A Hollywood actor best known for roles in The Big Lebowski, Modern Family and The Crow has signed up to play a part in a new Irish online mini-series.
'Rising' will be released next year around the 100th anniversary of the 1916 Rising, and tells the story of 'a shady multinational, which is in bed with a corrupt Irish Government.'
The story will follow six citizens, from the most powerful to the most vulnerable, and their struggle to survive when there is a viral outbreak and the truth is leaked.
Jon Polito has agreed to play Marty Taylor. "He's an ex-activist who was blacklisted later in his career for trying to expose the corruption at ValeTech. Marty's a good guy but he battles between his integrity and his ego - the need to vindicate himself", Polito said.
Co-created by Laura Way and Jonathan Hawtrey Clark and produced by Jonathan Farrelly, the new media production reflects some of the circumstances that pre-empted the 1916 Rising and is a modern take on the meaning of 'independence'.
Rising will be screened online as a five part web series to a global audience in 2016, but the people behind it say they need to raise more money to get the job done.
"The Queen Of Ireland is a great example of a successful crowd funding campaign and an even bigger success at the box office" said producer, Jonathan Farrelly.
Director, Laura Way is hoping to follow in the footsteps of hugely successful shows like The Fall and Love/Hate. She wants to "create a 'Genre' TV show and break the mould with regard to what is expected from a television programme conceived of, shot and produced in Ireland."
"Setting Rising in the not too distant future gives us a lot of creative freedom, future technology is subtly integrated into the everyday so the audience will still identify with the characters. Everything will be caught in camera and VFX added later", she explained.
Filming will take place in Wexford and other counties, and there are just days left until the team's crowd funding campaign comes to a close.
You can find out more about the project and how you can get involved here.
