Documentary captures Waterford man's grueling swim the length of Ireland in father's memory

Alan Corcoran. Picture: @35MarathonMan/Twitter

Resilience and gritty determination underpin a new Irish film tracking a Waterford man’s grueling charity swim the length of Ireland in memory of his late father.

Directed by Peter Grogan and Alan Corcoran, Unsinkable, will screen in Ireland from March 25.

Cold water, alarming swells, sinking boats, ice baths, and an RNLI rescue were just some of the hurdles overcome on the journey.

Mr Corcoran’s personal journey through grief following the death of his father Milo from cancer is also explored in the documentary.

“Losing dad was hard for us all and I wanted to do something to get me out of that hard point in life and give myself something to work towards," Mr Corcoran said.

“My dad was a passionate guy, quite strong-minded and determined. I saw that when he recovered from his stroke in 2011, he went from being in a hospital bed to grinding away at it until he got his independence back. Same as when I’m swimming I suppose."

The Unsinkable documentary, which focuses on Mr Corcoran and his 500k charity swim from the Giant’s Causeway in County Antrim to Tramore in Co Waterford has already won multiple international awards.

The film’s cinematography captures the raw beauty, cold piercing light and ferocious wildness of Ireland’s west coast.

Mr Corcoran's first attempt to swim from the Giants Causeway to Dunmore in Co Waterford was unsuccessful and disheartening.

“When I jumped off the Giant’s Causeway and felt the power of North Sea – the seriousness of it hit me in the face,” he said.

But despite the physical pain and multiple setbacks, including navigating relationships tested under stress, he persevered until he completed the challenge in 2019, raising €30,000 for the Solas Cancer Support Centre and Irish Heart Foundation in memory of his dad Milo.

Mr Corcoran said that he previously became the first man to run a lap of Ireland, running 35 marathons in 35 consecutive days to raise money for stroke charities following his father’s earlier stroke about which he wrote the memoir, Marathon Man.

"The most challenging part was seeing my dad suffer from cancer and experiencing grief. That catastrophe was the fire that fuelled the swim and filmmaking.

"The logistics were the most challenging part of the swimming project itself. It wasn’t a corporate planned and funded endeavour. It was all on me. Multi-day endurance challenges are hard to organise at the best of times. Add the sea into the mix, and it’s another beast. 

"Swimming was the easiest part, though spending up to six hours daily in the Irish Sea was grueling."

The film, completed on a "micro-budget" began as a self-funded passion project. But 10 months into filming, Peter Grogan and his creative agency, Emagine, came on board.

A Kickstarter campaign that amassed 112 crowdfunders helped pay for post-production.

Unsinkable will screen at the Wander Wild Festival in Killarney on March 25; at Garter Lane in Waterford on April 21; and at the Irish Film Institute, Temple Bar, Dublin on April 27.

Tickets for the Garter Lane screening are available online at garterlane.ie/events/emagine-presents-unsinkable/