IFTN takes a look at festival stories of Irish interest from around the world. This week’s round-up includes Oscar eligibility for Irish filmmakers at Foyle Film Festival, submissions for Fingal Film Festival, and further international wins for Irish web-series ‘Cuckoo’.
Fingal Film Festival Opens Submissions for 2014
Dublin’s Fingal Film Festival has extended a call for submissions for next year’s event, in categories covering features, shorts, animations, student films and a new category for 2014, Irish language films.
These categories welcome entries from both national and international sources, and local filmmakers are encouraged to submit work for the prestigious ‘Best Fingal Newcomer’ Award.
Now in its third year, the Fingal Film Festival recently launched a new website and rebranded logo at www.fingalfilmfest.com . The coming months will also see the announcement of industry veterans who will helm workshops in 2014, as well as participating on next year’s festival panel.
Recently awarded the Arts and Culture prize in Fingal Community 2013, festival organizers credited the response from the local community as the festival’s true success. Says organizer Liz Kenny, “It’s a great achievement for a festival running only two years. We form part of the festival landscape in Ireland, but we continuously strive to be different.”
Submissions for 2014’s Fingal Film Festival will be accepted until May 2014. For more information on the festival, visit www.fingalfilmfest.com.
‘Cuckoo’ web-series picks up Best Drama Award at ATL Web-fest
Extending its success streak of past months, Irish web-series ‘Cuckoo’ has won the award for Best Drama at the ATL Web-fest in Atlanta.
Announced this Friday past, the Atlanta win adds to a collection of recent awards garnered including an Bronze Award at London’s European internet awards, the LOVIEs, a Webby nomination earlier this year as well as a bevy of screenings at festivals in Geneva, Marseille, Rome and Melbourne.
Directed by Danann Breathnach from an original story by Nikki Racklin, ‘Cuckoo’ was produced by Marie Caffrey at Zanzibar Films and stars Pagan McGrath as wild teenager Niamh Keegan, who recognises herself in a digitally ‘aged’ picture of a missing child. Also appearing are IFTA winner Denise McCormack (‘Love/Hate’) and Brian Fortune (‘Game Of Thrones’).
In other news, ‘Cuckoo’ and ‘Sylvia’, another short produced by Caffrey & directed by Seamus Moran, have both been selected to screen on all Aer Lingus long-haul flights during December 2013 and January 2014 as part of The Gathering.
Irish Filmmaker Stephen Fingleton Oscar-Eligible After Foyle Film Festival Win
Northern Ireland-born writer and director Stephen Fingleton has won the Light In Motion award for Best Irish Short Film at the Foyle Film Festival, now making him eligible for nomination in the Short Film Category of the Academy Awards.
Announced on November 25th at the Festival closing ceremony in Brunswick Moviebowl, Fingleton received the Light In Motion award for his short ‘SLR’, starring Liam Cunningham as a man obsessed with voyeur pornography who is propelled onto the trail of an anonymous photographer known only by his online username, ANORAK.
Since 1999, winners of Foyle’s Light In Motion award have been eligible for Oscar consideration, with past winners who went on to Academy Award success including Terry George for ‘The Shore’ and Martin McDonagh’s short ‘Six Shooter’.
Other Light In Motion winners at this year’s Foyle Film Festival include Anthony Powell for his documentary ‘Antarctica’, Eoin Duffy for ‘The Missing Scarf’, Robert Grieves for his Best International animation ‘Sausage’, and Talkon Hamzavi for his Best Short Film-winning ‘Parvaneh’.
Fingleton’s Foyle success comes after earlier this year saw him listed on Screen International’s ‘Stars of Tomorrow’ shortlist, whose ranks in past years have boasted names such as Emily Blunt, Carey Mulligan, Andrea Riseborough and Tom Hiddleston.
The Foyle Film Festival is a flagship project of the Nerve Centre, supported by Northern Ireland Screen and Derry City Council.
