Terry George – the writer of In The Name Of The Father and director of
Hotel Rwanda – will be opening the Belfast Film Festival with a premier
of Reservation Road.

The story of loss and revenge focuses on the death of a child and
the way it effects the people involved.

"It's about a tragedy which happens to two families," the Belfast-born
film-maker said.

"One is the family of the victim, who is killed in a hit-and-run
accident, and the other is the family of the perpetrator."

But there's more to this film than a simple narrative.

"For me, it was a way of telling a story of how Americans tend to
demonise or create monsters in their heads that don't exist," Terry
said.

"Particularly after 9/11, where they need to demonise the 'other side' in order to build up the animosity and anger that has led America to the
various wars they're in."

It is a film on a much smaller scale than the award-winning Hotel Rwanda, which was set against the mass-murder taking place in the war-torn African country.

Reservation Road has a more affluent backdrop.

"Rather than the big canvas of genocide in Rwanda, this was a small tragedy that affected a smaller group of people – but it is just as devastating," Terry said.

"And it's set in suburban Connecticut – a place that's probably one of the most comfortable, safe areas in the world."

But, according to Terry, the emotions aren't that different from the harrowing scenes in Hotel Rwanda.

"It's a tough movie, it deals with a subject most movie makers don't
want to touch – the death of a child in a family due to a hit-and-run
accident – but it's something that happens to a vast number of people.

"It causes far more deaths than the number of soldiers lost in Iraq, or
the people killed in the World Trade Centre."

Yet it seems to be a subject matter that today's audiences shy away
from, as films with a darker message are having trouble connecting with moviegoers in the US.

"It was impossible to market it in the United States, because people
didn't go to see the movies dealing with death and Iraq war," Terry
said.

The target audience of middle class America was the hardest to connect
with.

"There was a trend to avoid any films which made people confront the situation they were in. That was hard."

Though he added it was something that many of today's filmmakers
have felt the impact of.

"It played out with Academy Awards because all the best picture nominees were independent films which dealt with serious topics,"
Terry said.

"All except Juno (a light-hearted movie about teenage pregnancy], which was the only film to make any money at the box office.

"It's hard for film-makers who are making movies about everyday life,
tragedy and drama," he said.

Reservation Road is another challenging work from Terry, but he said that he isn't necessarily drawn to the bleaker projects.

He first came to prominence as the writer on In The Name Of The Father, about the Guildlford Four, and made his directorial debut with Some Mother's Son, a film about the hunger strikes in the Maze.
Though it was not the Troubles in

Northern Ireland but the genocide in an African country which inspired his most recognised work, Hotel Rwanda.

"It's not a case of doing difficult topics, more whatever pops up," Terry said of his career path.

But he laughs at any suggestion that there is a grand plan behind his work: "You sort of stumble through – it's the roll of the dice with me.

"I met Jim Sheridan (In The Name of the Father director who Terry has
often worked with] and it went from there. I'm certainly not a Hollywood
director."

As well as premiering the opening film, Terry is also the new patron of
the Belfast Film Festival.

Beginning life as part of the West Belfast Festival, the film festival
became an entity of its own in 2000.

"I love the notion of the Belfast Film Festival, and this is the first
time I've been able to get back to where I came from," he said.

"I want to try and use whatever clout I have to encourage people to make movies and spread the word.

"It's an important part of the city's renaissance that cinema and the
arts should be encouraged.

"For people going out at night, other than heading to the bar or getting something to eat, cinema is the popular form of entertainment."

And Terry said it was important to develop the creative talent that
exists in Northern Ireland.

"It's an important and lucrative industry to be in – whether there's a
recession or a boom, entertainment never goes away."

The Belfast Film Festival runs until April 19. For more information or to book tickets, log on to www.belfastfilmfestival.org.