Early last year when Rukayat Moibi reviewed An Irish Goodbye, describing it as “A heart-warming film about loss“, it was up for 15 Official Selections in the Academy Award Qualifying Festivals. Fast forward, it went on to become an Oscar® and BAFTA Winning short film, as well as an abundance of accolades from various Festivals and Awards… The recognition for this beautifully created film continues.
HollyShorts London honoured AN IRISH GOODBYE Oscar® winners Tom Berkeley and Ross White.
“Kneecap” won big at the BIFAs (British Independent Film Awards) on Sunday night – but they weren’t the only Irish talent to be honoured in London this weekend. The first international edition of HollyShorts, L.A’s renowned short film festival, also took place in London over the weekend. HollyShorts London honoured AN IRISH GOODBYE Oscar® winners Tom Berkeley and Ross White by presenting them with the festival’s Honoree Award. The festival also presented a special Trailblazer Award to actor James Martin, whose pivotal role in An Irish Goodbye led to him being the first star with Down Syndrome to win at the Academy Awards.
Additionally, the Oscar-longlisted Irish short film CALF won the festival’s top prize. Directed by Jamie O’Rourke, CALF took home the Best Short Film Grand Prize presented by Panavision. Set in the Irish countryside, this gut-wrenching short follows a sinister accident unravelling on a farm, leaving young Cait (played by up-and-coming actress Isabelle Connolly) with a tough decision to make. Other prizewinning shorts include Porta A. Buckley’s CLODAGH, Louisa Connolly-Burnham’s SISTER WIVES, Mika Simmons MY WEEK WITH MAISY, and Alex Lora’s THE MASTERPIECE.
The first international edition of HollyShorts took place on the 6th – 8th December at London’s Curzon Soho cinema. Considered amongst world’s most prestigious short film festivals, this L.A. based event takes place annually at venues including the iconic TCL Chinese Theatre, attracting renowned filmmakers, actors and industry professionals from around the world. HollyShorts celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2024, and MovieMaker recently named it “One Of The 25 Coolest Film Festivals In The World“. HollyShorts is an Oscar-qualifying – and now also BAFTA-qualifying – short film festival.
HollyShorts London sponsors include Cotrini Skin, Kodak, Panavision, JeanBookNerd, Miller Insurance, Company 3, Alta Global Media, 88th Street Productions, Shotdeck, IMGN and Kevork Law.
Irish OSCAR-contender CALF takes home Panavision’s top prize at HollyShorts first-ever London festival
On Friday, December 6th, the Hollyshorts London festival began with a key-note panel and opening night party, followed by a weekend of screenings at the Curzon Soho. The OSCAR-contending short film CALF, directed by Jamie O’Rourke, took home the Best Short Film Grand Prize, which was presented by Panavision, along with a £20,000 Camera Lens Package from Panavision!
Also taking home awards
Best Comedy – My Week With Maisy by Mika Simmons
Best Drama – Clodagh by Portia A. Buckley
Best Documentary – Anäis by Hélène Hadjiyianni
Best Cinematography – Presented by Shotdeck – Anuja, DP Akash Raje, directed by Adam J. Graves
Best Shot on Film – Presented by Kodak-Clodagh by Portia A. Buckley
Best International – The Masterpiece by Alex Lora
Best Director – Presented by CotriniSkin-Sister Wives by Louisa Connolly-Burnham
Best Short Film Grand Prize – Presented by Panavision, £20,000 Camera Lens Package from Panavision. Calf by Jamie O’Rourke
Recipients of the HollyShorts Honoree Award included Tom Berkeley and Ross White, who won an Oscar in 2023 for their short film An Irish Goodbye; Chris Overton, who won an Oscar in 2018 for The Silent Child; Misan Harriman, who was nominated for an Academy Award this year for The After; and Jamie Donoughue, who was nominated in 2016 for Shok.
The festival also presented a special Trailblazer Award to actor James Martin, whose pivotal role in An Irish Goodbye led to him being the first star with Down Syndrome to win at the Academy Awards. At the beginning of this year, Martin was awarded the MBE — Member of the Order of the British Empire — in the King’s New Year’s Honours List for his services to drama.
Last year, the HollyShorts Film Festival was granted its fourth Oscar-qualifying award for documentary short. For the first time, the festival has also been accredited by BAFTA, meaning that films selected for HollyShorts will be eligible to submit to the BAFTA awards. Several HollyShorts winners have gone on to take the top prize in the shorts categories at the Academy Awards, including Riz Ahmed’s The Long Goodbye and Guy Nattiv’s Skin.
Next year, HollyShorts London will be back for its 2nd edition, whilst the Los Angeles 21st Edition will be held in August.
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