Oonagh Kearney was born in Bristol in 1976. Raised in Cork, she studied English and Philosophy at University College Cork where she began writing and directing for the stage. She completed her Masters in Irish Theatre at Trinity College Dublin and wrote her thesis on Samuel Beckett. In 2001, she was selected for the inaugural Rough Magic Seeds Program for emerging Irish writers. 

Her introduction to film began with casting Ken Loach’s The Wind That Shakes the Barley in 2005. The following year, Oonagh received a Bank of Ireland Scholarship to study for a diploma at the National Film and Television School in London. Since graduating in 2008, Oonagh has written and directed award-winning shorts and shown her work at various international festivals.

As a filmmaker, she likes to explore characters at critical moments of change, often connected to defining rites of passage. She is interested in the configuration and representation of female identity, the impact of family, the tensions between our private and public selves and the role of play and imagination in our lives. Working across diverse visual mediums including fiction, experimental documentary and dance on film, she is fascinated by the relationship between art and life. 

Oonagh is based in Shoreditch, East London. She is currently making an arts documentary called Wonder House, about art and science. 

www.oonaghkearney.com