Joe Mullins: «Ι tend to judge my own work»
Joe Mullins is a great actor with enormous experience in the film and theatre industry. He has many and valuable films and collaborations in his potential such as “Pilgrim Hill”, “Yellow Wallpaper”, “The Line”, “The Clockmaker’s Dream”, “Property of The State” and many others. He is also a great and experienced voice-over artist, voicing the role of the Αlien in a story called “The Chosen One” for “The Truth” podcast in New York, the role of Fr Augustine / Dick Humphries on the critically acclaimed three-part documentary ‘ 1916 ‘ for RTE & PBS, and the role of Jimmy in “The Man In The Barn”, a co-production of The Truth Recordings (USA) and RTE Radio, for RTE Radio Drama on One.
One of his best performances, it΄s as Jimmy Walsh in Gerard Barrett’s acclaimed “Pilgrim Hill”. The great actor, now is filming the role of Foreman, in “The House Of Guinness”, produced by Kudos Film and Television and he is also recently finished the filming of “Ginger Jesus”.
In addition to being a multi-talented actor, he is also a very humble, low-key and sensitive person and that comes out every single time.
Joe Mullins, through his exclusive in depth-interview at femalevoice.gr, talked to us about everything we want to know!
- Who is Joe as an actor and who is the man when the camera
turns off?
I think as an actor, I see myself more as a teller of stories. I like searching out for something new and interesting. Finding something that will challenge me and that will challenge the audience, is to preach them, to send them home debating over the film or the play.
- How did the cooperation at Pilgrim Hill” come about and what
did you get through it?
The feature film “Pilgrim Hill”, was where I got my first break. It was a story about, a lonely farmer looking after his ill father in an isolated part of Ireland. From the moment I read the script I could identify with the character of Jimmy and the director and writer were also from the country. The film ended up doing extremely well, and we travelled all over the world, even being accepted to Telluride film festival in Colorado, thanks to the director Barry Jenkins, who was one of the facilitators and loved the film. Personally the performance secured me one οf the leading agencies in Ireland ‘The agency’. And I have been with them ever since.
- Could you tell us a few words about your lead role for the feature film?
My latest film ‘The Line’, is a beautiful little story about two people who end up becoming friends and helping to heal each other. It’s a timely story about a young Ukrainian refugee, who arrives in a little village in the west of Ireland and a local older mechanic who coaches the local girls football team. He is down in his luck, drinks too much and then a tragedy befalls him. It deals with discrimination and misconceptions. But it has a redeeming quality towards the end. I liked this role, because my character was a good man, but like all people he has flaws and the young girl makes him face those flaws. We have finished the festival circuit and the producers are now in negotiations for a streaming deal.
- In which film you had the most harmonious and the best cooperation of your career?
- Which one of your theatrical works or movies is considered a milestone for you?
My most memorable stage performance would have been, John Proctor in the “Crucible”. I absolutely love the work of Arthur Miller, and it’s a play that still resonates today with the climate of misinformation, that’s out there and how people can be led by fake information. Even it was such a demanding role, it still was a pleasure for me to perform it.
- What kind of taste did your long career in theatre and television
leave on you?
- Do you think that “The Yellow Wallpaper”, flattened the one hundred percent of the book by the sole author, Charlotte Perkins Gilman?
- Are there people or situations that you believe have helped you in your career and if so, what did you get through them?
One person who particularly was an influence on me was a local man from my village, who was called Tim Dunne, he was fond of theatre. I had been a shy young lad, and still I am shy but he got me involved in a local theatre where I found my voice. In order to be able to stand in front of a crowd and be somebody and hold the audience in the palm of my hand was magic. I will always be immensely grateful to him like do many other young people. He never made money from it, but he was rich in every other way with the love and respect everyone had on him because of his generosity. He passed away a few years ago, but he is greatly missed.
- Have there ever been times when you thought about getting tired and giving up your dreams?
Have I thought of giving up??? Yes, yes, yes, so many times. People, see the roles I play but they don’t see the dozen or I don’t get for every one I succeed in. I think in a way, I love the instability, not knowing what’s around the next corner. And from my conversations with other actors, their answer is usually the same. But when you eventually get the role you forget the last for a while, and you are earning again.
- What kind of impressions and messages do you get from the public through your engagement with social media?
Ι find social media to be a strange beast. Useful to keep in touch with, what’s going on in the industry here in Ireland, but outside of that I tend to limit what feeds I follow. There is so much misinformation out there and you can easily end up spiraling down a rabbit hole with the amount of fake news out there. And I tend to keep away from, reviews on my work either good or bad. People will have so many different opinions out there, i tend to judge my own work. I think I am fairly critical. I like to find ways of improving and to be constantly learning.
- What is your opinion regarding the situation that prevails in the
world and the harsh and warlike situations around us?
Ι think it is heartbreaking to see that in the year of 2025, with all the advanced technology, that we have at our hands, we can’t make it in any better way, but we only find new ways to slaughter little children in the likes of Ukraine, Palestine and the Congo. The growth of the far right across Europe and the USA is also a major fear. And mainly being pushed by major businesses and politicians for their own self interest. And yet, we see organizations as “WHO” and other major charities tirelessly working to make things right, they are our beacons of hope.
- What are your plans, what are we going to see from you from now on?
