New Irish movie getting early Oscar buzz after huge festival win

From the writer of Adam & Paul and Garage, JOE recently spoke to one of the film's stars.

Irish movie Everybody Digs Bill Evans is generating early Oscar buzz after picking up a major award at the prestigious Berlin International Film Festival.

Primarily filmed in Cork, the movie is a biographical drama about the legendary jazz pianist and composer Bill Evans (played by Anders Danielsen Lie - Sentimental Value, The Worst Person in the World).

The real-life Bill Evans

Based on the novel Intermission by Owen Martell, the film depicts Evans grieving the loss of his close friend and bandmate Scott LaFaro.

The plot synopsis reads: "June 1961, NYC: legendary jazz pianist Bill Evans has found his musical voice and created the perfect trio, including bass player Scott LaFaro, said to be his soulmate through music.

"A residency at New York's Village Vanguard culminates in the live taping of two of the greatest jazz records of all time in one night.

"10 days later, LaFaro dies in a car crash. Numb with grief, Evans stops playing.

"Everybody Digs Bill Evans is the story of what happened next for one of the most influential and tragic figures in 20th-century music."

Anders Danielsen Lie, star of Everybody Digs Bill Evans

The movie was made by acclaimed documentarian and music video director Grant Gee, as well as the Irish screenwriter Mark O'Halloran (Adam & Paul, Garage).

Its cast also includes Bill Pullman (The Sinner) and Laurie Metcalf (Lady Bird) as Evans' parents, along with Barry Ward (Bad Sisters), Katie McGrath (Jurassic World) and Valene Kane (The Fall).

Everybody Digs Bill Evans had its world premiere this month at the Berlin International Film Festival, where it earned rave reviews for its performances, its stylish direction, and its more intimate and thoughtful approach to a music biopic.

Grant Gee with his Berlin best director prize

Gee wound up taking home the best director prize at the event, while some reviewers have already tipped the drama for Oscar success in 2027.

Chief film critic at The Guardian, Peter Bradshaw, tweeted after seeing the film: "This Berlin Film Festival is full of surprises. I just saw next year’s Best Supporting Actor Oscar-winner: Bill Pullman in Everybody Digs Bill Evans."

Valene Kane Interview

JOE recently interviewed Everybody Digs Bill Evans' Northern Irish star Valene Kane about her underrated Channel 4 thriller drama series Summerwater.

It turned out that on the same week we spoke to the actress, she was doing ADR [automated dialogue replacement] on the biographical drama.

Valene Kane

Kane told us the following about Everybody Digs Bill Evans: "I remember when I got sent that script, I said to my agent: 'I have to get this job.'

"I love Mark O'Halloran, and this script is one of the most beautiful scripts I've ever read in my life. It's so good.

"I fought and fought and fought, and finally Grant, the director, was like: 'Fine, I'll have a meeting with you, but I think you're wrong,'" Kane said, laughing.

Continuing to chuckle, she added: "Then in the meeting, he was like: 'Oh, maybe, maybe you have something.'"

Bill Pullman, Barry Ward and Valene Kane at the Berlin International Film Festival

On filming the project in Cork, the actress said: "I didn't know that there was a film studio in West Cork. I didn't know about it until I booked the gig.

"I love working at home. I love working with Irish crews... and it was just incredible to shoot in West Cork.
"It's the most magical place and [cinematographer] Piers McGrail, what he's shot is incredible. The movie just looks incredible.
"I just want to shoot in West Cork Film Studios. I said to the guys who run it: 'I'll do any movie here,' because you're shooting in the middle of nowhere. It's heaven. You get to walk to work.
"It's the most idyllic place. Bill Pullman was like: '[Kane, breaking into a great Pullman impression] I can't believe I'm walking to the studio. This is gorgeous.'
"Also, it's such a great cast... The team are really good people, and they've really worked hard on the script, and the film looks beautiful and for [very little] money.
"That's what I love, when you go and watch something that you've done, and you shot for no money, and you're like: 'This looks insane'.
"Sometimes you do a show, and there's so much money, and you're like: 'This is all you guys did'.
"I think when there's so much money, there's a lot of opinions, whereas this was truly an artistic project.
"Grant and Janine [Marmot], the producer, and Alan [Maher], the producer, you can just tell the love that they had. It is so nice to be on a set when there's that much passion and love."