Virgin Media Discovers winners announced
Posted: 10th November 2023
Kiki, The Head on Him and Never Kill a Femboy on the First Date are the three short films along with the Docu-Drama Pregnant with a Drag Queen that have won the Virgin Media Discovers 4 competition, in partnership with Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland. Our sincere congratulations to the creative teams behind the winning projects.
The winning projects of the Virgin Media Discovers 4 competition are all currently at different stages of production. All the projects will premiere at Dublin International Film Festival in the new year and will air on Virgin Media Television and Virgin Media Player across Spring 2024.
Kiki is written and directed by Naomi Sheridan and produced by Lindsay Campbell. Four-year-old, Adamma and her father, Jide, seek refuge in an asylum centre in Ireland. They are greeted by angry and potentially dangerous protestors, but things escalate further when Adamma ventures out into the neighbourhood alone in search of her missing cuddly toy, Kiki.
The Head on Him is a coming-of-age comedy about a young biracial boy who moves from Nigeria to Tallaght, Dublin in the 1990s. Desperate to fit in, he shaves off his afro. However, the afro keeps growing back, bigger and bigger and bigger. The short is written and directed by Seán Gallen and produced by Ciara Gillan and Kevin Napier.
Never Kill a Femboy on the First Date will be directed by Oonagh Kearney and produced by Aoibhín Murphy. Written by Lee Loi Chieng, the story is about a crossdresser's one-night stand with an exhibitionist that turns life-threatening when a group of voyeurs discover he's not a woman, forcing them to use their wit and charm to negotiate and survive.
Pregnant with a Drag Queen tells the story of how a queer kid in 1990s Dublin discovers their true identity and inner strength when they give birth to Veda, a vibrant drag queen icon. Through laughter and self-discovery, their inspirational journey shows how drag doesn’t change who you are, it reveals who you are. This docu-drama is directed by Colin Brady and produced by Steven Sheehy.
Each of the teams were paired up with an established Film & TV Industry Mentor. Award-winning writer/director Aisling Walsh was teamed up with team on Kiki. The comedic talents of the brilliant writer/producer Lisa McGee were paired with the team on The Head on Him. The recent double IFTA Winner, writer/director Frank Berry was put in place with the team on Never Kill a Femboy on the First Date. Finally the award-winning director/producer Garret Daly mentors the team on Pregnant with a Drag Queen.
Virgin Media Discovers, in partnership with Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland, is a competition judged by industry experts that helps new and established filmmakers get their stories heard. Diversity and inclusion are at the heart of this competition, as it looks to discover unique voices and approaches to this theme. The winning four filmmakers’ scripts were each awarded between €35,000-€40,000 to bring their project to life on screen and premiere at DIFF in February 2024. Along with this, the winning films will be broadcast on Virgin Media Television and Virgin Media on Demand around that time.
Louise Ryan, Head of Marketing and Communications at Screen Ireland said:
We’re delighted to congratulate the four creative teams and short films announced today, as part of Screen Ireland’s partnership with Virgin Media, to support new and exciting voices across Ireland. It was a highly competitive selection and development process, and we’re looking forward to seeing these short films make a huge impact with audiences at Dublin International Film Festival and beyond.”
Anthony Nilan, Head of Content Strategy of Virgin Media Television said:
Supporting new and established talent is at the heart of Virgin Media Television's values. We are thrilled to able to give a platform to these very exciting projects and voices, and look forward to guiding and supporting them over the coming months.”
Lisa McGee, Writer/Producer said:
I was thrilled to be asked to mentor the incredibly talented Sean Gallen. I immediately fell in love with his funny, surreal and heartfelt script. I cannot wait for people to see the end result”.
Frank Berry, Writer/Director said:
I’m delighted to be a mentor again on this year’s Virgin Media Discovers Competition which has been producing amazing work from talented diverse voices over the past few years. Spaces for discovery like this are so important for our industry and the films are always really exciting to work on!”