored voices back onto the airwaves.

"In the late 1980s, as violence continues in the north of Ireland, censorship is increasingly being enforced on British and Irish television. In response, broadcasters have entered into a blackout strike, occupying several stations and transmitting a programme bringing censored voices back onto the airwaves."

Few Can See examines the legacy of broadcast censorship of the conflict in the north of Ireland and political movements during this era. The project attempts to recreate material absent from state archives due to censorship, based on contemporary oral history interviews with people censored during this time period. Within a late 80s current affairs television format, actors verbatim re-enact edited transcripts from eighteen oral history interviews, later dubbing their own performances. This technique is inspired by the use of actors to dub the voices of censored people during the conflict.

The story is inspired by several blackout strikes which took place at broadcasters across Ireland and Britain in response to censorship. The film is primarily shot on vintage live broadcast tube cameras, resurrected for the production.

Winner of the Tiger Short Award 2024 at International Film Festival Rotterdam and originally commissioned by EVA International, Ireland’s Biennial of Contemporary Art.