The Irish version of the entertainment programme ‘The Apprentice’ will hit Irish screens on TV3 September 22nd at 9pm for a twelve week run. Producer Larry Bass of Screentime ShinAwiL (You’re a Star), the production company that has brought the show to Irish shores, reveals to IFTN the filming process and why the Irish candidates are a real match for their UK and US counterparts. more
The roll out of digital cinema is currently under way across Ireland. IFTN caught up with Graham Spurling of Spurling Group Cinemas to gain some insight into the digital cinema conversion, the role 3D will play, and discuss his appearance at the upcoming Screen International Digital Cinema 2008 event in London taking place on September 25th. more
Three exciting new animated series currently in production in Ireland; school hurling drama ‘Ballybraddan’; a series based on the award winning short ‘Badly Drawn Roy’, which begins a year of production next week; and Magma Films’ ‘Just a Thought’, are among the projects presenting at the CARTOON Forum (16 - 19 September) in Ludwigsburg in Germany. more
Independent Irish broadcaster TV3, owned by private equity firm Doughty Hanson, is set to take over Channel 6 from its founders and a consortium of investors for an undisclosed sum. more
Boxer DTT Limited has been awarded the three national Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) multiplex contracts by The Broadcasting Commission of Ireland. more
New Irish TV station Dublin Community Television (DCTV) launched this week in Dublin, and is set to air a range of home grown drama and documentaries to 200,000 households across Dublin, Limerick, Cork, Galway and Waterford. more
Former Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism Seamus Brennan TD passed away in the early hours of this morning at his home in Churchtown, Dublin. He was 60 years old. more
Belfast-based Tern Television, producer of IFTA winning doco ‘At Home With the Clearys’, has received two new commissions for BBC Northern Ireland - 8 x 30min series ‘The Last Resort’ and one hour documentary ‘Rape…Crisis’. more
Animations and documentaries from companies including LTL Productions, Stirling TV, DoubleBand Films and Lugh Film have all received a cash injection from Irish Language Broadcast Fund in its latest funding round. more
Subotica Entertainment has received €50,000 under MEDIA’s i2i programme for their latest feature ‘The Daisy Chain’, directed by award-winning helmer Aisling Walsh. more
The European Parliament is seeking non-commercial television programme proposals for its 2009 grants scheme that will see c. €5 million euros awarded to communication and information across the 27 member states. more
Gréasán na Meán are seeking talented Irish language writers to submit TV scripts for SÍOL, a new development initiative that will see six writers develop a script to be broadcast as a part of a drama series on TG4. more
Parallel Films, Telegael, Nemeton Teo, Magma, Leirithe le Mac Dara O’Curraidhin Teoranta and Campbell Ryan Productions have secured a combined total of over €600,000 in development finance for a range of film, TV and interactive projects in the recent MEDIA Development funding round. more
Northern Irish production outfit Waddell Media has opened a New York office, overseen by creative director Jon Barrie Waddell. The first project produced from the new US base will be ‘Engineering Thrills’ for Discovery Channel US. more
The Broadcasting Commission of Ireland (BCI) has awarded €240,000 to ‘Community in a Studio’, the first Sound & Vision Special Scheme for community television. more
Irish-Canadian co-production ‘Cairo Time’, directed by Canada’s Ruba Nadda (Black September, So Far Gone) began filming this week on location in Cairo, Egypt, with American actress Patricia Clarkson (Lars and the Real Girl, Good Night and Good Luck) in the lead role. more
