THE SEA INSIDE US
The Sea Inside Us, 2025, written by Ruth E Lyons, directed and produced by Ruth E Lyons and Colm Hogan. DOP Colm Hogan. 23min
The Sea Inside Us, a visual poem that chronicles the human relationship to the sea through salt.
What is food without salt? Food without flavour? Life without emotion?
Lyons first began working with salt as a sculptural material over 10 years ago, she has been working with mines across Europe, tracing the seam of an ancient ocean - the Zechstein Sea. The film follows Lyons into mines 300 metres underground, and across the snow- capped peaks of vast mountain ranges. We see the artist thinking through aeons and minerals, formulating questions that fathom the unknowable while reaching for the eternal. The film is shot in sites of salt production in Northern Ireland, Switzerland and Sicily and at the artist’s coastal home in the west of Ireland.
The Sea Inside Us was produced in collaboration with multi-award winning DOP Colm Hogan. With 25 years’ experience in the film industry, Colm is one of Ireland’s leading cinematographers. Lyons and Hogan have been working on The Sea Inside Us since early 2022.
The film was edited by David Qualter with sound design by Bob Brennan. Additional camera by Roman Bugovskiy and David Qualter. Underwater footage by Kevin L Smith. Titles by Alex Synge. Original cello music was composed and performed by Canadian cellist Julia Kent. Donegal composer Doimnic MacGiolla Bhríde wrote and performed the two featured songs inspired by the film’s script, alongside musicians Aodhán Gavigan and Daniel Boswell (Double Bass).
Trailer edited by Nathan Coetzee.
The Sea Inside Us was funded by salt producers Irish Salt Mining, Salines Suisses and Sosalt in addition to the Arts Council Visual Arts Project Award and Kunstverein Aughrim.
The project has been kindly supported throughout by EUsalt whom Ruth has been working with since 2014.
Special thanks to AEMI for their assistance in the promoting and dissemination of the film.
Looking forward to announcing upcoming screenings here.
A video of a special preview screening of The Sea Inside Us at Ruth’s home studio May 2025. The event was curated and produced by Kunstverein Aughrim. Video by Barry Lynch Infocus Media. Music composed and performed by Doimnic MacGiolla Bhríde with Aodhán Gavin and Daniel Bodwell (Double Bass).