A celebration of the talents of young digital filmmakers in Ireland, combined with the aim of increasing drink awareness among Irish youth, culminated in the DARE2BDRINKAWARE Awards Ceremony held in Dublin’s Digital Hub last night.
The winners, Gobias Productions from the Dun Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design and Technology (IADT), won a cash prize of €4,000 for their use of digital media to take a look at young people’s attitudes towards alcohol in their film On The Cutting RoomFloor.
“The medium of film is a good way of engaging with third-level students, as it is widely accepted amongst that age-group,” said Fionnuala Sheehan, chief executive of drinkaware.ie, the event sponsors.
The film awards had a special guest in the form of Irish director Lenny Abrahamson, whose film Garage, starring comedian Pat Shortt, won several awards last year, including the CICAE Art and Essai Cinema Prize at the Cannes Film Festival.
Abrahamson said of the film awards: “Competitions like DARE2BDRINKAWARE are integral to the future success of the Irish film industry.
“It’s very tough starting out as a novice filmmaker, so the experience and support gained through competitions such as this one are invaluable.”
The awards were organised by the Digital Hub Development Agency (DHDA), which also manages the Digital Hub that houses successful technology firms including 3V.ie, PutPlace.com and Lookandtaste.com.
By Marie Boran
Pictured: Evan Barry, director of photography for On The Cutting Room Floor – the film that swept the board at the DARE2BDRINKAWARE film awards – frames his team-mates in a shot at the Awards Ceremony in The Digital Hub. From left: Simon Doyle; Richard Boland; keynote speaker, Lenny Abrahamson; RTÉ and Lyric FM presenter and a member of the judging panel for the awards, John Kelly; Ian Hunt Duffy; Kevin Herlihy
