Private Project

Sister India

Sister Loretto left her birthplace Ireland over seventy years ago to become a teacher in Chennai, India. She has chosen to live out the rest of her years in India as the last Irish Nun in Chennai out of 131, never to return home. This is her story in her own words.

"I was invited to India to make a document of this beautiful woman Sister Loreto Houlihan, and found her love of the country and it's people, heart warming and deeply resonant. Sitting in front of her and listening to her talk was like being warmed at the hearth of an Irish fireplace on a rainy day, hearing stories as she put it, from 'the long ago'. I learned from her, that India and it's culture retains more of the life she left seventy years ago in Ireland, than the country of her birth today, and so she chooses to live the rest of her days in India. I am not of any religious demonitaion myself but I found this womans brave sacrifice to live her life teaching and caring care for the helpless, an inspiration for all." - Myles O'Reilly

  • Myles O'Reily
    Director
    My Ireland
  • Aine Edwards
    Producer
  • Project Type:
    Documentary
  • Runtime:
    42 minutes
  • Country of Origin:
    Ireland
  • Country of Filming:
    India
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Myles O'Reily

Music video and music documentary film maker Myles O’Reilly unintentionally began his career by combining three previous and not so rewarding vocations to form a new hobby while unemployed in a global recession. A gofer with Irish national broadcasters RTE, a photographer and photographic printer, and experience as a recording artist signed to Sony Music Publishing and V2 records UK, in 2009 Myles borrowed a video camera to document local musicians performances and upload the footage to Youtube.

Since then, multi-tasking O’Reilly has filmed, directed and edited over 100 music videos and 20+ music documentaries of Irish musicians at home and abroad, including music industry acts Bono, Glen Hansard, Villagers, Imelda May, The Script, James Vincent McMorrow, Sinead O’Connor, Lisa Hannigan, Mick Flannery and Julie Feeney, alongside other International artists such as Hollywood sound track virtuoso Ernst Reijseger, Icelandic artists Soléy, Múm, Sigur Ros and Amiina, Janelle Monea, Martina Topley Bird, The Staves, Tegan and Sara and a long arm list of many rising and emerging artists, all available to view from his blog Arbutus Yarns.

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Director Statement

My several years of experience working with music video and documentary has paved the way to a passionate interest in telling stories not music specific but still with a strong leaning towards soundtrack music truly collaborating with the visual. In Sister India I feel I have merged the two successfully and created a sonically visceral storytelling experience.