belfast
morag donnelly, 70 (retired nurse)
fiona rohmer-patterson, 41 (cinematographer)
meghan rohmer-carrax, 37 (actress)
a love of acting was apparent at an early age when fiona, meghan, and sebastian spent much of their childhood as unsupervised, latchkey children watching vhs tapes of films from the golden age of cinema. sebastian, inspired by these films, tried and succeeded to appear in all of his primary school's drama productions. jean-pierre and morag's attendance at these events was sporadic; sebastian- an inherently insecure child- internalized his disappointment, convinced his parents were not attending due to his lack of talent. this pervasive sense of failure, self-doubt, and need for self-improvement would punctuate his eventual career in the film industry.
in 1992, after nearly 18 years of marriage, morag and jean-pierre announced their divorce. tasked with deciding who to live with, sebastian took pity on his mother, whom he felt was being abandoned by his sisters, who preferred to stay in quebec. they moved to morag's family home in belfast. sebastian was quickly singled out for the french affectation left on his english-speaking from a childhood of living in quebec, spurring an interest in dialects and accents. he trained himself to speak like his northern irish peers; soon, he became popular in his school for the myriad of uk and north american accents he was able to perform with accuracy.
though he was academically talented, sebastian spurned acceptances to top academic universities in england (much to the chagrin of both of his parents). instead, he moved to london to attend the guildhall school of music and drama. his stage breakthrough came in 2005 after being cast as ben in laura wade's 2005 west end production of breathing corpses. following the success, he scored a minor role in 2005's irish drama series prosperity, a performance that caught the attention of martin mcdonagh, leading to his casting in the short film six shooter and the tony-nominated broadway play, the lieutenant of inishmore.
despite his short appearance in clint eastwood's 2006 war drama flags of our fathers-which sebastian thought would solidify his career- he appeared in minor roles in primarily british dramas. he was eventually cast in 2009's the young victoria as prince albert; director jean-marc vallee sought to cast an actor that was recognizable, yet still retaining some degree of anonymity. this film opened many doors for sebastian, namely his casting in christopher nolan's 2010 psychological drama inception, for which he was placed on several 'actors to watch' list.
inception led to breakthrough success. sebastian transcended bit parts and began appearing in lead roles, notably my week with marilyn, lincoln, and silence. he is often mentioned among the likes of his contemporaries jake gyllenhaal, eddie redmayne, and jamie bell, with many critics praising his capacity to disappear into his roles. conversely, sebastian remains highly critical of himself- he rarely watches his own films, and has expressed his frustration with the acting process on several occasions. he's publicly stated his innate frustration with the film industry, especially for awards and competitive screenings.
generally, his representation portrays him well in the media as an affable, friendly person. this image is not far off from his real-life persona, who is charming and articulate. however, sebastian takes his work incredibly seriously; negative comments and reviews disturb him immensely. he is a neurotic serial dater, and is often named on lists of eligible bachelors.
+ fluent in french and english. his english accent was so deeply bastardized from a childhood of speaking french that he trained himself to speak with a northern irish accent after his 1992 move to belfast. he is now a student of dialects, and uses this talent to disappear into his roles.
+ learned how to play guitar while a student at guildhall to impress a music student he fancied; though the relationship did not end well, sebastian continues to play (poorly). this was a huge advantage in his casting in the film frank.
+ has been in high profile relationships with actresses keira knightley and carey mulligan. though it was never reported in the media, he was once engaged to his the lieutenant of inishmore co-star meredith allicent. the relationship ended with sebastian's infidelity with keira knightley, but the two care deeply for each other and remain friends. due to his parents' divorce, sebastian is an admitted commitment phobe, and has publicly declared that he may be a lifelong bachelor.
+ extremely politically minded; has openly criticized brexit and expressed support for justin trudeau. he is a stalwart admirer of pierre trudeau, and has expressed interest for playing the role of the politician if the opportunity presented itself.
+ has a large twitter and instagram following; both accounts are completely managed and updated by him.
+ was casted in loving after director jeff nichols was struck by sebastian's likeness to ben cohen after he caught watching filth on television.
+ once criticized for being photographed smoking outside a gala for the irish cancer society, his preferred charity.
+ incredibly close to and supportive of both of his sisters, who he refers to as the 'most talented women in the world. he has expressed his insecurity in comparison to his family's reputation. he is also very close to his father, who continues to live in canada. his relationship with his mother is somewhat strained, as he never adjusted well to her having men in the home that tried to replace his father.