Mayo man’s documentary examines US ‘working poor’

Posted in Connect on April 26, 2016.

Blacksod native Anthony Monaghan has directed and produced a new documentary ‘Rednecks and Culchies’ which examines the hidden world of Irish and American construction workers who suffer from poor work habits, drug and alcohol addictions and histories of crime.

The sometimes disturbing documentary focuses on the drugs and alcohol problems of the American working class from the perspective of a self professed ‘Irish redneck’.

Anthony left home to work in the UK when he was just 15 before working all across America where he eventually ended up in St. Louis, Missouri.

Working in the construction sector in St Louis for over two decades, Tony eventually built his own company.

But he was stunned by the prevalence of poverty and addiction to hardcore drugs such as crystal meth, heroin and crack cocaine among his co-workers.

After struggling to find support for the project, he believes it’s a story Americans don’t want told, the rookie filmmaker decided to fund and direct the documentary himself.

 The documentary has been picked up for worldwide distribution and is being tipped to be a major success, it recently went on worldwide release with a portion of the profits going to a local women’s charity in Missouri, S.H.E.R.A.H.

Speaking to the Irish Mirror about the documentary Tony said “I wanted to make this film because I knew the story had to be told.”

“It’s about America, it’s about the working man and how he’s forgotten. The suffering and all the stuff they have to go through, especially being an immigrant. It’s a big story that nobody has touched before. Nobody had the balls to touch it actually.”

“But I said I’d tell it. It’s a story nobody wants to hear about their country, or anywhere – that it’s rotten to the core on the inside. These guys are working on your houses, they’re all insane and addicted and everything. And they’re the only guys you can find sometimes, you have to work with them.”

The film follows the clash of personalities in a group of blue collar workers and immigrants, who are skilled craftspeople yet due to an apathetic society and poverty, are struggling just to survive.

The up and coming documentary maker is looking to follow up his directorial debut with a project potentially much closer to home, focusing on the state of Ireland today.