The Laois Short Film Inaugural Bursary aims to foster talent and activity in film making in County Laois and is funded by Creative Ireland in partnership with Laois County Council. The Bursary is for a short drama or documentary film of 10 to 12 minutes duration to be shot in the county.
The 2021 Bursary is now open for submissions with a deadline of 4pm on Friday 6th August
This year both short documentary (10-12mins) & drama (10-12mins) are being accepted.
Also, a core member of each team applying for the bursary, ie Writer/ Director/ Producer, must be from or living in Laois.
COMPETITIVE APPLICATIONS
This Bursary is highly competitive and we are asking for the widest range of stories possible. We are interested in screenplays that reflect aspects of Irish experience across different generations/gender/ethnicities, class and landscapes. It is important that Laois features on screen and so we would like to hear about locations you are thinking of using.
The successful team are encouraged to hire local crew to work on the shoot.
You can access the guidelines & application form here:
Five Laois heritage projects have been awarded funding totalling over €44,000 by the National Heritage Council under the Community Heritage Grants Scheme. Nationally, the scheme will see €1.2 million allocated to community groups and not-for-profit organisations. This follows on from an award of €374,599 made to community heritage projects in April 2021.
The funding will boost local economies, grow tourism, and enhance community spirit by supporting local heritage projects.
The projects are all undertaken by voluntary groups and the topics in Laois range from improved access for people with disabilities at Donaghmore Workhouse, and community monitoring of Climate Change on local built heritage to conservation of historic newspapers reporting the historic first East West Transatlantic Flight by the Col James Fitzmaurice and digital recording of medieval monuments.
Trevor Stanley (Secretary of Donaghmore Workhouse &Agricultural Museum) with Catherine Casey (Heritage Officer , Laois Co. Council ) at the opening of the Dining Hall at Donaghmore Workhouse in 2014. The Museum has been awarded funding to improve accessibility for all under the new Heritage Council Community Grants Fund. Photo: Michael Scully
Welcoming the grant awards, Cathaoirleach Catherine Fitzgerald said “These Heritage Council grants amount of over €44,000 to be injected into the Laois economy and I’d like to congratulate each of the voluntary groups involved – the Col James Fitzmaurice Commemoration Society, Donaghmore Famine Workhouse & Agricultural Museum, Mountmellick Development Association, Laois Heritage Society and Laois Federation of Tidy Towns for their hard work on behalf of the people and heritage of the county. Laois always punches above its weight when it comes to quality and quantity of community heritage projects and I’m delighted to see that trend continuing. I wish all of the groups the best with their projects and look forward to hearing about some of them during Heritage Week in August”.
Killeshin Church with its carved Romanesque doorway will be digitally recorded by Laois Heritage Society under a new project funded by the Heritage Council and announced today (Photo: Laois Heritage Office).
Sean Murray, Chairman of Laois Heritage Society said “We are delighted to have obtained funding for digital 3-D modelling recording of three sites in Co. Laois. The survey will include sites identified as of National importance with regards to the Early Church tradition in Ireland. The Hiberno-Romanesque doorways of Killeshin Church and Timahoe Round tower and Early Medieval Cross Slabs uncovered at Clonenagh in 1989, which were associated with St. Fintan’s Monastery there, will all feature as part of the project. The project will engage with the local communities in the areas and workshops are planned later in the year to train people who have an interest in the digital recording heritage monuments”.
Commenting on the announcement, Minister of State for Heritage and Electoral Reform, Malcolm Noonan, TD, said: “I would like to acknowledge the fantastic work of the Heritage Council in supporting community heritage through this important scheme. As the scope and scale of these projects illustrate, communities play a vital role in caring for all aspects of our heritage. The new national heritage plan, Heritage Ireland 2030, which will be published later this summer, will recognise the role of communities in safeguarding our heritage and ensure that they continue to be supported.”
Chairman of The Heritage Council, Michael Parsons, said: “These schemes continue to provide a central focus for the work of The Heritage Council. They are testament to the close collaboration between the Council, local authorities and community groups, all sharing a common purpose.”
Teddy Fennelly of the Col Fitzmaurice Commemoration Society and Michael Parsons, Chair of the Heritage Council, pictured in Fitzmaurice Place Portlaoise (Photo: Catherine Casey, Laois Heritage Office).
