Celtic Media Festival Award Nominations for Irish Productions 'Patrick's Day' and 'The Stranger'
Congratulations to Irish productions Patrick's Day and The Stranger, which have been nominated for Torc Awards at the Celtic Media Festival. Both films received funding from Bord Scannán na hÉireann/the Irish Film Board.
Patrick's Day was nominated in the Best Feature Length Drama category. Written and directed by Terry McMahon, Patrick's Day has won multiple awards since its debut last year. It was the joint winner of the Best Irish Film award at the Galway Film Fleadh, as well as the jury prize for Best Feature Film at the Woodstock Film Festival. In addition, leading actor Moe Dunford received the European Shooting Stars award at the Berlinale Film Festival in February. Dunford stars as Patrick, a young man with mental health issues. When he becomes intimate with a suicidal flight attendant his obsessive mother enlists a dysfunctional cop to separate them.
The Stranger was nominated in the highly competitive category of Best Factual Single. The Stranger made the award shortlist from amongst 85 docuemntary submissions. Directed by Neasa Ní Chianán for Soilsiú Films, The Stranger examines the life and death of Neal McGregor. An English artist, McGregor lived alone in a stone shed on the Donegal island of Inishbofin. He lived without electricity, water or heating for eight years until his death in 1990, at the age of 44. The local Gaelic-speaking islanders knew little of McGregor, whether he was a spy, a madman, or simply a person seeking solitude. Along with the beautifully illustrated notebooks and diaries he left behind, The Stranger pieces together a portrait of this enigmatic man.
The Celtic Media Festival's aim is to promote the languages and cultures of the Celtic countries on screen and in broadcasting. The Celtic Media Festival is supported by broadcast, film, cultural and economic development organisations throughout the Celtic countries. The Festival is an annual three-day celebration of broadcasting, film talent and new-media excellence from Scotland, Isle of Man, Ireland, Cornwall, Wales and Brittany. The 2015 Celtic Media Festival takes place from 22-24 April.