Record number of Irish Animation Awards nominees announced
Nominees Announced
The nominees for the 2023 Irish Animation Awards have been announced today (Tuesday 25th April) by Animation Ireland, the trade association for Irish animation studios. This year’s ceremony takes place in Galway on Saturday 27th May. In a record year for the Irish animation sector, 53 Irish productions were nominated for an award.
Leading the way with seven nominations is Cartoon’s Saloon’s feature film produced for Netflix, My Father’s Dragon, directed by the Oscar-nominated Nora Twomey. The Preschool series Odo, produced for Channel 5 by Sixteen South has six nominations and RTÉ’s preschool series Ray of Sunshine, produced by Daily Madness has five nominations.
The biennial awards are the premier event in the Irish animation calendar and celebrate the creative brilliance and talent of the Irish animation sector. The ceremony will take place in person for the first time since the covid pandemic.
According to Animation Ireland’s Chief Executive, Ronan McCabe, the awards this year highlight the continued growth and creativity in the sector; ‘’It has been another superb year for Irish animation and we now have a record number of Irish productions being nominated. There are nominations from Oscar and Bafta winners alongside stunning work from student producers, and the quality across the board is immense. It’s really heartening that the future remains bright for Irish animation.’’
Ronan went on to say; ‘’It will be great to be back having our awards in person again for the first time since 2019 due to the pandemic. We are running a full day event with industry panels and discussions taking place in the morning, followed by the awards ceremony in the evening. Baz Ashmawy is back with us to host the awards ceremony again, so we’ll definitely enjoy that. I must also extend a huge thank you to all of our other sponsors who play such an important role in supporting Irish animation and making this event happen.’’
Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland and RTÉ are the headline sponsors for the 2023 Irish Animation Awards. This year’s other sponsors include Northern Ireland Screen, Coimisiún na Meán, Creative Europe Ireland, Enterprise Ireland, Nickelodeon and Milkshake.
Winners of each category will receive a statuette designed by animator, film maker and teacher Eimhín McNamara. The statuette resembles a Phenakistoscope, an early animation device used to create an illusion of motion.
Animation Ireland is the trade association for Ireland’s animation studios, representing forty-two member studios, who employ more than two thousand people on the island of Ireland. The sector has seen meteoric growth in recent years, with the industry now generating almost €200 million for the economy annually, as Irish animation projects are viewed in over 180 countries worldwide.
Nominees
Best Animated Preschool Series
Ada Twist, Scientist
Circle Square
Kiva Can Do!
Odo
Ray Of Sunshine
Best Animated Kids Series 6+
Boy Girl Dog Cat Mouse Cheese
El Deafo
Karma's World
Tales From Dún Draíochta
The Cuphead Show!
Best Animated Short Film
Bardo
Lady Betty
Memento Mori
Nana's Terrifying Zoom Call
Soul Office
Best International Short Film
Cornucopia
Cha Cha
GMAN: a qixia in space
Signal
The Stranger
Best Writer For Preschool Animation
Fia’s Fairies - Chick A Bye Baby
Happy The Hoglet - Happy Hogfairy
Kiva Can Do! - Beach Ready Yeti
Odo - Doodle Song
Ray Of Sunshine - Under The Weather
Best Writer For An Animated Series
Boy Girl Dog Cat Mouse Cheese- Junked
Tales from Dún Draíochta - Rocker and the Puca
Tales From Dun Draiochta- Lusmore And The Rapping Fairy
Tales From Dun Draiochta- The Scottish Giant
The Royals Next Door- Royal Re-Enactment
Best Animation For Apps, Games And Interactive
Cat Burglar
VOOKS- Life Of Pele
VOOKS- The Solar System With Ellen
Waggle
Best Art Direction And Design
Ada Twist, Scientist
Bardo
Empty Little People
Odo
The Imagination Machine
Best Director Of An Animated Series
El Deafo
Karma's World
Odo
Ray Of Sunshine
Transformers BotBots
Best Animation Sequence
Boy Girl Dog Cat Mouse Cheese
Coming Home
My Father’s Dragon
The Cuphead Show!
Gas Networks Tommys Promo
Best Music
Critters Tv
Empty Little People
My Father's Dragon
Ray Of Sunshine
Red Rabbit
Best Sound Design
Bardo
Memento Mori
Monster Hunters: Legends Of The Guild
My Father's Dragon
My Little Pony
Best Irish Feature Or Special
Adam Saves Christmas
Pinkalicious And Peterrific
My Father’s Dragon
The Ghastly Ghoul
Best Innovation In Animation
A Thing Called Joy
Adventureverse
Face2Face - Charles & Camilla
Fias Fairies
Myth Masters
Best New Irish IP
Alva's World
Happy The Hoglet
Odo
The Imagination Machine
The Wee Littles
Best Student Film
Fall Of The Ibis King
His Dancing Shoes
Small Hours
Small Makings Of A Storm
Witch Of The Woods
Best Editing
Ada Twist, Scientist
Boy Girl Dog Cat Mouse Cheese
El Deafo
Happy The Hoglet
My Father's Dragon
Best Storyboarding
El Deafo
Karma's World
My Father’s Dragon
Ray Of Sunshine
Transformers: BotBots
Best VFX in animation
Mimi's World
My Father’s Dragon
The Cup Head Show!
The Imagination Machine
Wendell And Wild