BIOGRAPHY
NICKY LARKIN
Writer/director living and working in Belfast.
Born in Birr, Co. Offaly. Studied Fine Art in Galway and Chelsea College of Art, London.
Worked primarily as a gallery-based video installation artist before moving into filmmaking.
His video art, sound pieces and installations have featured in the Chicago Art Fair, Videology Brooklyn, Optica Madrid, TULCA, twice in the European Media Art Festival, and twice in EVA International. He has held solo exhibitions in Dublin, Galway, Limerick, Frankfurt, and Enschede.
In 2010 he was the youngest artist featured in Robert O' Byrne's 'Dictionary of Living Irish Artists'.
Film
In 2015 he wrote and directed his first drama, Pissing In Bottles, starring Peter Campion, Gary Lydon and Denise McCormack, which screened at the Kinofilm Manchester Film Festival, the New York State Film Festival, Belfast Film Festival, OFFline Film Festival, and was nominated for two awards at the Portsmouth International Film Festival.
His 2018 NI Screen-funded documentary Becoming Cherrie told the story of Belfast's most-loved drag queen Cherrie Ontop, aka performer Matthew Cavan, and his struggle for acceptance living with HIV in conservative Northern Irish society.
Becoming Cherrie was nominated for ‘Best British Short’ in the Iris Prize in Cardiff, won 'Best Documentary' at the Oxford Short Film Festival 2020, ‘Best LGBT Short’ at the Bolton International Film Festival 2019, and screened at Dublin International Film Festival, Dinard Film Festival, Melbourne Documentary Film Festival, IndieCork, Docs Ireland, GAZE Film Festival, MixBrasil, Seoul Int. Pride Film Festival, Chicago Irish Film Festival, Irish Film Festival London, and at the Contemporary Irish Arts Centre Los Angeles.
In 2019 he directed Cherrie, Me & HIV, a BBC NI True North doc expanding on Matthew's story. Cherrie, Me & HIV was broadcast in November 2019, and is currently available on the BBC iPlayer.
In 2020 he completed his documentary Abomination, funded by Northern Ireland Screen, following The Belfast Ensemble as they created and staged their radical opera, using verbatim hate speech from the DUP. Originally scheduled to premiere in Queen's Film Theatre Belfast in April 2020, due to the lockdown instead premiered on the QFT iPlayer.
In 2020 he wrote and directed the comedy short Gone Viral, starring Steve Blount, Abigail McGibbon and Peter Campion. Funded by Northern Ireland Screen and produced by Green Dragon Media, Gone Viral recently won 'Best UK Short' at the North London Comedy Festival, and is currently being developed into a comedy series.
He currently has a feature-length documentary in development with Screen Ireland and Mind The Gap Films about Irish trans trailblazer Rebecca Tallon de Havilland, and her incredible life story as Ireland's first publicly transgender person. He is also currently directing a four-part TV series featuring Rebecca, with Mind The Gap Films in Dublin.
He is also directing a one-hour BBC NI documentary with Below The Radar TV in Belfast, following the development of Conor Mitchell and The Belfast Ensemble's latest verbatim opera.
His feature-length thriller screenplay The Screamers was selected for development through the Northern Ireland Screen New Writer Focus 2021/22, and has been optioned by Poli Productions.
He was selected for the BBC Writersroom Belfast Voices 2021/22.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/writersroom/entries/51253ba4-d7ae-43d9-aeaa-0b48c8ec1160
FILM
FILMOGRAPHY
GONE VIRAL
2020
A middle-aged man takes to social media, determined to go viral during a global pandemic.
Starring Steve Blount, Abigail McGibbon & Peter Campion
written & directed by Nicky Larkin
produced by Raymond Lau
Green Dragon Media
DOP Jennifer Atcheson
funded by Northern Ireland Screen
watch Gone Viral here -
ABOMINATION
2020
Documentary following the creation of The Belfast Ensemble's radical DUP Opera, taking verbatim political statements and putting them to music.
directed & produced by Nicky Larkin
DOP Jennifer Atcheson
funded by Northern Ireland Screen
watch Abomination here -
BECOMING CHERRIE
2018
Multi award-winning short documentary telling the story of Belfast's most-loved drag performer, Cherrie Ontop, and the struggle of living with HIV in conservative Northern Irish society.
directed & produced by Nicky Larkin
DOP Jennifer Atcheson
funded by Northern Ireland Screen
watch Becoming Cherrie here -
MY NEAR DEATH EXPERIENCE
2020
A stand-up comedian has a near death experience on stage while describing his own near death experience of having a stroke.
Starring Terry McHugh
directed & produced by Nicky Larkin
DOP Jennifer Atcheson
funded by Northern Ireland Screen
watch My Near Death Experience here -
CHERRIE, ME & HIV
2019
BBC True North documentary exploring the stigma surrounding people living with HIV in Northern Ireland. Available on BBC iPlayer.
directed by Nicky Larkin
produced by Patricia Moore
DOP Ronan McCloskey
watch Cherrie, Me & HIV here -https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000b59d
PISSING IN BOTTLES
2015
A struggling filmmaker goes to desperate lengths to fund his art.
Starring Peter Campion, Gary Lydon & Denise McCormack
written & directed by Nicky Larkin
produced by Gary Hoctor/Hello Camera
DOP Richard Donnelly
watch Pissing In Bottles here -
OXFORD
INTERNATIONAL
SHORT FILM FESTIVAL
BEST DOCUMENTARY
winner
IRIS
PRIZE
2019
BEST BRITISH SHORT
nominee
BOLTON
INTERNATIONAL
FILM FESTIVAL
2019