The filming of “Secret of the Cave” has been confirmed to begin in late May on Achill Island of County Mayo. The Southern Adventist University’s School of Visual Art and Design, located near Chattanooga, Tennessee, will produce this film.

The Christian themed film centres on a boy's discovery of his Irish roots and of the importance of family when he travels to Ireland with his Irish born father. Reluctantly at first the young boy starts to discover his connection with his roots and gets involved with a mystery on the island of Achill.

“We are very grateful to be given this opportunity. It wouldn’t have been possible without God’s providence and the support of donors and the university administration,” says David George, film professor. “We are looking forward to arriving in Ireland and getting to work.”

The crew will be comprised of students and several Irish professionals. “We will be working with an extremely talented local Irish cast and Southern students to bring these characters to life,” says Zach Gray, film director.

Filming is anticipated to begin the last week of May and conclude at the end of June. The primary location for “Secret of the Cave” is the town of Doogort on Achill Island.

“County Mayo will be a great shooting location,” says Ben Mitzelfelt, film student and line producer for the film, “We are excited about collaborating with the local government and residents.”

The film was adapted from the children’s book of the same title by Arthur S. Maxwell, which focuses on an American teenage boy who visits his extended family in Ireland. While discovering his Irish heritage, he also solves a mystery that has perplexed a small fishing village for several weeks.

Westport Councillor, Keith Martin, who is behind the bid for a film commission for Mayo and who has been helping the crew with pre-production warmly welcomed the announcement saying "this is good news for Achill and for Mayo as a viable film location. Mayo has the best scenery in the world, a large base of talented professionals and fantastic goodwill towards film makers. This particular project is very interesting, it is set on Achill Island and shot entirely there. All the major attractions from the Atlantic Drive to the deserted famine village will feature. The crew will also utilise local knowledge and people when needed.

"There are two levels of investment from this film. One is the direct investment in the area by the crew for day to day things such as bed and board, the other is that the film will be a feature length advertisement for Achill, Mayo and Ireland whenever and wherever it is shown. This will be good for tourism at a local, regional and national level. I look forward to more projects coming to Mayo. We now have an opportunity to work with the Irish Film Board to best market our county. I look forward to the day when Mayo's potential as a location is fully realised. We have Hollywood in the US, Bollywood in India and I don't see why we can't have a film industry in Mayo."

For more information on the Film contact Ben Mitzelfelt at 001 4232362080 or e-mail Ben at bmitzelfelt@southern.edu, or from Ireland call toll free 1800 931020.

Irish-born actor Patrick Bergin, who starred with Julia Roberts in Sleeping with the Enemy, is to star in the film, which is being shot by students at the School of Visual Art & Design at the Southern Adventist University in Tennessee.

About 25 students, under the eye of college professors, will work alongside film crews from Ireland on shooting the film on Achill from the end of May and during June.

The movie, Secret of the Cave, centres on an American teenage boy who visits relatives in Ireland and becomes embroiled in a mystery on Achill Island.

Westport-based Cllr Keith Martin, who has been promoting Mayo as a film location and helping the crew with pre-production, says this will be a major boost for the island.