Irish Success in MEDIA Co-development Funding!
Congratulations to the Irish companies whose projects received MEDIA European Co-Development Funding Awards!
Irish companies are majority partners in three of the selected MEDIA Co-development projects, and one other project has an Irish company as a minority partner. This is a great result for the first year of the co-development funding award which supports the co-development of fiction, animation, creative documentary for cinema, TV or digital platforms. The Irish companies, partners and projects are detailed below.
Savage Productions, The Convert (Feature Drama) with partner Wrong Men North, Belgium. THE CONVERT is a folk horror feature film. Savage Productions have Commenting on the Co-development award, Conor Barry, Savage Productions, sees the funding as game changer which helps add a European perspective to an Irish story:
‘The MEDIA Co-development award is a game changer for THE CONVERT and Savage Productions, and our Belgian partner, Wrong Men, as it allows us to creatively shape the most Irish of stories with that vital outsider perspective. Working closely with our European partner, from the earliest stages offers a multifaceted and layered approach to every aspect of the development process - from story to financing to marketing. Our ambition is to make a film that can be seen, understood and felt everywhere - and having a natural alternative European perspective is essential to delivering on this.’ Conor Barry, Savage Productions
Scannáin Inbhéar Teo, The Battle For Peace (Documentary) with partner Relation04 Media, Norway. An historic 2016 peace deal brought a new era of hope and a Nobel Peace Prize to Colombia. But as leaders bask in global acclaim, Colombian communities struggle to make this deal a reality on the ground. For daring to implement a pact made by faraway politicians, average Colombians are paying for these dreams with their lives. THE BATTLE FOR PEACE is their story. Producer Richie O’Donnell from Scannan Inbhear is delighted to secure Co-development funding:
'Securing development funding for our feature documentary on the Colombian peace process has not only given us the resources to develop our story and pitch to the point where we will soon be in a position to pitch for full production funding but also given credibility to the project by being backed by such a major organisation with credibility and integrity. For us it means real money to bring together our teams from Ireland and Norway to collaborate on creating an engaging trailer and professional pitch, while having the belief of the countries of Europe behind us.' Richie O’Donnell, Scannan Inbhear
Dream Logic Animation, Tales of Terror (Animation TV mini-series) with partner Melusine Productions. Dream Logic Studios is a multi award-winning animation / live action production company and studio based in Dublin, Ireland. Melusine Productions were co-producers of MEDIA supported THE WOLFWALKERS. TALES OF TERROR is a ten part mini-series that is in development and is based on the international best selling novel 'Uncle Montague’s Tales of Terror' by Chris Priestley.
Blinder Films, Get to Know Me (TV drama) with lead partner Digital Cube, Romania. Blinder Films is a leading, female-owned Irish film & TV production company that produced the MEDIA supported THE RACER (2020). Digital Cube has produced award-winning features that include DONBAS (Un Certain Regard Award, Cannes 2018) and QUO VADIS, AIDA? (nominated for Best International Feature Film at Academy Awards). “Get to Know Me” is at development stage; its creator is Romanian Laura Sterian, a promising new screenwriter. The project marks the first Romanian-Ireland co-production for a TV series and will be the first time when a Romanian born writer showcases their work to transnational audiences. This Irish and Romanian partnership came about thanks to Blinder Films' producer Yvonne Donohoe participation on EAVE Producers Workshop which is a MEDIA funded programme. (The deadline to apply for 2023 EAVE programme is 5th September!)
'We at Blinder Films are so delighted, along with our partners Digital Cube in Romania, to be in receipt of support from Creative Europe for our co-development project GET TO KNOW ME. This project made its way to us via a relationship built in the Creative Europe supported producer training course EAVE between Blinder producer Yvonne Donohoe and Digital Cube producer Cristian Nicolescu. To get an opportunity to work together on such an unique, intriguing and highly ambitious project will be hugely advantageous for both companies but the progress we will now be able to make together would not be possible without the welcome Creative Europe support. We look forward to undertaking this adventure together!' Yvonne Donohoe, producer, Blinder Films
The deadline for the 2022 Co-development award is 8th September. Each project must have a project leader and at least one partner with companies legally established in at least 2 different MEDIA countries.
