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Oscar and BAFTA-winning directing duo Tom Berkeley and Ross White, previously featured on Dn with their multi-award-winning short An Irish Goodbye, grace our pages again with another delightfully unconventional dark comedy The Golden West. When embarking on their directorial journey together the pair decided to make three shorts, with each subsequent project growing in ambition both narratively and production wise, while gradually turning up the dial on their dark sensibilities. The Golden West serves up everything you could want from those aims. Set in the unforgiving landscape of the Snowdonia mountains, two sisters, who have fled the horrors of the Irish famine, are struggling to find their fortune in the perhaps lesser-known Welsh gold rush. With standout performances by Irish actors Eileen Walsh and Aoife Duffin, their journey is anything but simple and isn’t helped any by a constant barrage of bickering which only increases in intensity as their situation worsens.

The BAFTAs reveal the longlists for this year’s film awards on Friday, January 5. Ten short films will number among those still in contention. Look for this trio of top-notch tales to make the cut and remain in the running to be in the final five when the BAFTA nominations are announced on January 18.

Tom Berkeley and Ross White won at both the BAFTAs and Oscars last year for their short film “The Irish Goodbye.” Their follow-up, “The Golden West,” is set in Ireland in 1849 and follows two sisters (Eileen Walsh and Aoife Duffin) who try to strike it rich in the gold rush. Their lack of success reignites their sibling rivalry. The Irish vistas deliver a feeling of pure cinema while the dialogue and performances are reminiscent of the best of the Coen brothers movies.

Chris Overton and Rachel Shenton won the Oscar for Best Live Action Short Film...

Short films — whether it be live-action, animated, or documentary — are becoming increasingly popular as more notable filmmakers begin to tell stories via this medium. Wes Anderson has four short films on Netflix, each adapted from a Roald Dahl book with “The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar” the most popular of the bunch. Pedro Almodóvar made “Strange Way of Life” with Pedro Pascal and Ethan Hawke. And Disney has the animated centenary celebration “Once Upon a Studio.”

These high-profile projects face fierce competition from some of the most up-and-coming filmmakers. Here are 10 other short films you should try and watch if you can. We think they’ll deservedly be serious Oscar contenders.

“In Too Deep” — Chris Overton

Chris Overton and Rachel Shenton won the Oscar for Best Live Action Short Film in 2018 for “The Silent Child” and they return here with another searing short that packs a wallop. “In Too Deep...

Irish short animation, 'Fear of Flying', has completed production in preparation for its premiere at the Galway Film Fleadh this July. Shot at Dublin-based South Studios, 'Fear of Flying' was funded by the Irish Film Board's Frameworks project, with RTÉ and the Arts Council. Conor Finnegan wrote and directed the short, while Ifta Award-winning producer Brunella Cocchiglia (Foxes) produced for Lovely Productions, flanked by cinematographer Ivan McCullough (The Eclipse). Mark Doherty (A Film with Me in it) voiced main character Dougal, while breakout actress of 'Behold the Lamb' Aoife Duffin co-starred...

The ninth annual Irish Film & Television Awards took place tonight at a Gala Awards Ceremony held at the Convention Centre Dublin.

In the field of film 'The Guard' was the big winner of the night receiving the Ifta for Best Film, with writer/director John Michael McDonagh named Best Director, Best Screenwriter and the Irish Film Board Rising Star for his feature directorial debut. Fionnula Flannagan who was honoured with a lifetime achievement award also won best supporting actress for her part in 'The Guard'.

Michael Fassbender picked up best actor for 'Shame' while Saoirse Ronan picked up best actress for her role in 'Hanna.' Ryan Gosling picked up the best international actor for 'Drive,' Chris O'Dowd picked up best supporting actor for 'Bridesmaids', and Glenn Close picked up best international actress for 'Albert Nobbs.'

'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy...

Brendan Gleeson, The Guard The Guard, Glenn Close, Ryan Gosling Win: Irish Film Awards 2012 Film Categories Best Film Albert Nobbs, Alan Moloney, Bonnie Curtis, Julie Lynn, Glenn Close Charlie Casanova, Terry McMahon Stella Days, Jackie Larkin, Leslie McKimm * The Guard, Ed Guiney, Andrew Lowe, Chris Cark, Flora Fernandez Marengo Best Director Rebecca Daly, The Other Side of Sleep * John Michael McDonagh, The Guard Terry McMahon, Charlie Casanova Thaddeus O'Sullivan, Stella Days Best Screenplay John Banville, Glenn Close, Albert Nobbs * John Michael McDonagh, The Guard Terry McMahon, Charlie Casanova Antoine O'Flaherta, Stella Days Best Actor * Michael Fassbender, Shame Brendan Gleeson, The Guard Ciarán Hinds, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy Martin Sheen, Stella Days Best Actress Aoife Duffin, Behold the Lamb Antonia Campbell Hughes, The Other Side of Sleep Marcella Plunkett, Stella Days * Saoirse Ronan, Hanna Best Supporting Actor Liam Cunningham, The Guard Brendan Gleeson, Albert Nobbs Ciarán Hinds, The Debt * Chris O'Dowd,...

Albert Nobbs and the other nominations for the 2012 Irish Film and Television Academy Awards have been announced. The 9th Annual Irish Film and Television Awards (IFTAs) “sole aim is to celebrate Ireland’s notably talented film and television community. The ceremony is considered to be one of Ireland’s most prestigious awards event, and can be viewed as the Irish equivalent to the American Oscars.” The awards ceremony will be held on February 11, 2012 at the Convention Centre Dublin (Ccd).

The full listing of the 2012 Irish Film and Television Awards is below.

Film Categories

Best Film

Albert Nobbs – Alan Moloney, Bonnie Curtis, Julie Lynn and Glenn Close (Parallel Film & TV Productions)

Charlie Casanova – Terry McMahon (Source Productions)

Stella Days – Jackie Larkin & Leslie McKimm (Newgrange Pictures)

The Guard – Ed Guiney, Andrew Lowe, Chris Larke, Flore Fernandez Marengo(Element Pictures)

Director Film

Rebecca Daly – The Other Side of Sleep (Fastnet Films)

John Michael McDonagh...

The Irish, it must be said, possess a very particular form of black humor and that humor is very much present in the trailer for Belfast-born writer-director John McIlduf's debut feature Behold The Lamb.Soon to screen as part of the Discovery program at the Toronto International Film Festival, here's how they describe it:Firmly lodged between slapstick and tragedy, Behold the Lamb follows a dodgy duo -- rough, tough and pregnant junkie Liz (Aoife Duffin) and middle-aged loser Eddie (Nigel O'Neill) -- as they course through the Northen Irish countryside en route to the weirdest score of their lives. Set up as a series of sudden jolts, the film involves the simulated death of two animals (one furry, one hairy), a darkly comedic drug scheme,...