THE winners of a prestigious Gaelic short-film competition have been announced.
Almost 500 filmmakers, industry professionals and fans gathered in the Lomond Auditorium of the SEC in Glasgow to find out who would take home the top prizes as the annual FilmG awards.
BBC Alba stars Lana Pheutan and Hannah McKirdy hosted the celebrations, which saw winners crowned across 16 different categories.
Taking top spot in the under-18 competition was Parker Dawes (below) who won Best Film for Iomlaineachd (Perfection).
This is the second year in a row that Dawes has picked up the Best Film award, with judges applauding his Gaelic storytelling ability and continued investment in his craft, earmarking him as one of Scotland’s best young film talents.
Dawes said: “It was an amazing night and it was great that people had the opportunity to view and appreciate my film.
“I enjoy entertaining people with my stories and competitions like FilmG enable me to do this and to pursue filmmaking which is something I really love.
“This is my second year winning, but it still came as a big surprise – it’s still sinking in!”
Securing first place in the over-18 category for Best Film was Kayleigh Bell’s documentary Sealladh mo Sheanair, which explores her “Grandfather’s Perspective” through a series of interviews.
This is Kayleigh's first win in this category at the FilmG Awards.
She said: “I’m quite shocked I won – I thought all the nominees were fantastic.
“I still can’t quite believe it. It’s my first time winning FilmG ever and I’m so glad it was with a personal story – my Granda would have been very proud and I think he’d be very happy to see himself on TV.
“This win has been really encouraging – I’ve definitely got lots of ideas and plans for next year’s competition.”
Other winners include Thurso High School who won the new Inspiration Award in the under-18 competition for their film, Ar Sealladh aig Àrd-sgoil Inbhir Theòrsa, a documentary that explores the views of Thurso’s teachers and pupils on Gaelic medium education.
The Inspiration Award in the over-18 competition went to Edinburgh-based filmmaker Luca Kerr, for his horror Campachadh (Camping).
Meanwhile, Glasgow-based production company Lost Rollerskate Pictures picked up the award for Best Story (-18) for its film, A bheil thu an sin? (Are you there?).
This is the first year the production company entered FilmG, headed up by high-school student Tomas Dimbleby Weber.
There were also two winners for the FilmG Choice Award – the only awards selected by public vote via the FilmG website.
In the under 18 competition the winner was Sgoil Lionacleit, on the Isle of Benbecula, for their moving film Aillse, Sealladh Marsaili, which explores Marsaili’s journey with cancer from a young age.
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In the over-18 competition Skye’s Niamh MacKinnon took home the Choice Award for her film, Glac an Latha, which encourages everyone to embrace the present.
FilmG project manager Megan Dale said the event felt like the Gaelic Baftas, adding: “What a brilliant night!
“We're still reflecting on the wealth of talent and enthusiasm displayed during the FilmG Awards.
“2024 has been a year of firsts for FilmG. We had our first entrants from Canada; it was our first year at the SEC; we had new presenters; and our biggest-ever audience of 500 attending the awards.
“Our bigger venue meant that more nominees and FilmG enthusiasts could attend the awards and this added a real buzz to the event.
“A huge congratulations to all the nominees and winners – it was fantastic seeing them all dressed up for the awards night and it truly felt like the Gaelic Baftas.”
While MG Alba's head of publishing Maggie Taylor added: “A huge congratulations to all our nominees and winners – what a brilliant night celebrating the best of Gaelic storytelling.
“What becomes evident – looking at the talented list of FilmG winners – is that Gaelic storytellers hail from all over Scotland. We have winners from Thurso, Inverness, Skye, Edinburgh, Glasgow, and the Western Isles.
“Hopefully nights like the FilmG Awards encourage Gaelic speakers to continue making films and that their stories and voices are incredibly important in shaping Scotland’s storytelling.”
A highlights programme will be shown on BBC ALBA at 8pm on Sunday, February 25 while a full list of films from FilmG can be found here.
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