The History Of Sound actor Paul Mescal has said his “admiration” for co-star Josh O’Connor “extended tenfold” during the making of the film.
The 29-year-old stars as Lionel in the movie, which follows his character’s relationship with David (played by O’Connor) after the pair meet in 1917 at the New England Conservatory, and following the First World War, before travelling together recording folk songs in rural Maine in winter 1920.
Speaking about his friendship with O’Connor, 35, at a screening of The History Of Sound at the BFI London Film Festival, Mescal told the PA news agency: “We’re here to celebrate the film, and it’s exciting.
“I mean we were friends before, for sure, but I think this experience of shooting with him, and the admiration that I have for Josh extended tenfold after working with him.
“I just love spending time with him. It’s a weird thing to be asked, ‘What’s it like to spend time with a great friend?’, but it just was as I imagined… to spend time with him.
“He’s just a remarkable human being, incredibly talented and a joy to spend time with.
“I suppose listening to traditional Irish music and the Irish countryside has always been a marvel to me, still is, like when you go into a pub in Ireland, and you just have these incredible musicians essentially improvising their way through an evening, it’s just an amazing experience.”
O’Connor told PA that Mescal is a “brilliant actor” and added that it was “so nice” to be at the screening with friends.
He said: “We knew each other well enough before, and we knew this script so well that there was a kind of a shorthand between us, knowing what we’re focused on really.
“I think music can transport you to a particular place, to specific memory, even this idea of synaesthesia, sometimes it can bring up a smell, or another sound.
“So for me, there’s all sorts, but Jeff Buckley’s album Grace often transports me to certain places in my life, but it’s ever changing.”