The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) has today announced details of the latest funding awards under the Sound & Vision 3 Broadcasting Funding Scheme. Following a comprehensive assessment process, funding amounting to €5.991m has been allocated to 126 radio and television projects in Round 30. Of this, funding of €5.368m has been allocated to 33 TV projects, while 93 radio projects have been allocated €622k in this round.
231 applications were received in this round, seeking total funding of almost €17m. While the number of applications and the amount of funding sought is slightly lower than the previous two rounds, interest in the Scheme remains very high. Documentary continues to be the most popular category in terms of applications for both radio and television while there was a good spread of broadcasters associated with the applications across commercial, community and public service radio and TV.
Some notable projects supported in the current round include:
- A feature-length documentary, Limbo, on the Tuam Babies scandal, told through the eyes of campaigner Catherine Corless for broadcast on RTÉ One
- Director Paddy Breathnach’s Rosie, a fiction feature on the homeless crisis based on an original screenplay from Roddy Doyle, and starring Sarah Greene and Moe Dunford
- Christine Molloy and Joe Lawlor a.k.a. Desperate Optimists’s Rose Plays Julie, a fiction feature of an adopted girl who seeks out her birth mother only to be told her mother has no desire to meet her.
- A six-part series, entitled Know Your Media, for Cork Community Television which aims to guide young people through the various concepts involved in being media literate
- A follow-up to the successful children’s documentary series Lurgan2K18 which features the music videos of online sensation ‘TG Lurgan’ for broadcast on TG4
- You, Me and Surrogacy, a three-part observational documentary series for TV3 which gives a bold and honest account of surrogacy from an Irish and international perspective.
- A one-hour radio documentary for Athlone Community Radio, titled “One Day at a Time” which follows a day in the lives of two mums who have children with Down Syndrome
- Janey Dillis, a drama from Ocean FM, which focuses on the world of Janey Dillis who is forced to question her way of life.
- A documentary, Science Gallery: 10 years of art-meets-science, which profiles the space which has changed our relationship with science and art, for broadcast on Newstalk.
The implementation of the funding rounds under Sound & Vision 3 assists the BAI in achieving its mission to foster diverse and culturally relevant content for Irish audiences. It is also a key support in delivering on the BAI strategic themes of Promoting Plurality & Diversity, Enhancing Innovation and Sectoral Sustainability and, Empowering Audiences.
We are very pleased to provide funding support for the 126 radio and television projects announced today. The package of recommendations continues to reflect the wide variety of programming funded under the Scheme for the enjoyment of Irish audiences, encompassing programming as diverse as Irish language television dramas, children’s animation, and adult/media literacy programmes for radio audiences.
Michael O’Keeffe, Chief Executive – BAI
The BAI will now commence contract negotiations with all successful applicants. A full list of the projects being offered funding is available to download here.