The latest episode of The Irish Marketing Podcast has dropped, with the second part of our summer creative series featuring an interview with Molly Kiely, filmmaker and creative producer with Ringers.
During the conversation, Kiely discusses her award-winning documentary “At the Bottom of the Reen” and how the experience helped inform some of the thinking behind Smithwick’s Find Originals campaign, which featured Kozo Toyota, Tokyo’s original Irish traditional musician.
“At the Bottom of the Reen” is an intimate portrait of a rural Tipperary pub that has hosted a traditional Irish music session for more than 60 years. What began as an exploration of whether music had replaced Mass as a communal ritual developed into a deeper story about fossil fuels, economic decline and the gradual erosion of rural community life. At its centre is the pub’s owner, who must decide whether to keep the doors open or move on, knowing that her decision could threaten one of the area’s last remaining social spaces.
Kiely also discusses the crossover between her documentary work and her commercial career. She explains how the discipline required to tell a compelling story in a 30- or 60-second advertisement has made her a sharper long-form storyteller, while the depth and humanity of documentary filmmaking continue to influence her work for brands.
The Irish Marketing Podcast is brought to you by the team at Adworld/IMJ and Tinpot Productions. It is hosted by Daryl Moorhouse.
