Continuing from the success of the 2022 Westmeath Film Award, the Westmeath Arts Office has announced that the Award will take place once again in 2023. The Westmeath Film Award offers a local filmmaker €10,000 towards the creation of a short 10-12 minute film or documentary. This award is funded by Westmeath County Council Arts Office and the Arts Council of Ireland.
Applications will open on 17th April 2023, with the deadline for submissions taking place on 22nd May.
The Award provides crucial support to filmmakers early in their career, enabling significant professional development by financing the creation of new work. It aims to foster talent, creativity and activity in filmmaking in County Westmeath.
In 2022, Filmmaker Craig Moore was the Award’s recipient for his comedy short Barry Vs the Binman, now in post-production.
Speaking of the award, Barry Vs the Binman Producer Emer Durcan of Western Front Studios said;
“The Westmeath Arts Office were so encouraging and went out of their way to support us in every way possible. It was a great place to make a film as the local community were eager to get involved and very interested in the whole process. There is no doubt that winning this bursary scheme has introduced us to the next level of our filmmaking careers.”
Westmeath Arts Officer Miriam Mulrennan added;
“We are delighted to announce the return of the Westmeath Film Award for 2023. Local film awards play a vital role in enabling up-and-coming filmmakers to showcase and develop their skills. Westmeath is a county with huge creative and filmmaking talent, and we are proud to support filmmaking activity at what is such an opportune time for the film industry in Westmeath.”
Applicants can download the 2023 guidelines here or email arts@westmeathcoco.ie with any questions. Application forms will be available to download from 17th April.
