Film in Cork (formerly the Cork Screen Commission), a new initiative from Cork City & County Councils, has taken on the task of promoting all aspects of production in Cork. To celebrate this, Film in Cork held its official launch in the Atrium in City Hall, Cork on Wednesday 17th June, with special guest Naoise Barry, Film Commissioner for the Irish Film Board, and almost 100 members of the industry in attendance.

Film In Cork will provide production, location and training services to those working in film, television, and animation. It will also serve to promote and market the Cork region locally, nationally and internationally as a wonderful place to work. In addition to providing assistance to anyone wanting to produce in Cork, another purpose of Film in Cork is to bring together the broad spectrum of people working in the industry so that the region can really grow and prosper.

The huge show of support at the launch by Cork’s filmmaking community gives a glowing start to Film in Cork’s plans. Special guest from the Irish Film Board, Naoise Barry, is delighted to be involved with ‘Film in Cork’ from the beginning, as he sees the need for such a body to ensure the future success of production in the region.

Speaking at the launch, Naoise said “As the Irish film industry continues to expand, Cork can seize the opportunity and be part of this growth. We welcome the establishment of Film In Cork to support the industry in the region and look forward to working with Rossa Mullin and his stakeholders in the South-West. The screen industry has steadily grown in importance for Cork over the last number of years, and the stunning locations have attracted major film productions such as Ken Loach’s Palme D’Or winning The Wind That Shakes The Barley, featuring Cork actor Cillian Murphy and Neil Jordan’s gorgeous Ondine, starring Colin Farrell. First features by Cork filmmakers are also steadily emerging, such as Pádraig Trehy’s highly anticipated Shem The Penman Sings Again for the Irish Film Board.”

Film in Cork is supported by both Cork City Council and Cork County Council Arts Offices; and Ann Doherty, Chief Executive of Cork City Council, spoke at the launch event saying there is a real need for Cork to develop its film industry, not only for itself but for the entire region’s economy. She said “Film In Cork has been established to ensure that Cork City and County is seen as an attractive place for producers to come to, to maximise the possibilities for Cork and drive economic and cultural activity in the Cork region. As a Local authority working with our partners we can ensure that the foundations and supports are in place to position the city, to create pathways for new ideas and opportunities to be realised in the city and continue to further Cork’s reputation as a innovative city.”

These sentiments were echoed by Louis Duffy, Director of Economic Development, Cork County Council. Speaking at the launch, he said “Supporting the work of Film in Cork is part of a strategic investment by Cork City and County Council that aims to secure an increased share of Film and Television production for the Cork region. Cork is Ireland’s largest county and we have an incredible range of superb film locations as well as top class resources to support all forms of audio visual production. Film in Cork brings local government and the Cork film sector together to position Cork as Ireland’s most film friendly location.”

As well as supporting production, Rossa Mullin, Manager of Film in Cork, plans to create an infrastructure for Cork that will adapt to current demands with regard to industry training. He said ‘We see a lot of emerging talent in Cork, people like Shaun O’Connor and Tadgh Hickey who have been doing a lot of comedy work with RTE recently; Brendan Canty whose video for Hozier’s ‘Take Me To Church’ went viral and was responsible for getting Hozier into the spotlight (200 million + views on YouTube); script editors like Patrick O’Driscoll working with major American A-list companies from his base in Cork; as well as dozens of other young filmmakers and animators producing things like ‘Sminky’ and ‘Martin’s Life’”.

He continued “There’s no doubt there is a vibrant scene here, including more than 30 staff in RTE Cork producing hundreds of hours of television annually and winning major awards internationally with programs such as ‘Secrets of the Irish Landscape’. We have been having very positive discussions with Screen Training Ireland, the national training agency, about developing solid bridges for local talent into the industry and will be making announcements about these developments over the course of the Summer. We see Film in Cork playing a pivotal role in helping to nurture, develop and facilitate the work of these enormously talented people, whilst helping to position Cork on the national and international stage as a prime location for all types of production.”

For more information on Film in Cork please visit www.filmincork.com, follow on Twitter @filmincork and Facebook at Film-In-Cork.