Photo: Back L-R: Brian Gleeson (actor), Nicky Phelan (Brown Bag Films), Conor McPherson (Screenwriter & Playright) Lenny Abrahamson (Director); Front: Eoghan Rice, Niamh Heery, Roisin Loughery, Alan Whelan.
Harmanli: Trapped on the Fringe of Freedom, directed by Niamh Heery, has been nominated for the prestigious Irish Council of Civil Liberties Human Rights Film Award. The winner will be announced on 26 June at an awards ceremony in the Lighthouse Cinema.
This gives really great exposure for the film and the issue of the treatment of Syrian asylum seekers in Europe. Not only that, but the jury of the awards is made up of some of the most influential figures in the Irish Film Industry.
Speaking at the shortlist announcement, Awards Jury member Lenny Abrahamson said:
“I’m delighted to join my fellow Jury members today to launch the shortlist of the 2014 ICCL Human Rights Film Awards. This year’s shortlist contains a range of Irish and international short films touching on human rights topics of urgent global and local significance, from the crisis of homelessness, to the effects of the Syrian conflict. I would like to congratulate all the filmmakers on reaching the shortlist of this unique competition. I look forward to our deliberations to decide the winning film.”