biography

From their first creative engagements twenty years ago with community theatre, and on into experimental performance, complex online projects and now [35mm] films, Joe Lawlor and Christine Molloy (desperate optimists) have remained acutely aware of performance and narrative along with the seductive charge inherent in the various languages of cinema and the desire to ground their work in a feeling for lived, shared experience, place and purpose.
Gareth Evans

FILM

2008/09
Mister John
Feature film in development.

2007/08
Joy
UK | 2008 | Colour | 35mm | 1:2.35 | 9mins
Joy is a companion piece to Helen and was shot in Handsworth Park, Birmingham on 28th October 2007 using the participation of local members of the community.

Helen
UK/IRL | 2008 | Colour | 35mm | 1:2.35 | 79mins
Helen in the debut feature film of Christine Molloy and Joe Lawlor which premiered at the Edinbugh International Film Festival in June 2008 where it was nominated for a Michael Powell award and was picked up for distribution by New Wave Films.

2006
Daydream
UK | 2007 | Colour | 35mm | 1:2.35 | 29mins
www.desperateoptimists.com/civiclife/Daydream.html

2005
Leisure Centre
UK/IRL | 2005 | Colour | 35mm | 1:2.35 | 17mins 40secs
www.desperateoptimists.com/civiclife/leisurecentre.html

2005
Town Hall
UK | 2005 | Colour | 35mm | 1:2.35 | 10mins 35secs
Currently in post-production.
www.desperateoptimists.com/civiclife/TownHall.html

2005
Twilight
UK | 2005 | Colour | 35mm | 1:2.35 | 5mins 20secs
www.desperateoptimists.com/civiclife/Twilight.html

2004
Revolution
UK | 2004 | Colour | 35mm | 1:2.35 | 9mins 53secs
www.desperateoptimists.com/civiclife/revolution.html

2004
Moore Street
IRL | 2004 | Swahili/English | Colour | 35mm | 1:2.35 | 5mins 45secs
www.desperateoptimists.com/civiclife/moorestreet.html

2004
Who Killed Brown Owl
UK | 2004 | Colour | 35mm | 1:2.35 | 9mins 23secs
www.desperateoptimists.com/civiclife/BrownOwl.html

VIDEO
2002
Night Bus
www.desperateoptimists.com/nightbus/index.html

2001/2002
London Framed
www.desperateoptimists.com/london_framed/index.html

Apt#801
Shot on DV and transferred on to 35mm
3mins

2000
No Motive
17min video

1999
Shot 7
Directed and edited a 9 minute film for Urban Shots, a live outdoor event as part of Weimar 1999 Cultural Capital programme.
Shot on 16mm and transferred to DV
9mins

1997
BLIPVERT
Shot on Hi8 and transferred to 35mm
45 seconds

ONLINE
2003
Wirecrossing
www.wirecrossing.org.sg

2003
Home Turf
A moving image project commissioned by the Hayward and Moving South.

2002
Domestic
A Shooting Live Artists commission.

Minute By Minute
www.desperateoptimists.com/minute/index.html

2001
All you need to make a film is a girl and a gun
www.darklight-filmfestival.com/site/stray

Haverhill2000
www.haverhill2000.com

map50
www.desperateoptimists.com/map50_website/web1/index.html

2000
lostcause1-10
www.desperateoptimists.com/lostcause

AWARDS, NOMINATIONS AND SELECTIONS

Helen: nominated for a Michael Powell Award at Edinburgh International Film Festival 2008;
shortlisted for the Golden Hitchcock Award at Dinard British Film Festival 2008;
shortlisted for the Fipresci Award at Haifa Film Festival 2008; selected for the XploreZone Award programme at Flanders International Film Festival 2008; selected for the Cinema Extraordinaire - Competition at Bergen International Film Festival 2008; nominated for the Sutherland Trophy at London Film Festival 2008.

Joy: joint winner of the Best Live Action Short Award at the Darklight Festival 2008.

Joy: nominated for a European Film Award to be announced on 6th December 2008.

Joy: winner of the Prix UIP Rotterdam 2008.

Who Killed Brown Owl: shortlisted for the 13th Kodak/BAFTA Short Film Showcase.

Who Killed Brown Owl: joint winner of the Best British Short Film Award at the Edinburgh International Film Festival 2004.

desperate optimists nominated for the 2003/04 Paul Hamlyn Award.

map50: shortlisted for a transmediale.02 award (in the image category).

map50: shortlisted for competition during the Viper International Festival 2002.

desperate optimists received an Honorary Award from Dartington College of Arts. The Award was presented to the company at the Graduation and Awards Ceremony on November 8th 1997.

PUBLICATIONS AND DVDs
Darklight Compendium Vol. 1 DVD: Revolution is featured in this DVD that contains a selection of films from the first 7 years of the Darklight Festival.

Best v Best: DVD containing a selection of award winning short films that includes Who Killed Brown Owl.

Made in Liverpool 06: Book and DVD documenting the Made in Liverpool programme at the Liverpool Biennial 2006 including Daydream.

Civic Life: DVD and book that reflects on and features the complete Civic Life series of short films.

