A YOUNG West Cork filmmaker is excited for the future of the industry in the region, and says that the upcoming opening of the West Cork Film Studio can 'only be a good thing'.
Schull's Étáin Nash is one of ten young Irish filmmakers who has been chosen to participate in the First Cut Youth Film Festival's Youth Music Video Competition, and believes that having a facility in West Cork will benefit her and other young creatives.
The programme mirrors the industry process a professional filmmaker goes through to make a music video. Each filmmaker is paired with a track, given a brief, and then submits a treatment explaining their idea.
They work with experienced mentors such as award-winning director Brendan Canty, and the overall winner will be awarded €5,000 to help kickstart their career.
Musicians who have been involved previously include CMAT, Pillow Queens, and aboveDat, whose video was directed by Lochalinn McKenna, who has gone on to shoot a short film on the Beara peninsula this year.
Although Nash is from Schull, she is based in Dublin, having moved there to study film at IADT. She says that something like the West Cork Film Studio will benefit the region by drawing more productions here.
'A lot of the productions I have worked on have a base in Dublin or Wicklow and then maybe they go down to West Cork for their exteriors,' Nash said. 'So it would be great to have a place where things could be fully-based in West Cork.'
'There are a lot of experienced crew in the area as well, and they have to work in Dublin or Wicklow because there isn't a full-time option in West Cork yet.'
Something that people trying to break into the film industry can struggle with is getting their foot in the door. Nash believes that the more projects made in West Cork the better for young creatives who want to take that first step.
'My first ever industry job was while I was in college,' she said. 'I was a production trainee on Float Like A Butterfly and that was my foot in the door. It was my first time working on anything like that and I had no idea what it was but I learned a lot from it and through that I was able to get work straight away when I finished college.
'I had that on my CV and I got that job because I'm from Schull.'
Nash should be confident of her chances of winning the competition, having already directed a music video for Ballydehob musicians Les SalAmandas last year.
'It was quite a personal piece, combining documentary and experimental visuals,' she said.
'It was a great experience and I really enjoyed that. So I would love to do more music videos.'
The rise of West Cork's film industry
Our latest In The News podcast focuses on how West Cork's film industry is blossoming and how local filmmakers are working to ensure more and more productions are filmed here.
