SETU graduate Seán Hughes has won a coveted Irish language film award of €1,000 for his lyrical documentary ‘An Cnoc’ at the Fastnet Film Festival in Schull in West Cork.
Seán, who also scooped this year’s best Irish language film at the Student Media Awards was inspired to make his poetic documentary after living under the magical spell of Cnoc Bhreánnáin in Corca Dhuibhne.
He says: “In ‘An Cnoc’, I wanted to explore what effect Mount Brandon had on the minds and lives of those living in its shadow.”
The film features broadcaster Dara Ó Cinnéide and the poet Ceaití Ní Bheildiúin.
Seán thanked the people of Corca Dhuibhne and all the lecturers on SETU’s Higher Diploma in Television and Media Production based at Nemeton TV for their help in producing his film.
The nominations for best Irish language film at the Fastnet Film Festival were dominated by graduates and students of SETU’s Postgraduate Course in TV and Media.
Damian McElgunn from Belfast, who had already won Best Documentary at the Student Media Awards, was nominated for the energetic ‘Beothach Beo’ (Alive and Kicking).
In the documentary, Damian travels back to the 1970s Northern Irish punk scene. Celebrated musicians from Stiff Little Fingers and the Undertones reflect on how music changed their lives during the Troubles. Damian says: “There was an incredible energy at the time. The atmosphere was as important as the music.”
Seosamh Mac Seoin was nominated for his debut drama ‘Uilíoch’ in which a man reflects on the childhood trauma he experienced growing up in Belfast. As we see glimpses of his younger self, we come to understand the events that shaped his life. Seosamh also recently won the best live-action short film at the Cinemagic’s On The Pulse Film Festival and the best bilingual film at the Student Media Awards for the film.
In his moving documentary ‘An t-Ancaire’ (The Anchor), An Rinn director Seanie Mc Craith focuses on the Marechal de Noailles ship, which sank off the Waterford coast in 1912. Seventy-four years later in 1986, divers set out to bring the ship’s anchor ashore. “Using archive footage, reconstruction, and interview, I wanted to show the challenges of the journey,” says Seanie.
Finally, Lia Nic Craith’s dynamic first film ‘Ultra’ was nominated for best student at Fastnet. The documentary follows Tomás de Faoite of Gaeltacht na nDéise, a highly motivated and determined athlete, as he partakes in the challenging 268-mile ultra marathon in the Pennines. Lia’s film was featured in First Frame at this year’s Dublin International Film Festival.
SETU films are broadcast on TG4 and are currently available on the TG4 Player. The Postgraduate Course in Television & Media Production is run every year by SETU in association with Nemeton TV, one of Ireland’s leading production companies, and Udarás na Gaeltachta. It is widely regarded as one of the most industry-focused courses in the media sector and has gained a high profile in the industry with its excellent graduate employment record.
