Projects granted investment to generate more than €4m spend across the West of Ireland
WRAP Fund announces ten projects in receipt of support
Feature films, animations, television dramas and documentaries awarded investment
A €2,000,000 regional fund set up to encourage the film, television drama, animation and gaming sectors in the West of Ireland is today announcing the projects which have received offers of support since it was announced at the end of 2017. The Western Region Audiovisual Producer’s Fund (WRAP Fund) is a unique initiative of the Western Development Commission (WDC) and the Galway Film Centre and was set up to stimulate the industry in the western region. Its aim is to support local talent and increase the economic impact of the industry in the region. Run in association with the local authorities of Clare, Donegal, Galway City, Galway County, Mayo, Roscommon and Sligo as well as Údarás na Gaeltachta, WRAP will ensure investment in the sector until 2020.
The WRAP Fund is also the only project funding in the Republic of Ireland which is open to the games sector. The deadline for applications for funding in the games sector was March 8, 2019 and an announcement of the games funded will follow once they are selected.
As part of its production investment, WRAP has supported five projects to date including three feature films, one animated feature and one documentary which will undertake production across the West, creating opportunities for local talent.
It is anticipated that the projects backed by WRAP funding so far will generate in excess of €4m spend in the region generating a significant return of investment of 8:1.
The newly-announced projects are:
- Death of A Ladies Man, by Cohen Productions DAC/Port Pictures, which will start shooting across Galway in late May
- Ooops! Back In The Deep End, an animated feature by Moetion Films which is in production in Galway City
- Screamers, a documentary by Dot Television and Marcie Films, which is in pre-production and will be shot across Donegal and Sligo.
- The Winter Lake, by Winter Lake Productions/Tailored Films, which has just completed production in Sligo.
These projects are in addition to the previously-announced Calm With Horses, which was shot in Clare and across Galway city and county and is currently in post-production.
“Developing the audio visual sector as part of the Creative Economy is a key goal of the recently published 5 year strategy for the WDC. As the lead agency for the Creative Economy under the Government’s West Regional Enterprise Plan, we already see the benefits a dedicated fund such as the WRAP fund can bring to a region: high-caliber projects adding €4m extra spend to the local economy together with invaluable training and experience for local talent interested in working in this industry.”
Tomás Ó Síocháin. CEO of Western Development Commission
In addition to its production investment, WRAP is announcing the recipients of the first round of development investment to assist local producers to develop projects that can undertake production within the region. This was as a result of a call out with a deadline of October 2018. Companies based in Clare, Donegal, Galway and Mayo have received support. These are:
- St. John: a television series developed by Galway production company Danú Media and Dearg Films and written by Brian Reddin
- To Hell Or Hibernia: a feature film developed by Mayo production company Hardy Films and written by Mike Cockayne (Mayo) and Vincent Cleghorne
- Trace: a feature film developed by Galway production company Magamedia and written by Ray Lawlor (Mayo)
- Weekend: a television series developed by Donegal production company Slipway Films and New Decade TV and written by Tara Hegarty (Donegal)
- The Wee Littles: an animated television series developed by Clare animation studio Magpie6 Media, created by Cliff Parrott (Clare) and Christina O’Shea (Clare) and written/directed by Emma Hogan (Clare)
“We are delighted to be announcing the projects in receipt of investment and it is exciting to see the caliber of applications we are receiving. This is reflective of the general standard over the last few years in Irish film, television and animation with Irish talent making its mark on a global stage. WRAP is delighted to give a platform to local talent telling stories. WRAP is focused on continuing to drive the success and growth of the screen industries in the West through targeted strategic support with the backing of our stakeholders.”
Sarah Dillon.Development Manager of the WRAP Fund
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
About WRAP: The Western Region Audiovisual Producers Fund (WRAP) is a unique initiative of the Western Development Commission and Galway Film Centre in association with the local authorities of Clare, Donegal, Galway, Mayo, Roscommon, Sligo and Údarás na Gaeltachta. The Fund of €2m will ensure investment until 2020 to encourage regional production activity across the film, television drama, animation and gaming sectors. The WRAP region encompasses counties Clare, Donegal, Galway, Mayo, Roscommon and Sligo. www.wrapfund.ie
About WDC: The Western Development Commission is a statutory body promoting social and economic development in the Western Region. It was established in 1998 to cover counties Clare, Donegal, Galway, Leitrim, Mayo, Roscommon and Sligo. Over the past five years, it has supported more than 2,500 jobs in the Western Region and directed almost €13 million in investment capital to enable regional growth. www.wdc.ie
About Galway Film Centre: Founded in 1989, Galway Film Centre is a non-profit, members based organisation dedicated to the development of film as an artistic medium in the West of Ireland. It supports filmmakers, community and youth groups through education and training, equipment provision and information. www.galwayfilmcentre.ie
“The WRAP Fund is a game-changing initiative for the region in terms of the opportunities it provides to talent across film, TV, animation and games. It also represents a unique collaboration between the eight local authorities, Galway Film Centre and the WDC, each with the foresight to support the Audiovisual Sector at a time of unprecedented opportunity for the region.”
Alan Duggan. Manager of Galway Film Centre
About the Projects
CALM WITH HORSES
In darkest rural Ireland, ex-boxer Douglas ‘Arm’ Armstrong has become the feared enforcer for the drug-dealing Devers family, whilst also trying to be a good father to his autistic five-year-old son, Jack. Torn between these two families, Arm’s loyalties are truly tested when he is asked to kill for the first time.
