“It was always on the news, and we had bomb scares in our town.
Even though I didn’t grow up in Belfast or the North, it still felt very close.”
Belfastdoesn’t dwell on politics, but on the intimate impact a complex situation has on one family.
Caitriona Balfe in ‘Belfast.'.Rob Youngson/Focus Features
This was something that really looked at the people and how everyday life was affected."
One scene in particular rang true.
“Anyone who has an Irish mother understands that scene,” she says with a laugh.
“You will do the right thing and it doesn’t matter at what cost.”
Shooting the scene proved almost as harrowing to film as it appears on screen.
“There were shelves everywhere and they were just going hell for leather.
I remember just picking Jude up and putting him under my arm and pushing our way through.”
The sequestered crew began to feel like a family, finding joy in the midst of crisis.
“There was a freedom on the project,” she recalls.
“That’s something I’ll try and take into the next one.”
Part of that freedom also came from performing opposite children.
“Jude’s instinctual and is just playing,” she says of Hill.
“So you have to be the same way.
It’s nice to allow that to be part of your performance.”
But first, she faces the gauntlet of awards season.
She tries not to think about awards chatter too much.
“Those things are so out of your control,” she adds.
“If it happens, amazing.
You have to just think about that and if anything else comes along, then it’s gravy.”
For her, portraying Ma was reward enough.
“How can you be such a confident person but within this very small space?”
She’s legitimately curious about the question.
A version of this story appears inEntertainment Weekly’s December issue, on newsstands now andavailable to order here.
