Ronan makes directorial debut at Venice Film Festival

Saoirse Ronan has made her directorial debut at the 83rd Venice International Film Festival with her short film Paper Plane, marking the first time the actress has walked the red carpet as a filmmaker.

Ronan stepped out at the festival on Thursday night to celebrate the film, which is competing for the Orizzonti Award for Best Short Film, selected from over 2,500 short film entries.

Starring Martha Malone, KIN star Clare Dunne and Tim Creed, the Screen Ireland-supported project was also written by the Oscar-nominated actress.

The film tells the story of a defiant young girl staging a silent protest, refusing to return home until her father's disruptive presence is gone. Her mother must then decide whether to follow her or to part ways.

Among the festival's eagerly awaited short-film debuts is Maggie Gyllenhaal’s Flesh Impact, which features Dakota Johnson and Ellen Burstyn portraying Marilyn Monroe at two different points in the icon’s life.

Ronan previously told film website Deadline that she is ready to direct and thanked Little Women and Barbie director Greta Gerwig for guidance.

"I'd love to do that [directing] next," the actress said. "That was always a passion of mine, and it was actually Greta who said that you need to delve into the prep first to see if that’s something that piques your interest because that’s where the really hard work lies.

"Producing was an education in that, all the sort of tough decisions that you’ve got to make early on, and it just made me feel more confident as well as a storyteller being involved that early in the project."

Ronan is currently filming Sam Mendes' Beatles biopic, in which she stars as Linda McCartney opposite Paul Mescal as Paul McCartney.

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