It has been little more than a year since initial reports that 10cc’s Kevin Godley would write and direct a feature film chronicling a teenage Orson Welles’ experiences in Ireland.
While the film is not yet in production, the project is not dead by any means.
Screen Daily had reported in May 2018 that The Gate, which would be shot in Dublin and the west coast of Ireland, was to be produced by Laura De Casto, former managing director of Tartan Films, and by Andrew Bentley, former CFO Virgin Music Group and EMI International. The pair were seeking financing at the time at the Cannes Film Festival.
Cryptic Rock over-optimistically stated two weeks ago that Godley was “preparing to release his debut feature film, provisionally titled The Gate.”
However, Godley told Weird Music Forever in May that he was pushing forward with the Welles project, but made it clear it was not yet a go.
“Probably the biggest project on my slate is to direct my first feature film, which is from a screenplay I’ve written called The Gate,” Godley said. “It’s written from the perspective of Orson Welles on the last night of his life, looking back on his early years traveling through Ireland as a prospective landscape painter and ending up in Dublin at the Gate Theatre to perform his first professional engagement as an actor. So that’s something that’s very high on my agenda.”
Asked if The Gate has been green-lit, he responded, “I’m amber-lit, if there is such a thing.”
“I’ve written the screenplay, and am finding people who want to work with me on the project. People are liking the screenplay, and we’re just about to join a production team who want to make the film happen. The film hasn’t been green-lit, but there’s very good momentum behind it,” Godley said. “Putting a film together is a complex process — they should give Oscars for getting a film made, let alone making a good one. So I’m about mid-way — the screenplay took about a year to write, but it was a fascinating experience.”
Godley, a Welles fan best known for his work with 10cc, has directed more than 80 music videos working with the likes of Band Aid (Do They Know It’s Christmas) Frank Sinatra and Bono (I’ve Got You Under My Skin) and The Beatles (Real Love).
Orson Welles Sketch Book: Recalling his start at The Gate Theatre
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