Conservation and Digitization of Col Fitzmaurice Commemoration Society Archive – Phase 1
€7,550
Donaghmore Famine Workhouse & Agricultural Museum
Donaghmore Accessibility Enhancement Project to undertake elements of the Museum Accessibility Audit supported by the Heritage Council in 2020 to enrich visitor experiences.
€10,800
Mountmellick Development Association
To greatly improve the visitor experience with storyboards, 2 digital productions for use inhouse/website/Facebook.
€11,350
Laois Heritage Society
To digitally record and make accessible vulnerable carved stone features at three Laois sites – Killeshin Romanesque Doorway, Timahoe Romanesque Doorway & Early Christian Cross-Slabs at Clonenagh
€3,400
Laois Federation of Tidy Towns
To establish baseline data of built and architectural heritage via a checklist and monitoring of the key heritage features identified by a Tidy Towns as a tangible indicators of Climate Change
The closing date for these grants has now passed. Successful applicants will be notified as soon as possible
New opportunities for the Laois Cultural and Creative sector have been announced as part of the Jobs Stimulus Package from the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht.
Creative Ireland Laois has announced two new grant schemes for Laois Cultural and Creative practitioners (individuals & groups).
Under this fund, local projects and initiatives will provide supports for
placing creativity at the heart of economic development,
innovative place-making projects in local areas,
collaboration, and
professional development of creative practitioners and / or organisations.
There are two funds:
Equipment Grants
To promote the development of Cultural and Creative initiatives within Laois, Laois County Council Creative Ireland are awarding a number of Equipment grants to professional cultural and creative operators/ practitioners (individuals & groups) for upskilling in digital media practices.
Under this Creative Communities Jobs Stimulus measure, funding is provided for
Enabling access to digital equipment for cultural and creative operators/practitioners (individuals & groups).
The provision of an Equipment grant for cultural and creative operators/practitioners (individuals & groups) to adapt, reposition or reskill themselves or to repurpose their assets/offering to ensure they may continue to connect and engage with their local communities.
The closing date for receipt of applications for the Equipment Grants is 4pm on Friday, September 25, 2020
Cruinniu na nOg Portlaoise – Vincent Hunt, Tutor, helps a young child at Dunamaise Arts Centre . Photo: Michael Scully.
Co-Create grants
Laois County Council Creative Ireland are awarding a number of Co-Create grants to professional cultural and creative operators / practitioners to collaborate in the development of new initiatives.
Cultural and Creative operators / practitioners must collaborate with a community group, or school, or NGO, or Enterprise, or community group, or voluntary group, or professional group.
Under this Creative Communities Job Stimulus Funds scheme, funding may be provided for a broad range of initiatives that:
Connect, engage & collaborate with local and marginalised communities and other communities, small towns and villages; or small to medium enterprises; or public buildings; or heritage and landscape; or local cultural and heritage venues; or Maker Spaces/Studio; and/or a blend of the above. This is not a prescriptive list and we welcome your proposals.
The closing date for the Co-Create Grants is 4pm on Monday, September 28, 2020
Creative Ireland
Creative Ireland is the Government’s Legacy Programme for Ireland 2016. The Laois County Council 2018-22 five-year Culture and Creativity Plan can be viewed here.
The Creative Ireland Programme has collaboration at its heart – between central and local government; between heritage, arts, culture and industry; between artists, communities and policy makers– to facilitate a culture of creativity.
Funding of €87,000 has been announced for the conservation of protected structures in County Laois. A total of 14 buildings were allocated funds through the Built Heritage Investment Scheme and the Structures at Risk Fund.
Both schemes are administered by Laois County Council, with funding from the Department for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht. These grants have been awarded following assessments by local authorities, who accepted applications from members of the public and put recommended projects forward to the Minister for approval.
Mountmellick Town Hall has been awarded funding to continue conservation work started in 2017
Full details of all projects funded nationally are at the website of the DCHG.
Details of the schemes and projects funded in Laois are here.
The Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Heather Humphreys TD, has announced that the very successful Built Heritage Investment Scheme and Structures at Risk Fund will operate again in 2018. The two schemes will provide a €3.3 million in investment in 2018 for the repair and conservation of protected structures. These schemes supported more than 500 projects across the country in 2017 and helped to provide employment in the conservation and construction industries.