Director Nick Rowland Producer Daniel Emmerson Co-Producers Rory Gilmartin, Kate Glover Script Joseph Murtagh; adapted from the novella by Colin Barrett (Mayo) Photography Piers McGrail Editors Nick Chauderge, Matthew Tabern Production Design Damien Creagh Main Cast Cosmo Jarvis, Barry Keoghan, Niamh Algar, Simone Kirby
WRAP Locations Galway, Clare Status: In Post Production
Production Companies CWH Productions, DMC Film, Element Pictures
Financiers Film 4, Screen Ireland, WRAP Fund, Element Pictures Distribution, Altitude Film Entertainment
Sales Agent / Distributors Element Pictures Distribution, Altitude Film Entertainment
OOOPS! BACK IN THE DEEP END
Life in an Ark with 50,000 others has many dangers: icebergs, unwelcome visitors, storms, woodworm and a very fragile truce between carnivores and herbivores. All hopes are pinned on a dove dispatched into the wild in search of land. The kids, Finny and Leah, are bored, Hazel is frustrated and Dave is worried about food supplies. But life gets a whole lot tougher when the kids are washed overboard along with the last of the food. In a race against time, tide and a terrifying volcano, Finny must find friends, reunite family, save a colony from destruction and renegotiate a vegetarian peace deal. Oh, and has anyone seen the dove?
Directors Sean McCormack, Toby Genkel Producers Moe Honan, Emely Christians, Frédérique Vinel Script Richie Conroy, Mark Hodkinson Main Voice Cast Dermot Magennis, Tara Flynn, Alan Stanford WRAP Production Location Galway City Status: In Production
Production Companies Moetion Films, Ulysses Filmproduktion, Fabrique d’Images
Financiers Screen Ireland, WRAP Fund, BAI, Creative Europe, RTÉ, FFA, Filmfund Hamburg, DFFF, Film Fund Luxembourg, Eurimages
Sales Agent / Distributors Global Screen, Eyescream Entertainment
THE WINTER LAKE
Withdrawn teenager Tom and his troubled mother find themselves on a desolate farm in the West of Ireland. There, as the water lowers on a nearby seasonal lake, Tom makes a terrifying discovery that draws him and his mother into an uneasy alliance with the mysterious neighbour girl and her protective father. As dark secrets rise to the light, all four will be changed forever — and Tom will emerge into the harsh realities of adulthood.
Director Phil Sheerin Producers Ruth Treacy, Julianne Forde, Anne-Marie Gelina Script David Turpin Photography Ruairí O’Brien Editor John Walters Production Design Emma Lowney Main Cast Anson Boon, Charlie Murphy, Emma Mackey, Michael McElhatton, Mark McKenna
WRAP Locations Sligo Status: In Post Production
Production Companies Winter Lake Productions, Tailored Films, EMA Films
Financiers Screen Ireland, WRAP Fund, Telefilm Canada, Epic Pictures, BAI, Creative Europe
Sales Agent Epic Pictures
DEATH OF A LADIES MAN
Samuel O’Shea, a hard-drinking womanizer has seen better days. His second marriage is ending, and his first wife and two grown children have turned against him. More problematic, he has begun seeing things: Frankenstein sidles to the bar; strangers sing and dance to Leonard Cohen tunes; and his much-missed father Ben O’Shea, who died when Samuel was just a boy, pops up for chats. Samuel retreats to his family shack in remote Ireland, where he begins work on that great novel he always meant to write, and meets and falls in love with a surprising local woman. All this leads Samuel to an utterly unforeseeable, but surprisingly happy ending.
Director/Script Matthew Bissonnette Producers Martina Niland, Corey Marr, Don Carmody, Marie-Claude Poulin Main Cast Gabriel Byrne, Brian Gleeson, Antoine-Olivier Pilon
WRAP Locations Galway Status: In Production
Production Companies Cohen Productions, Port Pictures, Corey Marr Productions, DCP Mystery Arts, MCP Productions
Financiers Screen Ireland, WRAP Fund, Telefilm Canada, Canadian Media Fund, SODEC, Bell Media, Ontario Creates, The Harold Greenberg Fund.
Sales Agent/Distributors Celluloid Dreams, Element Pictures Distribution, Mongrel Media (Canada)
SCREAMERS
For over forty years, Jenny James has been the leader of an idealistic, radical female-fronted commune known as ‘The Screamers’, a group, notorious in Ireland that has clashed with two of the most feared terrorist groups on the planet. Most former members have long since left the commune and now work nine to five, far removed from the wild, raucous days of their youth. At its peak, the Atlantis commune in Donegal had eighty members. The commune grew and at times thrived in Donegal and Sligo and then in Colombia. A brutal double murder of two children of the commune changed everything. With access to an extensive archive of over fifty hours which follows the commune through the decades, together with exclusive access and contemporary footage and interviews, we tell the story of Ireland’s most infamous commune, ‘The Screamers’.
Director/Script Ciaran Cassidy Producers John Wallace, David Burke, Alan Maher, Colum McKeown WRAP Locations Donegal, Sligo Status: In Pre-Production
Production Companies Dot Television, Marcie Films, Littlewing
Financiers Screen Ireland, WRAP Fund
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