One bad catch leads to many bad things in the original Celtic Noir drama
An Bronntanas is a 5-part contemporary thriller starring Dara Devaney (Na Cloigne), Owen McDonnell (Killing Eve) alongside veteran Irish American Irish TV and theatre actor John Finn (Cold Case) and a host of other exciting acting talent.
Originally screened on TG4 in 2014 the hugely popular drama forged a new genre of Celtic Noir and was an instant hit with viewers, making it one of the most popular original drama series ever broadcast on TG4.
An Bronntanas is set in a fictional village on the west of Ireland at a time when the country is under duress, the economy is crashing, and unemployment is running high. The landscape and seascape are tough, immigration is no longer a solution, in fact the growing language in this part of the world is Polish.
In the opening episode JJ Magill (Devaney) reluctantly returns to Ireland on hearing of the death of his father. The local fish factory owned and run by his family, is under fierce financial pressure and beginning to go under and with it the livelihoods of many of the villagers.
Meanwhile the rescue crew of the local independent lifeboat working off the coast of Conamara receives a distress call on a stormy night. On discovering an abandoned fishing boat with a cargo of over a million euros worth of drugs, the crew - which includes JJ - is challenged with a moral dilemma.
Do they hand over the drugs to the authorities or sell them and save their struggling village? It’s a decision that will change their lives forever…
The original Irish language show was developed by Galway based production company ROSG and Derry based De Facto Films. Additional cast includes Pól Ó Gríofa, Charlotte Bradley, Michelle Beamish, and Dean Whatton.
It is directed by Tom Collins (Kings) who also produced with Ciarán Ó Cofaigh.
An Bronntanas was funded by TG4, The BAI, Fís Éireann and Northern Ireland Screen/ Irish Language Broadcast Fund.