Former lawyer’s leap into the acting world

Armagh native Geraldine McAlinden had a 20-year career as a lawyer, qualifying in 1992 before making the leap into the creative sphere of acting and screenwriting in 2012.

Geraldine currently stars in independent Irish feature Verdigris, now showing in selected cinemas – The Lighthouse, Dublin, The Odeon Rathmines and Mahon in Cork, and The Eye in Galway.

It’s a taut psychological drama exploring coercive control, a topic that Geraldine encountered in her years in general practice in Oldham, outside Manchester.

Geraldine later worked in financial-services law in Birmingham, and then at ALG in Dublin doing commercial litigation, before moving in-house at the Central Bank.

Geraldine was drawn to working in the law to help people in times of need.

Situations of distress

“In general practice I started working face to face with people in situations of personal distress, in family law and criminal law,” she recalls.

“No one really wants to see a solicitor; there’s always a degree of stress involved. As a lawyer, you’re not just providing a professional service, you’re seeing people at times of distress.”

As a balance to working in the law, in the year 2000 Geraldine took a night class at the Gaiety School of Acting, where she made a close group of friends.

Pipe dream

“While I daydreamed about doing it full-time, the practicalities of living in Dublin meant that was a pipe dream,” she said.

Then a series of health setbacks in her family made Geraldine think again.

“With that, came the realisation that life is short. It’s the things that you don’t do in life that you regret most.”

Art can be the catalyst for change, in good times and bad, Geraldine believes, and it can be a huge salve for the soul.

Geraldine describes a pivotal moment of realising the power of the arts, which gave her the courage to make the move.

Geraldine accompanied her recently widowed younger sister to a showing of Bridesmaids, in the hope of some light relief.

At the notorious food poisoning scene, Geraldine turned to her sister and saw her shaking with laughter.

“While being a lawyer is important, and helps people, that night opened my eyes to the power of the arts, to give escapism where it’s needed; to bring catharsis – to change the world, even,” she said.

Lightbulb moment

That was the lightbulb moment that spurred Geraldine to follow her heart into the creative world.

“I decided to bite the bullet and take a chance and follow the acting dream,” she said.

“Until that, I always considered acting a guilty pleasure for myself.”

Geraldine then trained as a screen actor full time.

She followed up with more training, eventually enrolling quite recently for an IADT masters in screenwriting for film and TV.

“That just opened things up. What’s the worst thing that could have happened – going back to the law, which I really enjoyed anyway.”

Rather than taking out a mortgage, Geraldine chose to live off her savings for three years.

“Then my savings ran out, so it was time to find a role that would be flexible enough so that, if I got an acting job, I wouldn’t be letting anyone down, by taking time off.”

Geraldine began doing temporary administrative work, which supported her creative ambitions. Eight years later, Geraldine still has the same understanding colleagues, who know that she might need blocks of time off, but will work really hard while in the office.

“Working in the arts, you do need a couple of strings to your bow,” she commented, and she has turned her hand to playwriting and directing, along with acting, having an agent, and a full Equity card.

Geradline wryly compares working as an actor with auditioning to win every single file as a solicitor.

“In the intervening years, I’ve been lucky enough to get some nice acting jobs, but I have had to work part-time.”

Interestingly, Patricia Kelly, the writer and director on Veridgris, supported her own work on independent short films with a role as a legal secretary.

When the pandemic left her unemployed, Kelly took a credit-union loan and with a small, ninja-like crew, in 15 days made a film that’s racked up 12 international awards and five IFTA 2024 nominations.

Geraldine has received many supportive messages for her latest role, and her early legal work has clearly given her a well of emotional truth to draw upon.

“It’s just lovely to see that colleagues who would have known me as a lawyer are going to see my work in cinemas, and enjoy it,” she concluded.