Ireland at the 26th Sào Paulo Bienal, Light on the City: The Cinema of desperate optimists, by Ben Slater.

Stalking Memory:CD-ROM was distributed in December 2000 with the On Memory issue of Performance Research (Vol5 No3).

British Art: Defining the 90s Art and Design, Profile No 4 - Performing Questions, An interview with Adrian Heathfield.

Curating: The contemporary Art Museum and Beyond Art and Design, Profile No 52 - Showtime, by Lois Keidan.

Entropy: Experimental Culture from the Margins to the Edge, Volume one, Issue three - Upping the Stakes, desperate optimists in conversation with Entropy.

Performance Research: On Refuge, Volume 2, No. 3. Autumn 1997 - Photogrammetry, Prepared Pages by desperate optimists.

Performance Research: On Refuge, Volume 2, No. 3. Autumn 1997 - Performing Displacement: desperate optimists and the Arts of Impropriety, by Andrew Quick.

LIVE PERFORMANCE
2002
Kitchen Sink
A collaboration with final year Theatre students from Lancaster University which premiered at the Nuffield Theatre, Lancaster on February 12th 2002.

2000
Time-bomb
A collaboration with the Dublin Youth Theatre which premiered at Project Arts, Dublin on November 6th 2000.

1999
Urban Shots
A large scale site-specific event written by desperate optimists for Theaterhaus Jena which premiered in July 1999 as part of Weimar '99.

Bull
A quartet for four performers that took place in a roofless Icehouse in downtown Phoenix, Arizona.

1998-99
Play-boy
Play-boy premiered at Prema Arts Centre, Uley and then toured throughout 1998-99, including a two week run at the Young Vic Studio, London and performances in Dublin, Rotterdam, Utrecht, Amsterdam, Helsinki and Stockholm. Funded by London Arts Board and the Arts Council of England.

1997-98
Stalking Realness
desperate optimists received a commission from Arnolfini, Bristol to make Stalking Realness. The piece premiered at Arnolfini at the end of October 1997 before embarking on a national and international tour including a two week run at the Young Vic Studio, London and performances at Berlin, Utrecht, Rotterdam and Finland. Stalking Realness was funded by London Arts Board and the Arts Council of England.

Evidence
The company were invited to participate in a European Theatre Festival, transeuropa Ô97 in Hildesheim, Germany. Here they worked with other European practitioners to produce an International Co-production in a large, dis-used Bosch Factory in the city of Hildesheim. The production called, was a very successful part of the festival.

1996-97
Indulgence
desperate optimists worked in residency in Dublin, Ireland as part of a commission by Project Arts Centre, funded by the Irish Arts Council. There they premiered Indulgence as part of the Dublin Theatre Festival. They then embarked on a national and international tour up until May 1997. Indulgence was performed 37 times including a two week run at Young Vic Studio, London and performances in Utrecht and Rotterdam, NL and Hildesheim, Germany. Indulgence was funded by London Arts Board and the Arts Council of England.

1996
• In November 1996 desperate optimists delivered the Steve Rogers Memorial Lecture as part on Now '96.

1995-96
Dedicated
In 1995 desperate optimists were artists in residence at The Showroom Gallery, East London throughout the month of March. The residency culminated in the presentation of Dedicated to capacity audiences over 3 nights. For this the company received a commission from The Showroom Gallery. In October 1995 desperate optimists worked in residency at the CCA, Glasgow to rework Dedicated for touring. Dedicated was performed 21 times including performances at the Battersea Arts Centre, London and peformances in Dublin and Denmark. Dedicated was funded by the Arts Council of England and the Eastern Arts Board.

1993
HOPE
HOPE toured both nationally and internationally during 1993 and 1994. In total HOPE was performed 18 times including performances at the ICA, London and the Royal Court Theatre Upstairs, London and performances at Project Arts Centre, Dublin. HOPE received a Barclays New Stages Award and was commissioned by the ICA Live Arts Department as part of the Acts of Faith season.

1992
Anatomy of Two Exiles
Throughout 1992/93 desperate optimists toured this production both nationally and internationally, performing 15 times including performances at the ICA, London. In 1996 desperate optimists were invited to bring Anatomy of Two Exiles to the USA as part of a tour by the ICA. Since then they have performed the production 5 times in the USA but also in Aarhus, Denmark and Antwerp, Belgium and Manchester, England.

AUDIO
2000
Crimescene
desperate optimists were commissioned by ArtsOnline.com to produce a 3min audio piece that was premiered on their web site on 31st December 2000.

RE:PLAY
Audio work for local radio with young Welsh people. Broadcast on radio Cerdigion. RE:PLAY was commissioned as part of the Restless Gravity International performance festival.

1999
Livestream
30 minute audio sequence mixing music and text broadcast by Gaialive as part of Alan Howley's Livestream sessions.
www.torkradio.com

1998
The Club Scene
desperate optimists received a commission from TORKRADIO (produced by Chris Dorley-Brown and Bob Jaroc) to create a 2 hour piece of work to be broadcast live as part of a continuous 72hr live webcast that happened between 16th and 18th October at the Junction, Cambridge.
www.torkradio.com