New Film About Hockey in Belfast ‘Transcends Religion and Politics’
By CATHOLINE BUTLER
VANCOUVER - With the National Hockey League lockout a reality, many die-hard fans have reconciled themselves to watching the junior teams for their hockey fix, and arenas which were once half-full are now sold out.
A NEW MOVIE entitled When Hockey Came To Belfast focuses on two boys, one Catholic and one Protestant, who are brought together through their love of hockey. The movie was funded by the National Film Board of Canada and features the Belfast Giants hockey team.
It examines how Canada's national sport has been a small catalyst in breaking down some of the sectarian divisions in Belfast.
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So, when movie producer Linda Conway, recently called The Celtic Connection to tell us about a soon-to-be released film about hockey ....we were all ears. The movie is entitled, When Hockey Came To Belfast.
The film focuses on two boys, Paul who is Catholic and Andrew who is Protestant, and these two boys fall in love with hockey and play together on a team. They are both about 14 years of age and Paul is a goalie and Andrew is a forward.
The boys attend Belfast Giants’ games together and the film is about how their friendship was created through a neutral zone of ice hockey. It’s also about how their friendship is under risk in Belfast. They have to be careful when visiting each other and to watch what they say. They tell the story about how they deal with that in Belfast – such as not mentioning football teams, religion, schools or where they live.
The Belfast Giants hockey team is predominately made up of Canadian hockey players and since hockey came to Belfast, it’s been a huge hit. Conway explains “the players are considered stars in Belfast, and when they walk down the street, they’re asked for autographs and idolized by the kids.”
“The game is a great equalizer,” said Conway, “hockey transcends both religion and politics, so it’s a safe place for both Catholics and Protestants. The kids had never seen the game before, it’s fast, and they love the speed and the rough and tumble.
FILM PRODUCER Linda Conway is shown here near Belfast, Northern Ireland.
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“The parents love the game because ice hockey is a safe place for kids. With football there is a lot of violence, it’s still highly sectarian, and a lot of parents don’t want their kids involved in that sort of thing.”
The Belfast Giants have also helped local kids by establishing ice hockey camps at Dundonald Ice Bowl and holding training sessions. “The team involves everyone from kids six years old to 16 years old,” explains Conway. “Girls also play, so it’s really a mixed environment.
“Both the Odyssey, where the Belfast Giants play and the Dundonald Ice Bowl are considered safe zones where religion is not an issue. You’re not asked about where you come from or where you go to school and I think that’s why hockey is so appealing in Belfast.”
Linda Conway’s parents were both born in Belfast and emigrated to Montreal where they met, married, and raised a family. “I still visit family members and friends in Belfast,” said Linda, “it’s nice to hear stories from relatives who knew my mom and dad when they were kids. When I land in Belfast, there is always someone there to pick me up at the airport, and I always hate to leave.”
She said there are a lot of misconceptions about Belfast and Northern Ireland. “I think they are the most hospitable people in the world,” she said. “There are a lot of good stories that have not come out of the country, so I’m hoping my film can show a side of Belfast that isn’t quite appreciated yet.”
Conway said the idea for the film developed after a telephone conversation with a friend in Belfast. She had not heard about the Belfast Giants until her friend told her about this hockey team made up of Canadians which was bringing together Catholics and Protestants. Conway said, “something clicked in my mind, and I knew that’s a story, that’s a film. It’s about Northern Ireland, it’s about Canada and Canada’s national sport.”
She did some research and then approached the National Film Board of Canada with the idea. Within a couple of days, she got a phone call saying, “we want to do the film.” Conway said, “ I think they were really taken with the idea of Canada’s national sport being a catalyst in a small way for breaking down some of the divisions that still exist there.”
Although the focus of the film When Hockey Came To Belfast is the two boys, Paul and Andrew, Conway explained some of the other characters in the film. “Hannah and Albert are Andrew’s parents and Gordon and Ann Marie are Paul’s parent’s,” she said. “They are the ones who give us the background. They talk about the boys and they talk about Belfast and why ice hockey is so special.
“We also get to see a lot of the Giants playing at the Odyssey. We have a Canadian, Jim Graves, who is the Operations Manager of the Belfast Giants and he is interviewed on what the team has done for Northern Ireland.” Then Linda laughed and said, “oh, yes, I can’t forget this, our narrator in the film is the infamous barman from the Irish Heather in Gastown, Belfast born ‘Bucky’.”
It is very obvious that Linda Conway is passionate about the documentary. “Of course, my focus now is to promote When Hockey Came To Belfast, but what I would like to do is get together with members of the Irish community in this country to set up some sort of a structure, some sort of support system, where we can raise money for ice hockey kits. It’s incredibly expensive in Belfast and a lot of working class kids want to play ice hockey, but their parents can’t afford it.”
She said, “we’ve also talked about getting some exchange programs going. Maybe setting up a chat room so kids playing hockey in Belfast can talk to Canadian kids who are playing hockey. I really hope that something long-term will come out of the film, and I feel really good about doing that and staying away from the political process.
“The politicians will be bashing it out for many years to come, but I think if kids can start playing a lot more together, they’ll be miles ahead of the politicians.”
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When Hockey Came To Belfast will be screened at the opening night gala at the Amnesty International Film Festival on November 3 at the Ridge Theatre in Vancouver at 9 PM. Tickets available at: www.amnesty.bc.ca/filmfest Other screening venues across Canada and the U.S. are being arranged. See page xx for more details and the front cover of this issue for a chance to win free tickets.
[N.B. Several Canadian and one U.S. hockey player from the Belfast Giants were profiled in the April, May, and June 2002 issues of The Celtic Connection.]
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