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Cricket film has blockbuster quality

Friday, 04 April 2008

HARD work, a generous business man and a massive murder hunt really paid off for a Northsider whose first ‘proper’ documentary was broadcast on Setanta Sports last month.
Paul Davey from Stonybatter in Dublin 7 could never have imagined the dramatic series of events which unfolded while he was filming in the West Indies during the 2007 Cricket World Cup.
The budding filmmaker threw himself into the deep end when he approached the Irish cricket team in a bid to film the trials and tribulations they would experience at the tournament.
“I didn’t even know the rules of cricket but I thought the team’s journey would make an interesting documentary,’ he told Northside People.
“Initially I had planned to go out for two weeks but the team did so well that I ended up extending the trip for seven weeks.”
With Ireland managing to pull off one of biggest surprises in world sport by qualifying for the final rounds of the World Cup Paul suddenly found himself badly strapped for cash.
But luckily billionaire business tycoon Dennis O’Brien heard about his plight and stepped in to keep the camera rolling.
“He kindly helped me out by offering a small donation to tie me over. He also gave me a free mobile phone,” Paul revealed.

‘Breaking Boundaries’ has all the ingredients of a Hollywood blockbuster never mind a 52-minute documentary.
“Against all odds, the Irish crew beat Pakistan, of all teams, to qualify for the Super 8 stage,” he said.
“From there on in it got very hectic and that’s an understatement.”
But Ireland’s victory celebrations were somewhat overshadowed when Pakistan’s head coach, Bob Woolmer, was found dead in his hotel room just hours after his team was unrepentantly and controversially eliminated from the competition.
Initial reports suggested the world-famous coach had been poisoned.
“We just happened to be staying in the same hotel as the Pakistani team,” Paul recalled.
“Within 24 hours the world’s media descended upon the building and it was utter mayhem.
“That all happened just hours after Ireland played beyond everyone’s expectations so we were definitely going to be dragged into the whole investigation.
“We were all fingerprinted by police and interviewed by media crews who just wanted to know what was going on inside the hotel.
“I felt the Jamaican police handled the investigation badly as all the guests had access to nearly all of the hotel but it was great for me and I got great footage.”
Paul added: “One of the Irish players I interviewed was so scared that he looked behind his shower curtain every time he time he went back to his room.”
The sudden death of Ireland’s own Bob Kerr at the tournament compounded the tragic turn of events that haunted the end of the 2007 Cricket World Cup for the Irish contingent.
The former president and chairman of the Irish Cricket Union died of a suspected heart attack.
Paul’s heartfelt and honest account of the dramatic events in the West Indies has already been widely praised by critics.
The Breaking Boundaries DVD has been released online and is also available in selected stores.

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