[1] Her father, Tom Clinch, is a stockbroker, and her mother is the singer Méav Ní Mhaolchatha.
[3] Clinch first appeared on screen in Colm Bairéad's The Quiet Girl (An Cailín Ciúin) as Cáit, a reserved 9-year-old who spends the summer of 1981 on a distant relative's farm.
[1] Auditions sought a lead actress who could speak Irish, the language of most of the film, and advertised the role at Irish-language schools during the COVID-19 pandemic.
[1] The film's producers recalled deciding quickly that Clinch was right for the role—able to carry the film—when they saw her audition tape.
[3][4][5][6] Shot in 2020 and released in 2022,[7][8] the film was critically acclaimed alongside praise in particular for Clinch's performance.