EurAV’s Drogheda studio was hopping this summer with media production training masterclasses, and a creative audio-visual project that saw cameras, actors and crews on the streets of the town.
Thanks to Coimisiún na Meán, the Irish media commission, EurAV put on a range of media training masterclass options for the community in media production, interviewing/presenting techniques and editing.
“We ran the three courses at the start of summer and again over the past three weeks with the editing masterclass weekend just finished,” explained Declan Cassidy, the multi-award-winning film maker overseeing the development and delivery of the courses for EurAV.
“We ended up with more applicants than we could cater for, so we’re looking into ways of running all three courses again over the winter months. We aim to keep the training free, so anyone interested in registering can contact us through the website.”
Cassidy was also busy mentoring a group of creatives for the Creative Ireland and Louth County Council -supported “Drogheda Through Our Eyes”.
“Drogheda Through Our Eyes” was a marvellous project to work on,” he said. “The basic idea was to have 10 participants create simple short audio-visual pieces that reflected their perspectives on Drogheda. EurAV’s role was to support them with equipment and expertise where needed. It grew into something quite special.”
One of the projects saw Ukrainian first-time film maker Volodymyr Plantieiev create a short film that had the town buzzing with activity – with local businesses roped in as locations and local people appearing as extras in scenes.
“The film took on a life of its own,” said Cassidy. “Volodymyr did an incredible job from start to finish, and the cast and crew he gathered around the project were really enthusiastic and motivated. Some were complete first timers and some were people already active within the film industry, who simply wanted to help out.”
Volodymyr’s film was also significant in that it found local Irish working shoulder to shoulder with some of our society’s newer arrivals to create what looks to be a very significant film.
“There’s nothing like art to break down cultural barriers,” said Cassidy, “and those working on the film seem really keen to keep the collaboration going.”
The Drogheda Through Our Eyes audio-visual pieces are due to be released online, so watch this space for details!