The Seamus Heaney Centre's Michael West joins director and filmmaker Lenny Abrahamson, in conversation with students from Queen's University Belfast. Their conversation took place in January 2021, and it is one of the Seamus Heaney Centre’s regular masterclasses with renowned writers.

It was introduced by Director at the Seamus Heaney Centre at Queen’s, Glenn Patterson.

Lenny Abrahamson is the director of the critically-acclaimed Room, starring Brie Larson and Jacob Tremblay. The film was nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Room was Abrahamson’s fifth feature film. Some of Lenny’s other work includes: Garage, Adam & Paul, What Richard Did and Frank.

His latest TV series, Normal People, a 12-episode series for BBC, Hulu and RTÉ, adapted by and based on Sally Rooney’s Man Booker long-listed novel of the same name, was released in 2020. His latest feature, The Little Stranger, was released in 2018 and based on the novel by Sarah Waters.

He is also in development on a number of projects: Neverhome, an adaptation by Lucy Kirkwood of Laird Hunt’s civil war novel with Element Pictures and Film4, A Man's World based on the true story of Boxing legend Emile Griffith which he’s writing with co-writer Jon Raymond for Element/Film4, and Ourselves, a coming of age story set in 1980s Ireland, written by Mark O’Halloran.

Michael West has written for over 30 productions, including translations, adaptations — and many collaborations with The Corn Exchange theatre company, such as The Fall of the Second Republic, Dubin By Lamplight, Man of Valour and Freefall. Other work includes the stage adaptation of Solar Bones, Conservatory, FRNKNSTN and Foley. He has been teaching creative writing at the Seamus Heaney Centre since 2018.

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