Minister Humphreys said:
“This investment of €3.3 million in the Built Heritage Investment Scheme and Structures at Risk Fund will encourage the investment of private capital in small-scale, labour-intensive projects to repair and conserve historic structures. This will improve the appearance and structure of historic buildings across the country and will also support jobs in the conservation and construction industries.
“Well-maintained historic buildings contribute positively to the vitality of our cities, towns, villages and countryside. Local communities have a great sense of pride in their built heritage, which in turn can help to provide an important source of local employment by boosting tourism.
“Both schemes will operate on the same model as the 2017 schemes, which were a great success, funding over 500 projects across every local authority area in the country. They will help to regenerate urban and rural areas, and will come as a welcome boost to the custodians of heritage properties.”
House on the Square, Durrow, conserved with funding from the Built Heritage Investment Scheme in 2017
Scheme documents for 2018 available to date are below. Further details will be published when available.
Built Heritage Investment Scheme
All works carried out under the BHIS must be capital works. Full details of all requirements are in the Circular BHIS 18/1.
The BHIS will operate in 2018 with funding available to the amount of €2,000,000 nationally. The amount available to each Local Athority has not yet been published.
The total funding available for each individual project cannot exceed 50% of the total project cost.
The minimum funding available under the BHIS will be €2,500 up to a maximum grant of €15,000.
The closing date for receipt of completed applications is 31st January 2018.
All works carried out under the SRF must be capital works. Only structures or parts of structures in immediate danger of significant deterioration will qualify for consideration for funding.
The SRF will operate in 2018 with funding available to the amount of €1,324,000; €74,000 of which will be allocated for funding towards the type of house covered by An Action Plan for the Sustainable Future of the Irish Historic House, launched in 2015.
Due to the limited resources available for the operation of the scheme in 2018, DCHG will consider four applications per local authority, only one of which may be a publicly-owned building. A fifth application may be made if it relates to an Irish Historic House in private ownership.
The total funding available for each individual project shall not exceed 80% of the total project cost. The minimum funding available under the SRF will be €15,000 up to a maximum grant of €30,000. The minimum funding available for a fifth project in respect of a historic house in private ownership will be €5,000 up to a maximum of €10,000. The closing date for applications is 31st January 2018.
Funding has been announced for the conservation of protected structures in Laois, and nationally. Two schemes, administered by Laois County Council on behalf of the Department of Arts, Heritage, Rural, Regional and Gaeltacht Affairs will bring almost €150,000 in funding to 15 properties right across the county. A wide range of building types in Laois will benefit from funding this year, including thatched houses, old mills, churches, modest homes, and large country houses. Typical works to be funded under the scheme include roof repairs, structural consolidation and measures to ensure weather tightness.
Map showing the distribution of grants under the Built Heritage Investment Scheme (Green) and Structures at Risk Fund (red) in Laois. Courtesy of Google maps.
Welcoming the funding announcement, John Mulholland, Chief Executive of Laois County Council said “Laois County Council is delighted to be involved in running these schemes, which bring a significant benefit to both the building owners, and the heritage of the county. This funding is also important as a support the construction sector in the region, particularly the specialist conservation skills involved in maintaining and repairing these buildings. I am particularly pleased to see funding allocated to two prominent buildings in the historic core of Portlaoise, which was the focus of the recently published Vision Statement. Building on the medieval core of the town will be an important element of developing a vibrant future for Portlaoise”.
St Peter’s Church of Ireland in Portlaoise benefitted from the Structures at Risk Fund in 2016 and has been awarded funding in 2017 to repair the historic boundary wall of the church.
At national level, €3.5 million is being made available under the Built Heritage Investment Scheme and €1.3 million is being made available under the Structures at Risk Fund to allow for the conservation and repair of protected structures across the country. Minister Heather Humphreys said: “This investment will support the conservation of our heritage buildings and jobs in the conservation sector right across the country. The €4.8 million investment will leverage a further €11 million in private sector funds and will stimulate labour-intensive projects nationwide.
“Ireland’s heritage buildings and protected structures are a vital part of the infrastructure of our villages, towns, and cities. The Action Plan for Rural Development recognises the importance of investing in built heritage as a tool for rural regeneration and the economic recovery is allowing me to increase the level of funding available. Investing in our built heritage is not just good for the individual properties concerned, but can also provide a real boost to job creation in the construction, conservation and tourism sectors “.
