Linley Hamilton

Linley Hamilton is a Northern Irish jazz trumpeter, composer, educator and broadcaster whose work moves between performance, collaboration and a lifelong commitment to music. Ginger’s Hollow, his sixth studio album, brought together a transatlantic group of musicians at Camden Studios in Dublin. The record pairs accomplished playing with personal compositions, each carrying its own story, memory and sense of place.

The film needed to document an album being created in real time, where the recording always came first. Working around live sessions meant remaining quiet, responsive and unobtrusive, with little opportunity to repeat a moment for the camera. It also needed to capture the camaraderie between close friends who share a deep respect for one another’s creative process, balancing the concentration of the recording with the craic and enjoyment of making music together.

We embedded ourselves within the recording sessions, allowing the camera to observe the exchanges, pauses and performances that shaped Ginger’s Hollow as it came together. Interviews with Linley and the musicians opened up the ideas behind the music and gave the film its narrative. Bringing those reflections together with footage from the studio, we created a documentary that followed the making of the album and supported its release.