Galway film company Sónta have just finished principal photography on their new feature documentary ‘Ám Lón- Men at Lunch’ that reveals the fascinating human story behind one of the most iconic images of the 20th century - Lunch atop a Skyscraper - a black and white photograph taken on the 69th floor of New York’s Rockefeller Centre - as construction neared completion in the autumn of 1932.
Filming was completed in three weeks on locations in New York, Boston and Pittsburgh. Directed by Seán Ó Cualáin (Mise Raiftearaí) and produced by Éamonn Ó Cualáin (Ceist GAA), the documentary aims to uncover the mystery of the men on one the world’s most famous photographic images.
Taken at the height of the Great Depression by an unknown photographer, eleven construction workers sit side by side on a steel beam eating lunch – with Central Park and the misty high-rises of Manhattan stretching out behind them. Although most of the men in the image remain unnamed, a signed copy of the print hanging in a Galway pub identifies two Galway brothers-in-law Matty O’Shaughnessy and Sonny Glynn sitting at either end of the eleven ‘steel monkeys’. ‘Ám Lón- Men at Lunch’ traces the story of these men.
Director of Photography on the feature documentary was Ray Mac Donnacha. Post Production crew are TBC. The documentary received funding from the BAI, TG4 and BSÉ. For more details follow the progress of the production on Twitter at #menatlunchfilm.
