Hollywood’s rising star Saoirse Ronan has attended star-studded premieres from London to LA, but she was delighted to be in back in Belfast last night for the screening of City of Ember.

The 14-year-old from Co Carlow jetted in from New York yesterday to attend the European premiere of the Tom Hanks’-produced children’s fantasy film.

Saoirse plays Lina Mayfleet in the movie, one of two children who are in a race against time to save their underground city from total darkness.

The film — shot on location at the Paint Hall in the Titanic Quarter — also stars Bill Murray and Tim Robbins, who were unable to attend the Belfast premiere.

But Saoirse, who has worked with such acting royalty as Keira Knightley, Catherine Zeta Jones, Susan Sarandon and James McAvoy, said she wouldn’t have missed the screening.

“It’s fantastic to be back in Belfast, I had a brilliant time when I was here,” she said.

“To me, it was more important to be here than any other place, even New York. The crew were from here, and some of the cast, and it was all created here.”

Oscar nominee Saoirse said she had a number of other big projects in the pipeline but was unable to reveal what they were.

And the down-to-earth teenager said she was most looking forward to getting home to see her beloved border collie Sassy.

“I’m terrible,” she said. “I’ve only been a way for a week but I have really missed Sassy.

It’s fantastic to be back in Belfast, I had a brilliant time

“My family understands that I’m away working, but try telling that to a dog.”

Co Armagh set designer Ashleigh Jeffers, who helped create the magnificent City of Ember, was looking forward to seeing the fruits of his labour.

“It was a brilliant project to be involved in,” he said.

“Each of the art directors had their own project to work on and mine was the generator itself, the part that holds the secret to Ember.”