Domhnall Gleeson Discusses the Heartfelt Journey Behind the Oscar-Nominated ‘Retirement Plan’
Domhnall Gleeson expressed his appreciation for the film “Retirement Plan,” highlighting its humor and emotional depth. He stated, “When I read it, the main thing was that it was funny and it was very poignant without being overly sentimental. It’s really beautiful and all of this [Oscar attention] is icing on the cake.”
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Gleeson’s comments refer to the film’s nomination for Best Animated Short at the Oscars. Recently, it gained wider visibility across Europe with its release on Disney+, coinciding with the airing of several Academy Award-nominated shorts.
In “Retirement Plan,” the narrative follows Ray as he reflects on various stages of his life and impending retirement. He lists activities he hopes to engage in post-retirement, such as being more present in his life, growing vegetables, and confronting an old school rival—all while anticipating his pension.
The film has garnered significant acclaim, having won both the Grand Jury Award and the Audience Award at SXSW earlier this year. Additionally, director John Kelly received the Best of Fest award at the Palm Springs International ShortFest, along with the Comedy Award from the Indy Shorts International Film Festival.
Audience reactions to the film have varied. Kelly, who co-wrote the script with New York-based writer Tara Lawall, noted, “It is a bit of a Rorschach test based on where you are in your own life. We wanted to be deliberately neutral with that sound base and artistic style, and it can go in different directions depending on your own mood.”
Gleeson elaborated on this sentiment, stating, “It’s one of those mad pieces of art that is genuinely universal. Everybody worries in some way about the future, and so it resonates with people who are young and starting out and have no idea where their lives are headed, and with middle-aged people like me who are sort of at the midpoint and you don’t know what’s ahead, and you don’t know what you make of what’s behind. And then older people, I think, really see themselves in it too.”
The film delves into themes of mortality and the passage of time. Gleeson remarked, “What it evokes in me is a desire to overcome that apathy, which we all can have, just letting your life happen to you.”
Regarding the film’s exploration of aging and death, Gleeson shared, “There’s just a little bit towards the end, about the getting old and the moving on to the next place of it all and it offered me a funny sort of solace, because this guy isn’t pretending like he knows it all. He’s wondering about it. I found something bizarrely comforting in that.”
Kelly added, “Domnhall talks about finding solace and death is not something that we naturally want to spend that much time thinking about. I started thinking about it more and more as my parents got older… that’s really healthy and this film is a bridge towards that in a positive way.”
