Ardán and RTÉ are delighted to announce the latest round of the very successful Ardán / RTÉ Short Film Commission Scheme, now in its 32nd year! 

The scheme is an opportunity for Irish-based writers, directors, and producers to apply as a team for an award of €15,000 to produce a live action short film of up to 10 minutes which will broadcast on RTE 2 Shortscreen and feature on the RTÉ Player. Each team must include an individual Writer, Director, and Producer to apply.   

The most recent short films that were made as part of the Commission are The Radio and Misread. The Radio premiered at the Galway Film Fleadh in 2022 and has gone on to win several awards and honours since. Misread premiered at the 2023 Galway Film Fleadh to a great reception, with big plans to tour the film festival circuit throughout 2024. 

How to apply? 

Applications must be made through the form at the following link. 

To be eligible, the team members must be habitually resident in Ireland and each member must have made a short film in their relevant role previously. A team can only apply with one project for the scheme.

Films can be based anywhere in Ireland and the rough cut needs to be delivered by 22nd March 2024. Applications will close at 5pm on Friday, 6th October 2023. 

What happens after I submit my application? 

Each application will be independently assessed, with up to five teams being invited to an interview in Galway to pitch their film to a panel.   

One team will be selected to take part in the Scheme and the successful candidates will be provided with mentorship and guidance from a host of experienced industry professionals. 

Recent mentors have been Brendan Muldowney (Director), Mark O’Halloran (Script Editor) and Katie Holly (Producer).  

As a part of RTÉ’s drama expansion, Storyland moved to RTÉ television for the first time last year with three single 30-minute dramas being broadcast in the autumn of 2022. From September 2023, RTÉ has three new series with 18 hours coming in the autumn on RTÉ One and three brand new Storyland single dramas for RTÉ2. 

With that in consideration, while the Ardán/ RTÉ Short Film Commission is looking for a self-contained film with brought to life characters, it is also an opportunity to develop a character or characters capable of becoming recurring characters in an RTÉ TV Drama. 

The deadline for receipt of applications is 5pm on Friday, 6th October. Full guidelines and information on how to apply are available here. 

Join us for an information day 

As applications are being sought from teams of writers, producers and directors, we will hold an info day to facilitate those who would like to take part in the scheme but need to find team members.  

The info day will be held in Portershed a Dó (Market Street) in Galway City on Friday 15th September at 1pm-4pm. 

The day will start with a panel discussion on the Ardán / RTÉ Short Film Commission, comprising industry experts and past participants. The panel will discuss important information on the scheme and provide learned experiences from those who have previously taken part in the scheme. 

There will also be an opportunity for individual writers / producers / directors who are looking to form a team to pitch themselves to the room, to facilitate networking and team creation.  

Registration is required to attend the info day. You can register your attendance via the form at this link / and those interested in pitching can indicate that in the form. Registration closes on 14th September. 

Here’s the running order for the info day: 

1:00pm: Registration with Teas & coffees 

1:30pm: Panel Discussion followed by Q&A 

2:30pm: Pitching opportunities 

3:15pm: Networking 

4:00pm: Finish 

For more information on the info day or the application itself please email kenny@ardan.ie 

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