Trivia / Sing Street

• Actor-Inspired Element: Connor was written to be more of an Author Avatar for John Carney, but his personality changed massively when Ferdia Walsh Peelo was cast. He became much more confident and sure of himself.
• Cast the Expert: The actors playing musicians were cast based off their musical talent as well as acting ability.
• Creator Backlash: John Carney has said he regrets the film's ending (see Word of God below) due to people taking it too literally.
• Dawson Casting: Raphina is sixteen, played by the twenty-one-year-old Lucy Boynton. This was obvious since Ferdia Walsh-Peelo was fifteen and didn't look a day older.
• Fake Irish: Raphina is played by the American born Brit Lucy Boynton.
• Reality Subtext:
  • Walsh-Peelo's father attended the actual Christian Brothers School on Synge Street, as did creator John Carney. To fully square the circle, the real school was used as a film location. Carney has stated that he needed to get it as it's too famous in Ireland to believably double.
  • Eamon is a talented musician played by Mark McKenna - who has a talented musician called Eamon for a father.
• Throw It In!:
  • Eamon's rabbits come from the fact that the real Eamon had loads of rabbits.
  • The scene on the train was largely the child actors improvising while the camera was on.
• Trolling Creator: John Carney jokes that part of him wishes he'd killed off Connor and Raphina as they sail across the sea.
• What Could Have Been: Early in development, U2 were attached to be involved in the film. But their schedules didn't match up. They did give some advice on how a band would succeed however.
• Word of God:
  • According to John Carney, the end could be a fantasy sequence like the other music videos the kids had filmed throughout the film.
  • There were claims that Maria Doyle Kennedy was cast as a nod to The Commitments. Word of God is that it is a coincidence.
• Write What You Know: Carney wrote the film partially based off his own experiences growing up in 80s Dublin.