News > 2010

13 October 2010

MG ALBA SUPPORTS TRAINING FOR EMERGING TALENT IN GAELIC MEDIA

MG ALBA, the Gaelic Media Service, today (Wednesday) praised up-and-coming talent in the screen industry at the film launch of ‘An Seòladh’ (The Journey) at the Royal National Mod, Caithness.

Promising young writer-director, Seònaid MacDonald, who lives in Inverness, has emerged as a result of MG ALBA’s FilmG competition.

Seònaid MacDonald
Seònaid MacDonald who has written and directed ‘An Seòladh’ (The Journey) after winning ‘Best Film’ in the new entrants category of the inaugural FilmG competition.

With the support from MG ALBA, Seònaid has written and directed a 10 minute film ‘An Seòladh’ (The Journey) on the back of gaining ‘Best Film’ in the new entrants category of the inaugural FilmG competition for her submission ‘Oidhche Shathairne’ (Saturday Night).

‘An Seòladh’, the story of a young island girl having to return home to Lewis to live with her parents, was filmed on board MV ‘Isle of Lewis’, one of Calmac’s fleet of ferries earlier this year and is now to be entered into film festivals in the UK and internationally.

Having received an MG ALBA bursary, Seònaid is also taking her writing career a stage further, as one of the two Gaelic speakers now attending a new MA course in television fiction writing at Glasgow Caledonian University.

Seonaid believes that taking part in FilmG was a life changing experience for her. “There’s no question that there’s been a huge change in my life since I won the first FilmG,” she said. “If I hadn’t taken part, I don’t believe I would ever have had the confidence to do what I’m doing now. I would urge anyone who is thinking of going in for it this year to do just that.”

Seònaid has been working with Producer, Amanda Millen, who is also a Director of Screen HI, a contractor of Highlands and Islands Enterprise. Amanda, formerly of the BBC, said: “The first two years of FilmG produced an impressive array of talent, especially in the Highlands and Islands. Screen HI and HIE are delighted to be working with MG ALBA and FilmG in nurturing new filmmaking talent and taking it to the next level of the professional broadcast industry.

“It has been exciting sharing in Seonaid’s experience in making her first professional film. FilmG goes from strength to strength; it is now firmly part of the filmmaking landscape and I’m looking forward to another crop of talented new filmmakers from this year’s competition.”

Donald Campbell, Chief Executive of MG ALBA, said: “FilmG is about discovering and nurturing new talent, but that’s just the first stage. The Caledonian MA course and other training initiatives which we are supporting, allow emerging writers and film-makers to gain experience in the industry and widen the pool of talent available for Gaelic content production. MG ALBA is committed to providing training for people working in the Gaelic media, and we are delighted to share in the success of new film-makers.”

FilmG is MG ALBA’s established Gaelic short film competition and is open to anyone over the age of 12, to make a three to five minute short film in Gaelic. More information can be found at www.filmg.co.uk.