“[My dad] really started to inhabit the characters, especially Ray, speaking as him during the writing process. That was when I realized this was going to be its own kind of special beast. Working with him taught me so much as a writer and storyteller; by the time we got to set, we had a shorthand for everything,” says director and co-writer Ronan Day-Lewis about writing the script Anemone with his father, Daniel Day-Lewis.  

The film Anemone, starring Daniel Day-Lewis, Sean Bean and Samantha Morton, paints a portrait of a family torn apart as they struggle to come to terms with their past and present after their harrowing experiences with the Troubles in Northern Ireland in the 1970s. Isolation, shame, regret and the true meaning of brotherhood are themes explored in this hyper-focused family drama.  

On today’s episode we sit down with Ronan Day-Lewis to find out more about his edgy first feature film, what it’s like writing a screenplay with Daniel Day-Lewis, and Ronan’s personal connection between his visual art and the imagery in the film. 

Ronan also shares this advice to screenwriters tackling family and generational stories: “Whatever you can fall in love with, latch onto that: an image, a feeling, a character. Don’t put pressure on approaching a script a certain way. Stay open, be patient, and keep sight of what originally gave you the impulse to enter that world. Over time, the story will reveal itself to you.”

To learn more about this surprising and deeply emotional film, listen to the podcast.