The work of gifted virgin film-maker Alan Kavanagh finally sees the light of day via RTE’s Storyland Competition. WE OWN THE STREETS is Alan’s tough yet poignant documentary on a homegrown enigma – Cork’s XL.
But who is this man of mystery? XL is a free-thinker, free-spirit, free-runner, and self-styled music impresario. While on work experience with Alan, cameraman Ian came across XL on a music chatroom while looking for a free white-label music soundtrack. Alan saw some small screen potential in XL’s free-wheeling movements and thoughts.
Rigorously applying the tropes of cinema verité, Alan always shoots on location, in real time and employs no artificial lighting, props, special effects, or caterers. His vision is to show the world the world through XL’s eyes. The aspects of cinematography that Alan strives to capture are raw action, lighting, an element of surprise, good-looking actors, and the hardest of all to capture – love.
Watch Alan and his crew grapple with the indefinable talents of XL on www.rte.ie/storyland/weownthestreets
For more on XL, see:
