Galway and the West of Ireland continue to play a key role in Ireland’s local, national, and international impact as an island of artistic and cultural renown, and Ardán is proud to play its part in supporting creative screen talent in film, TV, games, and animation, through our funding and bursaries, training and mentorship, and events and networking opportunities.
Ardán is a non-profit film, TV, games, and animation organisation based in Galway that supports entry, emerging, and established creatives in the screen industry across the West of Ireland and throughout the country. Previously known as Galway Film Centre - a member-based organisation established back in 1989, a resource for emerging filmmakers - Ardán rebranded in 2022 to encompass the evolving screen sector including games.
FÍS TV & Games Summits go from strength to strength
In 2026, Ardán held the ninth annual FÍS TV Summit in February and the sixth FÍS Games Summit in April in the Radisson RED in Galway. Hundreds of people attended these events, with a host of local, national, and international speakers and panels to gain insights from.
“I was delighted to speak at the excellent Ardán organised FÍS TV Conference, it’s like a mini-Edinburgh festival, and it’s getting bigger and better each year.” - Larry Bass, ShinAwil
The TV Summit’s headline panel included the Producer and Commissioner of Netflix’s 2025 breakout series ‘Adolescence’, and the Games Summit 2026 included headline speakers Gareth Damian Martin (Citizen Sleeper ) and Paul Conway (Spooky Doorway ).
International recognition as a UNESCO City of Film
As managers of the Galway UNESCO City of Film programme and designation, Ardán has just closed applications for the 2026 Ceantar Scannán Short Doc Bursary & Mentorship, and we look forward to working with the successful applicants on their projects. Galway City of Film continues to support other events and training opportunities throughout the year, including the continuation of last year’s Comhair Gaeilge Exchange which will coincide with Stiuideo Fia’s inaugural stop-motion festival, Frame Fest this August.
“The Ceantar Scannán Short Doc Bursary allowed us to commit to the project, take time off paid work and invest time in research and prep. It gave us the luxury of space to find the stories we wanted to tell.” - Jessie Green & Normagh Heaney - ‘Blackrock’ (2025 )
We continue to support Galway events like the Misléor Festival of Nomadic Cultures, and we are looking forward to the 10th Little Cinema 48 Hour Challenge this September. This year’s 48 Hour Challenge coincides with Ardán hosting 30+ delegates from around the world for the UNESCO Creative Cities Network annual film subnetwork meeting. As part of this visit, we will host city and county tours to show all that the Galway region has to offer.
Fostering international collaboration and co-production
Ardán helps to foster international collaboration and co-production opportunities through our memberships in global screen networks like the UNESCO Creative Cities of Film, Screen Talent Europe, and Cineregio. In partnership with National Talent Academy (NTA ) for Film & TV, Ardán sends participants to Screen Talent Europe’s training schemes such as Director’s Village and Talent Camp Odense. We also bring emerging screen creatives here. Last year’s NTA Film & TV and WRAP Commission Producer Exchange brought a cohort of producers from Bradford to Galway during the Galway Film Fleadh & Fair.
WRAP Fund and Commission nurtures regional production and producers in the West and Northwest of Ireland through strategic screen investment and talent support. In 2025, the WRAP Commission supported fam (familiarisation ) tours for our New Zealand delegation during the Cities of Film Animation Exchange and for the Canadian Media Producer’s Association alongside Screen Producers Ireland, with tours including visits to Connemara. As well as incoming support, WRAP facilitates regional producers attending international markets including Berlinale, Cannes, Annecy Animation Festival, and Gamescom.
“WRAP Commission and Ardán Access to Market Support has made a big difference for me, not just in being able to attend Berlinale this year, but being able to take the right meetings, introduce myself to the right people, avail of networking opportunities, fly the flag for the West, and maximise every day.” - Garry Kelly, GK Media
Working with partners to provide more opportunities
Other regular collaborations include the Science on Screen research documentary and animation initiative on which Ardán and CÚRAM collaborated for the last 10 years. This year’s research documentary will focus on STEM as Gaeilge exploring Science, Tech, Engineering and Mathematics through a documentary made in the Irish language.
“It was such a positive experience working with the teams at both Ardán and CÚRAM under the Science on Screen scheme. They genuinely made the process very enjoyable; the collaboration felt very organic and respectful. We made some lovely friendships and would work with them without hesitation in the future.” - Maria O’Neill - ‘Counter Attack’ (2025 )
We look forward to announcing more about the second year of the Screen Ireland Digital Games Portfolio that we manage annually alongside Imirt in the next few weeks. And we are proud to see Eibh Collins nominated for an IMAGE Businesswoman of the Year Award; Eibh is the Director of NTA Film & TV, a Screen Ireland initiative that is managed by Ardán.
Advocating for the regional screen sector
As well as supporting screen creatives through funding, training, and events, Ardán continues to be a resource for the local screen industry, providing crew, facility, and location databases on Screen West and WRAP, and in advocating for improved regional screen industry supports through its work as chair of the Western AV Forum. We have just completed a sectoral survey, and we look forward to submitting our findings to the Department of Culture through the annual WAVF Pre-Budget Submission.
Subscribe to the monthly newsletter to get the latest news from Ardán, Galway City of Film, WRAP, National Talent Academy for Film & TV, FÍS Summits, and Screen West. Find out how you can apply for funding, register for an event, or attend training opportunities.
