M'ANAM : Between Two Worlds

Filmed in Donegal and Southern Iceland.

M’ANAM are a vocal group that combine the two ancient cultures of Ireland and Iceland, singing songs inspired by the natural landscapes around them. The men of M’ANAM have created a sound-world for our modern times using the words of those long dead including the Viking eulogy “Deyr Fé” and the 9th century Irish author of “Bitter Wind”. This film explores the creative soul of this unique group with interviews from the key people involved in their creation. The film combines the evocative landscapes of Ireland and Iceland with live performances filmed in Dublin and Reykjavík.

  • Michael McGlynn
    Director
  • Michael McGlynn
    Producer
  • Bjarni Guðmundsson
    Key Cast
  • Philip Barkhudarov
    Key Cast
  • Michael McGlynn
    Key Cast
  • Brian Masterson
    Key Cast
  • Cian O'Donnell
    Key Cast
  • Fergus Cahillane
    Key Cast
  • Project Type:
    Documentary
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 1 minute
  • Completion Date:
    July 7, 2023
  • Country of Origin:
    Iceland
  • Country of Filming:
    Iceland, Ireland
  • Language:
    English, Icelandic, Irish, Latin
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Michael McGlynn

Michael is a composer and is Artistic Director of the groups ANÚNA, M'ANAM and Systir. He directs and produces performance and documentary films. Invocations of Ireland (2008) has been broadcast across Australia and New Zealand and released on DVD in Australia [DV1] and Japan [Columbia]. In December 2020 his film ANÚNA : A Whisper of Paradise (2020) was broadcast as part of the Voces8 Live from London series, while ANÚNA : On a Cold Winter’s Night (2020) has been broadcast on SVT2, Sky Arts and TG4 (Ireland) in Ireland.

He has created shorts and promotional films for Nintendo, Square, Wexford Opera, Systir, M’ANAM and ANÚNA.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

I've been creating promotional films for my vocal groups since 2003 and it hasn't been a huge leap to focus on making full-length features. My fascination has always been with landscape and how we relate to it with an emphasis on music. In a world where we can create any image from a text prompt, I try and keep my films as real as possible.