Labour City Councillor Niall Mc Nelis has extended congratulations to the cast and crew of The Banshees of Inisherin, An Cailin Ciuin and An Irish Goodbye for their Oscar nominations announced this week and said that the honours illustrate the need for the maintenance of funding in the sector.
Cllr Mc Nelis said that the 14 total nods for Irish nominees should serve to highlight the value of investing in the arts in Ireland.
Mc Nelis said he extended the warmest congratulations to the many Irish people whose work is being recognised by the Academy Awards today. “The cast and crew of ‘Banshees of Inisherin’ are rightly nominated across the board for what was a poignant and moving reflection on friendship and Irish life.
“The success of ‘An Cailin Ciuin’ is a really fantastic achievement for the creators and crew of that film and it is a real boon for the Irish language.
“This game changing nomination is hugely exciting and it is my hope that it will act as a boost to interest in Irish as a spoken language both at home and internationally.
“Tá fíor creidte tuailte do Chleona Ní Chrualaoí agus Colm Baréid agus a hiarrachtaí ag dul chun chinn an teanga dhuchais trí mheain scannáin.
“It is also terrific to see nominations for ‘An Irish Goodbye’ for Best Live Action Short, Paul Mescal for Best Actor, as well as Irish nominees Jonathon Redmond for Best Editing in ‘Elvis’ and Richard Baneham for Best Visual Effects in ‘Avatar: the Way of Water’.
He said that a blockbuster year of nominations for Irish film proves yet again that the Irish film industry is one of our greatest exports.
“Irish producers, cinematographers, actors and animators are not only being elevated by the Academy Awards but are flying the flag for Irish filmmaking around the world.
“We are so lucky in Galway as a UNESCO City of Film to have a wealth of creative industries and events in Galway that includes Ardán which fosters talent in Film, TV, Games and Animation since 1989, and gives creators a platform to tell their stories and support the community through advice, training , resources and funding.
“Also we have CREW, a collaborative initiative led by Atlantic Technical University Galway, The Western Development Commission and Ardán.
“The creative industry is an area where we have expertise and where growth can happen. It is important that we keep funding available for our local film industry so it can continue to produce the high quality, award winning productions that are famous the world over. The economic benefits of this will be not only for the Creative industries but tourism in Galway City and County will be huge with visitors this year.
“The number of college courses in ATU and University of Galway that produce graduates in media production has been rising steadily. This again reflects the industries importance in our society. It also reflects our industry’s international reputation.
“As a county we must build on today’s success and not miss the opportunity that our arts industry provides to us to promote ourselves internationally,” he said.
