Paul Laverty was born in Calcutta, India, to an Irish mother and Scottish father. He earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from the Gregorian University in Rome, then a law degree from Strathclyde Law School in Glasgow. In the mid-1980s he moved to Nicaragua, where he lived for nearly three years. He worked for a Nicaraguan national human rights organization, providing factual evidence of human rights violations committed during the conflict between the elected Nicaraguan government (the Sandinistas) and the U.S.-backed Contras, an occasion when the issue of human rights became widely controversial. After his stay in Central America, Laverty came in contact with director Ken Loach, for whom he wrote his first screenplay, Carla’s Song. To date, Laverty has written nine feature film scripts and two short films directed by Ken Loach, including My Name is Joe (best actor award to Peter Mullan at Cannes 1998), Sweet Sixteen (2002), best original screenplay at Cannes, The Wind That Caresses the Grass (2006), winner of the Palme d’Or, and In This Free World… (2007), best original screenplay award at the Venice International Film Festival. Laverty and Loach are currently developing a number of other projects. Both are working closely with producer Rebecca O’Brien. Laverty also wrote the screenplay for Tambien La Lluvia, directed by Iciar Bollain, which won the Audience Award at the 2010 Berlin Film Festival. Before writing, Laverty likes to immerse himself in the world of filmmaking, conducting extensive research before writing the first draft. Although he continues to work with Ken Loach, he is developing some feature projects with other directors. His most recent screenplays, My Friend Eric, The Other Truth and Even the Rain, have been published by Route.

Filmography
The Angels’ Share (2012)
También la Lluvia Even the Rain (2010)
Route Irish The Other Truth (2010)
Looking for Eric My Friend Eric (2009)
It’s a Free World… In This Free World… (2007)
The Wind That Shakes the Barley The Wind That Caresses the Grass (2006)
Cargo (2006)
Tickets (2005)
Ae Fond Kiss… A Passionate Kiss (2004)
11’0901 September 11 (2002) (UK Segment)
Sweet Sixteen (2002)
Bread and Roses (2000)
My Name is Joe (1998)
Carla’s Song Carla’s Song (1996)