Abhartach
a film by David Smith
music by Siobhán Cleary
with
Úna Monaghan, harp
Commissioned by The Dock Arts Centre, 2023
Abhartach, is a story from Irish Mythology, written in blood. The music of Siobhán Cleary evokes this dark tale of a tyrannical warlord who developed a taste for blood and couldn’t be killed. A neighbouring Chieftain, Cathán, with the help of his wolfhound and a druid attempts to end the supernatural rampage.
The film responds to the dark atmosphere of Cleary’s music with solo harpist Úna Monaghan and shifts away from a linear narrative, instead, leaning into abstraction, horror and experimentation.