Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/713016
22 S U M M E R 2 0 1 6 C A S Q U A R T E R L Y In the '80s, there was considerable unrest in Northern Ireland and Devlin was assigned as a sound recordist for tele- vision news. Patsy Hill was one of the best news cameramen and was assigned with Devlin. Hill's teenage son, Ronan, would sometimes tag along on shoots. Ronan is now a mul- tiple CAS and Emmy Award winner as production mixer on Game of Thrones. "Sometimes I feel like it's six degrees of separation in this business in how we belong to a small group who all seem to know each other," Devlin added. Devlin had been a big fan of the innovative TV series Miami Vice, and wrote a letter to producer/director Michael Mann asking if he could visit the show in Miami and spend time with his sound department. Amazingly, Mann replied with an invitation to the set. The BBC gave him time off to travel to the US, and Devlin was able to shadow production mixer (and former Board member) Joe Foglia CAS for a few days. Devlin then traveled to Los Angeles for a day to watch post production on the show at Universal. After returning to Belfast with what was now a burning desire to work in the film industry in the US, he received a call from Joe Foglia offering him a position at his company to cover calls that he could not handle, including documentaries, commercials, and low-budget features. Because of the opportunity offered by Mann and Foglia, in 1987, Devlin made the decision to move to the US, which meant parting from the BBC. "The significant thing is how someone can touch your life through a simple kind gesture. Dixie Deane set me on the path to working in drama, and Michael Mann was good enough to invite me to the set where I got to meet Joe, who later hired me. Dixie was definitely the strongest mentor I had, he instilled in me my passion for drama. It's so important in the field to share your experience and pass that on and encourage people who are coming into the industry. Dealing with stu- dents, the one thing I noticed is that I thought I was ready for anything after just a few months of training at the BBC, but everything is learned by experience, by making mistakes and finding your own way and your own technique," Devlin added. The second Board member involved in this discussion of mentorship is our current Vice President, Phil Palmer CAS, who has been nominated for the Emmy three times, Dixie Deane taking a break After an 18-hour day, Devlin (right) and Oliver Stone are deliriously happy with not having to worry about "the three-ring circus" anymore.