Over 70 entries were submitted to the competition in 2018, with leading names in Ireland's film and television industry joining young filmmakers at St Patrick's University Hospital for the competition screening and awards ceremony on 11 December.
On the night, a panel of experts - including award-winning writer and director Nick Kelly, Irish Film and Television Academy (IFTA) nominated screenwriter and actor Paddy C. Courtney, RTÉ Guide film critic Michael Doherty, and Director of Services at St Patrick’s Mental Health Services (SPMHS), Tom Maher - judged the selection of films shortlisted from all the entries.
Winners
With two categories of Secondary School and General, filmmakers were asked to produce a short film that they believe challenges stigma or illustrates the importance of positive mental health.
St Patrick’s College, Cork received the first place award in the Secondary School category for their live-action short film, 'What I Do When I Feel Blue'.
In the General category, first prize was awarded to Seán T. Ó Meallaigh from Stoneybatter in Dublin 7, for his short film, 'Gimme a Shout'.
High quality films
Speaking at the awards ceremony, Nick Kelly said
it was an honour to be one of the judges in this competition. The art of filmmaking is tricking people into keeping watching. The biggest achievement is in making a film about a subject people don’t want to see but, at the end, they realise how important it was to see it.
Presenting the awards, Tom Maher added
as this is the fifth year of the competition, we were overwhelmed with the response, receiving over 70 submissions. The standard was very high, as it is each year. We hope that this initiative will influence young filmmakers throughout their careers to create messages of positive mental health and reduce stigma in their future projects.
Judges
Meet our judges from the 2018 competition.
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Paddy C. Courtney
Paddy is an actor, IFTA-nominated screenwriter and voiceover artist. Following a successful 15-year career as a stand-up comedian, Paddy hung up his comedy microphone in 2011 to concentrate on screenwriting and acting.
His onscreen credits include ‘Safe’ for Netflix , ‘Houdini and Doyle’ for Fox TV, ‘Shameless’ for Channel 4 and ‘George Gently’ for BBC, as well as many appearances on Irish television, including ‘Fir Bolg,’ ‘Rasaí na Gaillimhe’ and ‘Paddywhackery’, which he co-wrote and played the lead role in, leading to three IFTA nominations.
In recent years Paddy has turned his hand to children’s television and animation. He co-wrote 100 episodes of the RTEjr show ‘Dig in Diner', playing the character of Digger the gardener also. He has just finished writing on a new animation show ‘Jessy and Nessy’ for Amazon.
Paddy is a huge fan of the short film concept, as he believes it is the perfect way for storytellers to dip their toe into the world of filmmaking. One of Paddy’s earliest moments on screen was his appearance in the multi award-winning short film ‘Yu Ming is Ainm Dom'.
He is no stranger to film competitions, as he has been a jury member for the IFTA awards on numerous occasions, judging short films and comedy programmes.
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Michael Doherty
Michael Doherty is the Films Editor for the RTÉ Guide. He is a regular contributor on movies for RTÉ television and radio, and has been a Frame of Mind judge for five years.
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Nick Kelly
Nick Kelly first began writing and directing award-winning short films in 2003, culminating in his third short 'Shoe' being shortlisted for an Oscar nomination in 2011.
Nick’s first feature, 'The Drummer And the Keeper', premiered at the Galway Film Fleadh in July 2017, where it won Best Irish First Feature. After a successful Irish theatrical release, it was selected for the British Film Institute London Film Festival, and won Best Feature at the Irish Film Festival London in November 2017. It was also nominated in five categories at the 2018 IFTA Awards, including Best Screenplay for Nick’s script, with Jacob McCarthy winning the prestigious Rising Star for his portrayal of Christopher.
The Drummer And The Keeper also won the Roxanne T. Mueller Audience Choice Award for Best Film at the Cleveland International Film Festival, Best Foreign Film at the Newport Beach Film Festival, the Silver Award in the Score Bernhard Wicki Preis for Best Film at the Emden-Norderney International Filmfest, Best Feature at the Umbria Film Festival, and the Special Jury Prize at Filmfest Bremen.
Nick was one of three screenwriters nominated in the Best Feature Script section of the Irish Writer Guild’s annual ZeBBie awards 2018.
Having qualified as a solicitor and given up his legal career on the same day, Nick’s working life has been devoted to creative endeavours. In addition to his work in film, he is a Clio-winning advertising creative, a Choice Music Prize-nominated musical artist and an Ian St. James Award-winning short fiction writer.
www.nickkelly.ie
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Tom Maher
Tom Maher is the Director of Services at SPMHS.
Secondary School winners
'What I Do When I Feel Blue' from St Patrick's College in Cork took first place, while 'You Are Not Your Thoughts' from Mountrath Community College was our runner-up.
General winners
Seamus T. Ó'Meallaigh won first place with 'Gimme a Shout' and 'Thief' from Joseph Reid came in second place.
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